2 Followers
2 Following
madbkwm

madbkwm

The Memory Keeper's Daughter - Kim Edwards It was just not very interesting. I did not like any of the characters and the writing was kind of repetitive and boring. My list of complaints is below:

I found it unlikely that Caroline would call the clinic the day after the twins birth and not admit to having been there; certainly David might have already said something to someone about her having assisted the birth.

I get that the driving force of everyone's actions was David's split moment decision to give Pheobe away to a home, but I wasn't really compelled to believe that he would have done that. Even if he did send her to a home, why wouldn't he want to see her. In the moment of decision, he is supposedly protecting Norah, but he is the one who loved June and misses June. He also presents Norah and his mother as such contrasts, why would he assume that Norah's reaction to Pheobe would be the same as his mother's reaction to June? And, in the moment of decision, isn't he also planning on visiting Pheobe at some point? It all just was too far fetched.

As a parent of bright children and with a mother-in-law who works in the public school system, I can understand the drag on resources that children with mental handicaps are on the systems. I am not saying that we should institutionalize them, but I am frequently offended by the energy and money that is spent in American on bringing up the bottom, rather than encouraging and challenging the top.

I thought the scene where Paul got stoned and his friends trashed David's dark room was also not believable. The whole thing felt so heavy-handed and moralistic: don't do drugs or you'll lose control and tear apart your dad's space; don't tell lies or you will tear apart your marriage; make sure you attend church so that your life will be better. Maybe I just don't agree with Edwards's position (even though I am compulsively honest), but I didn't really enjoy all the preaching in the novel.

The whole Rosemary as redemption was also garbage: David goes back to his childhood home and finds the virgin Mary (well not quite, but kinda) and then brings her home and takes care of her to replace lost Pheobe and have her as guardian of all his secrets. BLECH

Finally, it was absolutely unbelievable that Paul would not be there for David's funeral. Of course Norah could find him. Even if she didn't have his itinerary; she would know his manager or agent. I mean really, his dad dies and they bury him and then 10 days later meet him in Paris?? Edwards thought this would be a cool scene so she tried to justify it but it is just ridiculous.

Overall it did not keep my interest and was not really worth the time.