It's odd how similar this book is to Empire Falls, even though it's only a quarter of its size and about an area on the other side of the United States. It may be minimalistic instead of expansive, but Off Keck Road perfectly describes small town life and its inapplicability in today's world. People don't necessarily change, but places do; attachment to place is vastly important, which is why the end is, in many ways, heartbreaking. The perspective wanders among various characters, but it begins and ends largely with one (Bea Maxwell) who doesn't fit in and yet is the only one left. There are wealthy and poor, and the lifestyles of each is in many ways very different, but they remain consistent with what one might expect.One thing that struck me was how closely I identified to Bea's character; I guess living in a small state is like living in a small town, and the continuous push-pull of expectations and desires is felt by everyone. Character, not plot, is what drives this novella forward, so one has to be interested in the characters if one wants to keep reading to the end. Also, reading this in as few sittings as possible makes it easier to keep track of who is related to whom, who lives where, and what time period currently is being described because the book hops around in time and amid characters in a non-linear way. I think the trouble I had keeping all the details straight in my head was due to picking it up for short periods and reading just a chapter at a time.Worthwhile read for someone willing to put in the time to read it and invest oneself in the characters. This book doesn't aim to take ant positions or make any big points, it just follows small-town people around, like regular people do every day.
In this expansive novella wrought of spare, lyrical passages, Mona Simpson traces with affection the entire arcs of two women's lives. Bea Maxwell never marries, foreswearing a life in Chicago to return to Green Bay to care for her ailing busybody mother as arthritis cripples her. Bea's life as a prosperous but frustrated real estate saleswoman counters but parallels the coming-of-age of young Shelley, whose stubbornness couples nicely with a naivety that contrasts Bea's ability to glimpse the motives of the proper old-fashioned men and women of her parents' generation. The point of view flitters gracefully between these women's impressions of their lives and reveals the frustrations of growing up in a city growing less familiar with each new subdivision. Simpson remains faithful to her character's impressions and standpoints and doesn't allow for commentary; rather, in her focus on the pains of spinsterhood, the quiet death of one's parents, the distance that grows between siblings and old friends, Simpson gives life to the imperceptible pains of stagnation and stasis most people ignore as the world around them dims, and revives our hope briefly in the potential for such change to enliven us, to redefine ourselves and start anew. For my money, this spare little book says much more about the cost of living in a maturing America than most of the bigger, sardonic books on the shelves. I always was more afraid of needles than knives; that kind of pain was impossible to ignore because you lived to feel it.
What do You think about Off Keck Road (2015)?
Some reviewers said that this book didn't have enough plot to satisfy them. I just enjoyed the characters--pretty ordinary people with ordinary lives but lives of value.
—Mary
A look into the lives of two women from "opposite sides of the tracks" in Green Bay Wisconsin from the 50's into the early 80's. Well drawn characters and excellent writing, but suffers from its scope and length - - it is really a novella, and given the time over which their lives are dipped into, we can really only know the characters in snatches. It is a testament to the skill of the author that I want to know more about Bea and Shelley and to imagine their continued lives. Reminded me a little of Olive Kitteridge, though not as nuanced.
—H
