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Book Review: Matrimony by Joshua Henkin

December 8, 2008 by Darlene

I was lucky enough to win a copy of Matrimony ages ago from My Friend Amy and received a signed copy from Joshua Henkin and I finally settled in to read it. Thanks to Joshua and Amy.

Matrimony for me started out slow but once I got more involved in the characters lives I was hooked and kept reading until I finished it. This novel is beautifully written and the story line flows from when the characters are young and in college to when they are adults facing real life problems with the story itself spanning 20 years. The characters are well developed and likeable. This isn’t a fast paced story though. It is much more about the characters than anything major going on. For me, it was a story about real life with real people that I grew to care about.

The story is focused mainly on Julian and Mia. They meet and fall in love in college, marry young and proceed to grow into their lives together. Along the way Mia’s mother passes away from breast cancer, Julian struggles with his writing and ultimately tragic secrets come to light that threaten to destroy Julian and Mia’s marriage. The only complaint I have is I would have liked to see more of an emotional tie in to Julian’s and Mia’s marriage falling apart. There was no discussion of the problems or even a marriage counsellor-Julian just walked out for more than 15 months. I would hope that after a longtime marriage both individuals would make more of an effort to hold it together or at least see if that was possible.

My favorite character was Mia. I felt such a connection to her. It may be because of losing several people that I was very close with to breast cancer myself but my heart went out to her both when she lost her mother and then later had her own health issues. I think the author did a good job of portraying the grief and horror that accompanies this illness or even the threat of it. I also admired Mia’s quiet strength because in the face of her marriage breaking up she handled it all very calmly and gracefully. Something I can say in all honesty I couldn’t do.

The characters in this novel aren’t perfect. As a matter of a fact they are quite flawed and in that lies the strength of the story. We see them grow and try to find themselves. We see them try to work their way through problems-real issues that happen to all of us in everyday life. They make real mistakes and learn by them. That is what I liked about this novel. We see that decisions made or not made as young people in college or otherwise often form the basis for the rest of our lives.

This story has so much going on. It would be perfect for a book club I think. It isn’t only about marriage. I think it’s a novel about all relationships-siblings, parents and friends. It’s about life and life has it’s ups and downs as does a marriage. All anyone can really do is keep plugging away at it and hope that things turn out for the best. It’s about moving forward and forgiving when you’re not sure you can.

I don’t know that this novel is for everyone. If you like a fast paced novel, this may not be for you. If you like a real life story that keeps you interested because of it’s calm and relaxing way that let’s you into it’s characters lives so completely that you grow to genuinely care for them, then you will love this novel. For me, I really enjoyed it. I won’t soon forget Julian and Mia. Truthfully I would have liked to know where they were maybe five years from now-did they stay together-did things work out for them? I guess since I was really rooting for them to stay together that’s the ending I’ll choose.
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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. softdrink says

    December 8, 2008 at 5:36 am

    I’m hosting a giveaway of this book starting tomorrow, so your review is very timely. 🙂 In fact, I’m off to add it to the post…

  2. Lisa says

    December 8, 2008 at 6:17 am

    I enjoyed MATRIMONY and am also posting about it tomorrow. I enjoyed the book and felt it was a bit slow at the outset too, but I really settled into the pace and I like that the author took his time with the story. It reminded me of Stegner’s CROSSING TO SAFETY in many ways.

  3. Mary says

    December 8, 2008 at 10:33 am

    Dar, I’ve read such mixed reviews for this book. But, a book that has you rooting for characters at the end has to be pretty good!

  4. Trish says

    December 8, 2008 at 12:10 pm

    Even though I think this book discusses way too much material in too short amount of time, I also wanted to know what happened next. 🙂 I’m guessing and hoping that everything ended up great, but I guess because we saw Mia and Julian over so long a period of time I wanted to see just a little bit more.

  5. Ladytink_534 says

    December 8, 2008 at 2:39 pm

    I’ve heard many people say pretty much the same thing. I can’t say that this book really appeals to me though 🙁

  6. bermudaonion says

    December 8, 2008 at 3:25 pm

    I enjoyed this book, too. I have a giveaway going too – it started today.

  7. kalea_kane says

    December 8, 2008 at 5:14 pm

    Excellent review. I like a good story with fully developed characters. 🙂

    Have a great week!

  8. Toni says

    December 8, 2008 at 7:01 pm

    Hey Dar….thanks for the review. I think it is something I would like… something to savor slowly.

  9. Veens says

    December 9, 2008 at 3:58 am

    You know what, I have my giveaway ending today 🙂 Yah My very first giveaway 😉
    Awesome review! Better than mine 🙂

  10. S. Krishna says

    December 10, 2008 at 3:24 pm

    I’m reading this one right now and am going to be giving it away prob next week – nice review!

  11. Serena says

    December 10, 2008 at 5:35 pm

    I’m reading this now, and enjoying it, but it is not fast paced for sure.

  12. Dar says

    December 11, 2008 at 4:23 pm

    Softdrink, thanks for adding me on your links for your giveaway.

    Lisa, I found the beginning quite slow too but then it did pick up and keep my interest though.

    Mary, it’s hard to say who would like this novel and who wouldn’t because I think it’s the type of story that will affect everyone differently-just depends what you’re looking for in a story.

    Trish, that was my main complaint really. I wanted to see more about their breakup and their reconcilliation seemed way too easy too.

    Tink, there’s definitely enough reviews out on this one to know for sure whether it’s your style or not.

    Kathy, I’ll have to go back to your review. Somehow I missed it although I don’t know how.

    Kalea kane, thanks 🙂 This is definitely a character driven story.

    Toni, you may like this one. I don’t know if you put your name in for the giveaway or not. If not and you don’t win you’re certainly welcome to read my copy.

    Veens, your review was great. I loved it.

    Naida, I agree that it seemed these were real people and I think that’s why it ultimately keeps us reading.

    Swapna, I’m curious to see your review on this one.

    Serena, no, not face paced. Very slow and steady story.

  13. Anna says

    December 11, 2008 at 5:37 pm

    This book is in my TBR pile, and I’m looking forward to reading it. I like character-driven stories, but I hope the slow pace doesn’t slow down my reading! Great review!

    –Anna
    Diary of an Eccentric

  14. Dar says

    December 11, 2008 at 6:12 pm

    Anna, thanks. I found the slow pace mostly slowed me down in the beginning. Once it picked up it was much faster for me.

  15. dawn says

    December 11, 2008 at 10:00 pm

    I called *Matrimony* a “cozy” read in my review. I agree with you – slower-paced, unfolding life as it happens. I think it reflected a true slice of life, with its ups and downs.

  16. Dar says

    December 17, 2008 at 2:09 am

    Dawn, that’s a good way to describe Matrimony-a slice of life. It was like reading something that could happen to anyone and that made it a relaxing read.

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