This book was fantastic. From the very start, I was totally hooked. I immediately want to jump into the summary, and then my thoughts. And of course, why I loved it so much to dub it the very first Bee’s Bookclub Book of 2017. Alright, let’s dive into Ann Patchett’s 7th novel, Commonwealth.
WHAT IT’S ABOUT
We first meet Beverly and Fix Keating at their daughter Franny’s christening party. It’s a hot summer day in Los Angeles it’s the early 1960’s. Burt Cousins, who recently relocated from Virginia to California, shows up to the Keating’s party — uninvited. By the end of the evening, Burt has kissed Beverly, and thus, set’s into motion two families lives that are now forever changed.
In efforts to marry, Burt and Beverly each set a hurricane through their respective families. Beverley and her two girls, Franny and Caroline, move back to Virginia with Burt. Leaving behind Beverly’s ex-husband, Fix, and the rest of the Cousins family: Burt’s ex-wife, Theresa, and their four children, Cal, Holly, Jeanette, and Albie.
Between Burt and Beverly, there are six children total. The kids are shuttled back and forth from Virginia to California. Summers are spent with each other, bonds and ties have been formed; a blended, not so happy, family is born.
We follow the Keating’s and Cousins through the next five decades. When Franny is in her twenties, she falls in love with a brilliant writer, who turns her childhood into a best selling, novel. Embarrassment, guilt, and everything in between follows. Reconnecting Franny with her past, and the choices that her mother and stepfather made for her, and the rest of the Keating’s and Cousins children.
WHY I LOVED COMMONWEALTH
Without a doubt, the very first chapter was pure brilliance. It was so well written, and perfectly crafted that I actually reread relistened to it. I knew after that first chapter that this would be a fantastic novel, and so it went.
This story was so very deeply character driven. I felt like I intimately knew each and every character. I love the Keating’s and Cousin’s children — all six of them. I understood the pain and suffering each went through, and how tragedy has marked them. I felt like I was part of this family, the way I knew them so well. The family dynamics that are in play here are just phenomenal. Patchett also has a gift. That being, she’s able to articulate a complex situation so well, that it’s nearly haunting.
Lastly, the cover art is just incredible!
Do yourself a favor, and add Commonwealth to your 2017 list. I can’t recommend it enough.