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Read Mister Sandman (1998)

Mister Sandman (1998)

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Genre
Rating
3.64 of 5 Votes: 2
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ISBN
0156005778 (ISBN13: 9780156005777)
Language
English
Publisher
mariner books

Mister Sandman (1998) - Plot & Excerpts

The story is complex, so we'll start with the family: a mother, a father and their two girls, one of whom is fifteen and recently lost her virginity (albeit somewhat unwittingly; she turns to the man directly thereafter and gasps, "Did we go all the way?"). Oldest daughter becomes pregnant. Mother and daughter travel to the nursing home where an elderly aunt is staying, and the daughter gives birth in a basement room where not a year earlier, an elderly woman named Alice killed herself, etching "Rot in Hell" into the windowpane. The older women attending the birth swear that the baby, born small and white-haired, screamed "Oh no, not again!" in Alice's voice upon entry. The baby is dropped on her head by a surprised nurse. "Mister Sandman" is more than a novel about a possibly reincarnated idiot savant, though that in itself could be a formidable plot. It is about a family which, by all appearances, should be miserable: the youngest "daughter" born out of wedlock, the boy-hungry middle child, the parents, whom are respectively in the closet. It is a rare book in that family members, despite appearances or failure to satisfy conventional household norms, support one another and, together, become a content unit, secrets or no. It is that rare book in that, at the book's end, secrets disclosed do not result in isolation, but an affirmation of acceptance by those who truly love one another. Not to be discounted is Gowdy's lyrical writing style, which seems to reach at times but ultimately makes the story's telling, and the skill taken with the small details which compose the total, compelling picture of the novel's 1960s Toronto: one sister's secret adherence to a false bra, the moldy basement apartment of the grandmother who worships Queen Elizabeth and plucks the mushrooms growing from her damp living room carpet to fry and eat on toast "as the English do", the youngest's black-carpeted "office".

Alas. I thought Mister Sandman was just okay. In short: It’s a book about the disparity between ‘true’ selves and what we reveal to those we love. The secrets we keep from our partners and children; the secrets we keep from ourselves. The reverberations of these secrets are detected by the changeling child of the family, Joan, who, because she is ‘brain damaged’ and assumed to be mute, absorbs (and records) the secrets she hears, only to echo them back in (magical) and transformative ways. No question the novel is inventive in form and in some language. There’s a playfulness and humour that underlines the ‘heavy’ themes of betrayal, self-awareness, sexual awakening and identity.And yet I didn’t care much about what happened to any of the characters or if they were ‘found out’ for who they really are/want to be. This lack of care wasn’t because I didn’t appreciate their specificity, rather I found that the opacity they present to the world (and in many instances, to themselves) made it a challenge – if not an impossibility – to connect or empathize with any of them myself. Moreover the characters – while undergoing significant ‘change’ in plot and experience – do little to evolve in their temperament or approach to one another. It’s as though the significant changes happen at them and around them, rather that to them in a way that might transform, complicate or enrich them (and so the reader’s understanding of who they are and their connection to us).

What do You think about Mister Sandman (1998)?

Having read Gowdy's 'Helpless' awhile back, I was quite excited to give 'Mister Sandman' a whirl. I am of mixed feelings of this story.I absolutely love Gowdy's writing style. This woman knows how to make you turn a page. At under 300 pages she tells a wholly complete story; I love a concise writer. I also found most of the characters very rooted in reality. The passages devoted to the juxtaposing sister, the seemingly asexual Sonja and the promiscuous Marcia, I found particularly appetizing.However, while 'Helpless' was an exquisite marriage of external and internal conflict, I felt 'Mister Sandman' was only rooted in the internal - very little actually HAPPENED, up until the end. I found parts a little dull. I am also especially not fond of 'child enigma' stories, and did not enjoy any storyline pertaining to Joan.This I conclude from my experience reading 'Mister Sandman' - I need a meaty story that rachets up the tensions, and is not entirely rooted in the mind. But man alive, do I love Barbara Gowdy. I will definitey keep reading her.
—Liz

The good: very readable, with lovely language and a fast pace. Ms Gowdy also treats her characters with a benevolence that I felt was deserved, as she successfully portrays them as a family trying to muddle through life while doing the least harm.The bad: the ending. I don't remember whether I had similar reservations about The White Bone, but the ending was strange. It wasn't exactly abrupt or awkward, just a little less kind than I thought the rest of the novel was. Maybe that's just me, but the last few sentences had the most cynicism of the entire book. And it doesn't really resolve the story of the Canary family.On the whole, very good, just not amazing.
—Doreen

The story of a family set in 50s-70s Canada; this unconventional family - closet homosexual Gordon; wild, lying Doris; brilliant, promiscuous Marcy; slow, overweight, happy Sonja; and genius, brain-damaged, beautiful, talented Joan - struggles with love, openness and honesty until Joan opens their eyes.Recommended by Margaret Atwood and by Salon.com, this story had me expecting to be as spellbound as I was when reading Geek Love. However, despite the book's interesting perspective and plot line, the effort seemed a bit uneven. I took the sexual proclivities of all the characters to be an unconventional device that would allow comparison across the same playing field - none were what we'd call "normal" and by writing this from a sexual perspective Gowdy forced the reader to confront what he or she viewed "normal" sexual activity (or lack thereof). This had the effect of both being somewhat shocking but also eventually forcing a look inwards, especially as the Canary family is so likable! Gowdy does some brilliant work here - one example is Marcy's promiscuity, which literaly means that she generally doesn't discriminate; after a bit of trial and error, she moves from one partner to another before any hearts are broken - she is free w/ love - she doesn't withhold based on history, age, past, etc (but she does appreicate the cute ones).However, the book feels a bit off balance. There are awkward sentences all over the book - I found myself having to re-read sections to figure out who "he" was and who "she" was; many of the metaphors were also awkward (too, a few were brilliant) but it caused me to mentally stumble, an uncomfortable situation for the reader.
—Holly

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