This is the first Mary Gordon novel I've read--an exploration of mother love & the terrible effects of its lack. I sometimes felt that passages on the emotional permutations of the characters--especially Anne, the main protagonist--went on too long, particularly when reflecting her uncertainty about herself in relation to other women. However, that is likely more my reaction to women who are constantly comparing themselves (come on, get over it!) & less a flaw in the book. Maybe a woman who was not loved unreservedly by her mother does really struggle in these ways.I have been the transference object of a younger woman's hunger for absent mother-love, as Anne is of Laura's, & it's not a happy experience. Fortunately mine didn't have a denouement as apocalyptic as Anne's.Next time I go to the library I'll probably look for another of Gordon's novels.
