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BOOKS I READ: Wayward by Dana Spiotta (2021). The city of Syracuse in upstate New York and the 2016 election are the backdrop for this novel about fraying associations, husband-wife, mother-daughter and status-quo versus activism. Sam, approaching the end of middle age, suddenly decides to restart her life by buying a small house in the middle of the city. Tension is created by class and racial inequities at the forefront in today’s politics.
When Sam plots her exit from her marriage, we feel her need to escape from her comfortable upper class living, although she never fully leaves. She keeps the doors to her old life unlocked or ajar. The latter part of the book focuses on the devolution and rebuilding of the grandmother-mother-daughter relationships. When Sam’s daughter’s life moves to the forefront, Matt, the husband, an indulgent partner and parent, is often relegated to non-entity status. He comes across as just another overlooked landmark in the former city of salt.
Previous book from the reading log (or check out a list of all my recent reads):
NB: Using Medium’s shortform posts to chain my reading log.
