Each Wednesday I am featuring a guest post by a book blogger detailing which books they think are the “best” and “worst” by the author of their choice. Visit the series page for more information about the guest bloggers, the featured authors, and the sign-up form.
Please welcome today’s guest blogger: Stephanie from Reviews by Lola, who will be discussing the best and worst of Patricia Cornwell.
I have long had a fascination with Joyce Carol Oates. Her cannon is prolific, and attempting to read her published works is overwhelming, to say the least. To be honest though, my first experience with JCO could very well have been my last.
I remember I was in high school, and it had been just a few short years since We Were the Mulvaneys had been chosen by Oprah for its inclusion in her book club. There was nothing that drew me to the book other than that fact. I was going through a phase where I read quite a few of Oprah’s book club choices, so this one just seemed like a book I should read. I gave it my best. I really did. But you guys, I HATED We Were the Mulvaneys. I don’t think I even made it past page 60 before I admitted defeat. Because I loathed this one so much, I could very well have passed up JCO for good.
A few years down the road, on a whim, I picked up Blonde. Whoa. It’s a behemoth of a book and it tells the fictionalized account of Marilyn Monroe’s life, starting with her childhood. I’ll admit, I am not a huge Marilyn fan. It’s not that I dislike her, it’s just that I am more ambivalent. But I was enraptured by this book. I literally couldn’t put it down. Once I finished, I remember going straight to the library to check out biographies on Monroe. I felt all of a sudden like I knew her, but I needed all the information I could get my hands on. From that point on, I knew I had to read more from JCO.
Since then, I have read quite a few of JCO’s books, but that doesn’t even make a dent in what she has published. I think she does fictionalized reality superbly. After Blonde, I read My Sister, My Love, which is a fictionalized account of the Jonbenet Ramsey murder, told from the viewpoint of her older brother. I was astounded by the way JCO could take a highly publicized event and make me look at it in a whole new light. While the story doesn’t necessarily have much basis in reality, it still gives you pause for thought, especially in a case that has had no resolution.
I also have had good experiences with JCO’s mystery novels, written under the pen name of Rosamund Smith. They’re a bit more escapist than her typical fiction, but I am a glutton for literary mysteries, so those are right up my alley. So besides We Were the Mulvaneys, you may be wondering where JCO’s done me wrong. There are a few of her books that I didn’t care for. Foxfire was just ok. I expected to love it, because the plot synopsis of a girl gang in the 1950s piqued my interest, but the writing style led me astray a bit, and in the end I just didn’t connect with the characters or the story. Then there was The Gravedigger’s Daughter. Oh man. Can you say boring? It reminded me so much of We Were the Mulvaneys in tone, but somehow I trudged through it.
So where do I go next? JCO hits some high highs, but the lows are also pretty low lows. A few years ago, I bought a used copy of We Were the Mulvaneys in the hopes that someday I would reread it and have a positive experience. I’ll tell you what though, I haven’t had the desire to pick it up. Maybe I’ll put it to bed for good and try to find another JCO book that really inspires me.
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I’m ashamed and embarrassed to admit that I have never read her. *hanging head* At least I’ve got some good advice to run with when I do!
I’ve owned so many books by this author, but after reading We Were the Mulvaneys, I never read anything else by this author – that one wasn’t for me.
I actually enjoyed We Were the Mulvaneys, but I agree that The Gravedigger’s Daughter was really boring. I have a few other Oates books on my shelf, but I haven’t read them yet. I remember liking Rape: A Love Story, but I can’t remember if I’ve read any other books by her.
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I haven’t read much Oates, but do have a copy of Blonde on my shelves that has been sitting there forever! Your post has given me a reason to pick it up and give it a try!
I haven’t read any of her books, but avoided We Were the Mulvaneys precisely because of Oprah’s recommendation. Most of the books that she recommends are horrifically depressing and I won’t read them unless I receive a trusted recommendation from someone else. I only own one of JCO’s books and it has a ridiculously long title I can never remember.
Thanks so much for writing this great guest post!
I’m kind of embarrassed to say I’ve never read Oates works. It sounds like I need to try her fictionalized reality.
I agree that nobody does “fictionalized” real people better than JCO. I, too, loved Blonde, as well as My Sister, My Love. I actually liked We Were the Mulvaneys, though.
I still haven’t read Gravedigger’s Daughter…it’s sitting on my stacks. I’ll be curious as to whether or not I find it boring, too.
Thanks for your thoughts.
I am a big fan of Oates. She was one of my mother’s favorite ‘modern’ authors (my mom loved the classic authors and read classic authors more than any others) and mom recommended several of Oates books to me including them and A Garden of Earthly Delights. I’ve read several of her books and have a few on my shelves I want to read. I don’t own and have never read Blonde but I want to very much. We Were the Mulvaneys I read before Oprah recommended it and I thought it was very good but I know many people didn’t like it. I also read My Sister, My Love which was very interesting and I liked it. I also think I liked Foxfire better than Stephanie did but I read it years ago
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I haven’t read any of the books Oates wrote under a different name but I will some day! Oates is so prolific and many of her books are quite different in style, theme and genre from the ones before them although many of her books are dark and contain violence. I don’t think she’s an author you can reject or approve based on reading only one or two books but it’s difficult to decide what to read. them, Wonderland and Blonde are often listed as some of her best work by various critics.
This is a great meme idea, Alyce!
I hated The Mulvaneys too. I was so disappointed that I wasted my time reading it. I don’t think I ever read another one Oates book after that!
I read “We Were The Mulvaneys” to see what the fuss about JCO was all about … and it was OK but didn’t blow me away. Perhaps I started with the wrong book! I shall give her another try for sure. Thanks for the guidance.
Such an interesting feature. It amazes me how authors can get it so right with one book and yet so wrong with another.
I really liked AWidow’s Story, her recent memoir. The only others I’ve read are Zombie and Foxfire, neither of which were super memorable.
We Were the Mulvaney’s was my first JCO experience too. I wasn’t overwhelmed, but didn’t hate it as much as you did, but definitely a meh kind of experience. A few years later browsing the library shelves I found Zombie. Which I Couldn’t Put Down. It wouldn’t be for everyone, but she takes you inside the head of a psychopath so easily. Since then I’ve always meant to read more of her. I’ve bought a few, but haven’t got around to opening them as yet. I’ve heard a general good buzz about Blonde before.
I’ve read two JCO books [The Falls, and My Heart Laid Bare] and I really liked both of them quite a bit. The interesting thing is, I have a [used] copy of We Were The Mulvaneys on my TBR shelf — hmmm, trusting your thoughts on it, wow — it just may stay there a while.
And what you say of the Munroe book, I truly love a well-written novel that is dealing with real biography. Like Loving Frank by Nancy Horan [about Frank Lloyd Wright] or Libra by Don DeLillo [about Lee Harvey Oswald], two of my all-time faves.
Thanks for this excellent post about JCO, Alyce.
I loved We Were the Mulvaney’s! But I didn’t even know about her other books that you talked about here. I’m interested and a bit fascinated to read the Marilyn book and the JonBenet Ramsey book too!!
Them. Read Them. It’s my favorite JCO book.