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Book Review: A Change in Altitude by Anita Shreve

October 19, 2009 by Darlene

A Change in Altitude is the latest by Anita Shreve. I’ve been an Anita Shreve fan for a while with my favorite remaining The Pilot’s Wife. In A Change in Altitude, Shreve takes us on a journey through a couple’s relationship and a climb up Mount Kenya which she in fact did herself and this in turn ended up giving us a much more vivid view in our minds of what this must have been like for them.

The story is about Margaret and Patrick, a young couple who decide to move to Kenya for a year for Patrick to further his career in medicine. They’ve only been married a few months and things are difficult for Margaret as she has no job and things are much different for her in Kenya compared to home. Eventually she takes up photography again and this takes her on a journey through Kenya in which she is able to see both the good and the devastating living conditions of some.

They meet another couple, Arthur and Diana, who invite them to climb Mount Kenya with them. Margaret, despite serious misgivings finally gives in to the pressure Patrick is exerting on her to agree to go. Margaret doesn’t do too well on the climb up as she isn’t in the best shape for this kind of thing. However it isn’t this that throws the whole trip into chaos – it is the unimaginable tragedy that occurs – a tragedy that not only splits people apart but leaves a young marriage in turmoil.

Margaret and Patrick return home and try to pick up the pieces of their lives but they are left with serious questions about each other and are having trouble working their way back to the happily married couple they first were. Patrick buries himself in his work and Margaret in her photography and a new friendship which is making her question her marriage and what it means to her.

Shreve definitely paints a vivid description of Africa and the climb up Mount Kenya and that I enjoyed but what was missing in this novel for me was the connection I like to feel to at least some of the characters. I had trouble with Margaret’s and Patrick’s relationship; for a newly married couple it just didn’t seem right. Margaret didn’t stand up for herself as much as I would have wished and I found Patrick mean and arrogant at times in his treatment of her.

Ultimately this novel is about relationships; something that Shreve writes well. It shows how one small moment in which one loses trust in their partner can throw a whole relationship upside down and how they can try to work their way back if they’re determined enough. While this isn’t one of my favorites of Anita Shreve’s, it was still a good read for me. You can buy A Change in Altitude here in the US and here in Canada.

My Thanks…
—to Hachette Book Group for my review copy of A Change in Altitude by Anita Shreve

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Filed Under: 100+ Reading Challenge 2009, 2009 ARC Reading Challenge, 2009 Book Reviews

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Book Bird Dog says

    October 19, 2009 at 9:57 am

    I mentioned in other reviews of the book that the plot seems to be similar to E.M. Forster's A Passage to India, an English classic published in the 1920s.

  2. itsJUSTme-wendy says

    October 19, 2009 at 10:27 am

    I had my eye on this book. I was wondering what it was about. My favorite was "White on Snow" have you read that one?

  3. mariag says

    October 19, 2009 at 12:41 pm

    I hope to read this one soon. Sounds interesting.

  4. Alice Teh says

    October 19, 2009 at 12:56 pm

    I haven't read anything by Shreve but hope to do so one day. I love books on relationships.

  5. Sherri says

    October 19, 2009 at 1:18 pm

    Darlene, thanks for the review on this book. I love Anita Shreve, so I guess I'll be adding yet another book to my wish list!! My husband never has to worry about a Christmas book list does he-LOL!!!

  6. Wanda says

    October 19, 2009 at 1:45 pm

    I hate to say it but it seems Anita Shreve has slipped a notch since A Wedding in December and hasn't yet managed to regain her footing. I'll still read this one but I'm in no great hurry. With the exception of All He Ever Wanted (didn't really care for that one either) I found her earlier novels hard to put down, finishing in days rather than weeks. The Weight of Water is my favourite!

  7. Nicola says

    October 19, 2009 at 3:43 pm

    I just finished Testimony, my first book of hers and am interested in reading this one next. Great review!

  8. Missy says

    October 19, 2009 at 3:45 pm

    I think my favorite is The Pilot's Wife. I haven't really enjoyed any of her others that much.

  9. Sandy Nawrot says

    October 19, 2009 at 4:28 pm

    I thought this book sounded a little different than the other Shreve books I've read, and I have to ask…was there a Shreve twist? She always seems to throw in a doozie somewhere!

  10. Books We Read says

    October 19, 2009 at 5:56 pm

    Your blog is very pretty… Anyway,
    I would like to tell you that I am soliciting book reviews for my blog and I will be giving away jewelry set in exchange for book review. For details, please visit my blog: http://mylastread.blogspot.com/2009/01/blog-post.html

    Your review has to be a review of a book that I had not read or reviewed. (let me know what book your review is about and I will tell you if it's one that I had read or not)

    Hope to hear from you soon.

  11. bermudaonion says

    October 19, 2009 at 6:14 pm

    I'm glad to see you liked this one because I trust your opinion and the reviews seem to be mixed.

  12. Lisa says

    October 19, 2009 at 10:21 pm

    A friend, who has read every Shreve book, says Shreve is back with this one. Sounds like you might not totally agree.

    And can I just say how much I love your header every time I open your page!

  13. Staci says

    October 20, 2009 at 1:20 am

    I like Shreve too and I know that I will eventually read this one. Great insights on this one Dar!

  14. Diane says

    October 20, 2009 at 1:21 am

    Good review Dar. (It was not a favorite of hers for me).

  15. Kailana says

    October 20, 2009 at 4:07 am

    Shreve is a hit or miss author for me. This one looks good, though. 🙂

  16. Trish says

    October 20, 2009 at 11:33 am

    Does this one carry any of the same characters or places that her other books do? That's what I kind of liked about the ones that I've read except I wish I would have known that going in and read them in order. I think Weight of Water is my favorite but liked Pilot's Wife, too.

  17. Andreea says

    October 20, 2009 at 3:50 pm

    Sounds interesting! I am glad you enjoyed it. Great review!

  18. April says

    October 20, 2009 at 4:32 pm

    What a great review, Dar! I loved The Pilot's Wife. This one sounds so good too. There is something about the cover that just makes me want to hug someone, lol.

  19. Janel says

    October 20, 2009 at 11:09 pm

    I love books with exotic settings and complicated relationships. I'll give this one a try sometime.

  20. Serena says

    October 22, 2009 at 5:55 pm

    This one is on the shelf to be read…I hope to get to it soon.

  21. Zibilee says

    October 22, 2009 at 8:42 pm

    I had a hard time with the only book I have read by Shreve, and I am a little wary of reading her in the future, but I thought your review was really interesting well written.

  22. Nicole says

    October 23, 2009 at 12:11 pm

    I really liked this one too! Probably a bit more than you because I just took their relationship from what it was. They seemed haphazard and disconnected from the beginning so I liked the Margaret was exploring for answers. Great review!

  23. J.T. Oldfield says

    October 23, 2009 at 2:21 pm

    I've never read Anita Shreve. Maybe I shouldn't start with this one?

  24. JoAnn says

    October 23, 2009 at 7:03 pm

    Shreve seems to be hit or miss for me. I still have Testimony in my tbr, but I think Fortune's Rocks is my favorite.

  25. Anna says

    November 5, 2009 at 1:50 am

    I've seen a lot of reviews that say this wasn't her best. I'm glad you liked it anyway. I hope to get to this one soon.

    –Anna
    Diary of an Eccentric

  26. Anonymous says

    November 26, 2010 at 3:21 am

    This is the kind of thing I try to teach people. Can we expect a sequel?

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