1. Begin by stating that Maggie O’Farrell’s Instructions for a Heatwave is a fairly conventional novel about a family.
2. Mention that the novel begins when Robert, husband of the
slightly dotty Gretta and father of three adult children, leaves his London
home in the morning and doesn’t return.
3. Note O’Farrell’s method for revealing characters’ secrets
to the reader first, then to other characters. O’Farrell manages to make the
family secret theme work better than most authors, perhaps because her
characters aren’t particularly perfect or appealing people. And (of course) not
everybody gets along. Be sure not to reveal their secrets to blog readers even
if that makes the post bland.
4. Get over the fact that O’Farrell uses the present tense, which
isn’t your favorite… it works well here, giving a feeling of immediacy, even
intimacy.
5. Accept that, though there are some wonderful references
to nasty aspects of a heatwave in the novel (e.g. that seeming plague of aphids)
the heatwave motif will cool. Accept that, even if you are disappointed because
you were hoping for a thread of heat-related strangeness. Inform everyone that
the book is set during a real-life heatwave
in 1976.
6. Feel the pain of Gretta and Robert’s adult
children—Aoife, Monica, and Michael Francis—as they travel together with Gretta
to find Robert. Find humor, though, in some of their interactions as old
conflicts and affections (re)surface.
7. Forgive yourself for not understanding why the novel
generally worked pretty well for you even though it was a bit slow at the beginning
and didn’t feel especially unusual or outstanding. Decide that the appeal
probably has to do with O’Farrell’s characterizations, which are sentimental
but not goopy and present intersecting sketches of characters—people—with real problems.
Remind readers that you love books about unpleasant characters who err. Appreciate
that O’Farrell has a light touch with these people, making them very human but
not letting them off too easy, either.
8. Thank publisher Alfred A. Knopf very much for sending a
review copy! And state that the book will go on sale June 18, 2013.
9. Mention current reading of J.L. Carr’s A Month in the Country, another book set
in England, a likely subject for a post after returning from a long week in England
itself…
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