We Were the Mulvaneys by Joyce Carol Oats

I have not been keeping track of my reading records as of late, so there will be another book coming very soon. I finished this book last week while I was at the beach. I suppose I should have taken a picture of the book when I was there.

We Were the Mulvaneys is a novel that follows a family over the course of about twenty years. At the beginning of the book in 1976, the Mulvaneys have everything going for them: they own a beautiful farm, a successful roofing business, and their four children are all successful in their own ways.

The theme here is how a family may choose to deal with tragedy. In this case, the family tragedy happens to the daughter, Marianne on prom night 1976. Initially most memebers of the family deal with their pain in unproductive ways; in fact, by the midpoint of the novel, the family is in shambles -- almost all the things they have going for them are gone.

Joyce Carol Oates shows how a family can be torn apart, and then put back together, something that takes nearly two decades in the Mulvaneys' case. I liked this novel because it is the kind I like -- the kind that follows a family or another group of people for many years or generations. I also enjoyed Oates' writing style. She is very descriptive and can be witty at times. I am likely to read another of her novels.

This novel was from Oprah's book club. I do not know from where or whom I got this book. It was on my bookshelf for at least four or five years before I picked it up. I am glad I did.

p.s. : There is a copy of We Were the Mulvaneys in the Classic City High School media center.