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A carregar... Nobody, Somebody, Anybody: A Novelpor Kelly McClorey
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Adira ao LibraryThing para descobrir se irá gostar deste livro. Ainda não há conversas na Discussão sobre este livro. I was midway into Kelly McClorey's impressive debut novel “Nobody, Somebody, Anybody” before I read the dust jacket and saw that it is "laugh-out-loud funny." I hadn't noticed. I didn't laugh, or even smile, at any point in this book, but I was certainly moved, even saddened. The story is narrated by Amy Hanley, a young woman working a summer job as a chambermaid at the Yacht Club. Unlike a yacht, she lacks an anchor. Her mother died recently. She has no close friends, no boyfriend, no permanent job, no confidence. She greatly admires Florence Nightingale, whom she quotes frequently as if her words were Scripture. She is training to become an EMT, but she has twice failed the final exam and is running out of chances. She thinks of herself, as the title suggests, as a Nobody. During the course of the novel, Amy hardly ever makes a good choice. She steams open her landlord's mail and sees that he plans to go to Ukraine to find a bride. She resentfully destroys property belonging to a co-worker. To give herself more self-esteem, she sends a congratulation letter to herself, praising her for passing the EMT test, and then tells others about receiving the letter. She thinks of this lie as perhaps having a placebo effect, giving her enough confidence to actually pass the test. What it does, of course, is to add to the pressure She begins to feel like Somebody when Gary, her landlord, invites her to his apartment to sample his cooking and to help him prepare his home for the arrival of Irina from Ukraine. The growing friendship with Gary fools her into thinking she can replace the other woman in Gary's heart. Gary is certainly no prize, but she is that desperate By the end of the novel, Amy decides to reinvent herself. She's willing to become Anybody, as long as it isn't Amy Hanley. There's nothing funny, or even amusing, about people giving in to self-destructive impulses, but “Nobody, Somebody, Anybody” is nevertheless engaging and, in its low-key way, even powerful. It reminds us that the world is full of Amy Hanleys, those who want so much to be Somebody, at least to Someone, that they are willing to settle for Anybody. The recent case of the Alabama corrections officer who helped a murder suspect escape and then ran off with him provides an example. This is an impressive debut novel by Kelly McClorey. Amy is working as a housekeeper at a Yacht Club, but she prefers the more evocative job title of "chambermaid." She considers it good practice for her chosen career as an EMT, which is what she will be as soon as she passes the exam. Only, she's failed it twice before and this will be her last chance. To combat her anxiety, she comes up with a program to convince herself she has already passed. So this novel fits perfectly into my favorite sub-genre, which is novels about women ruining their own lives. Amy is a mess, and for every step she takes to stabilize her life, she takes two that are self-destructive. And she's living in a world with people with their own agendas and plans, plans she can't see through the haze of her own self-involvement. McClorey does a fantastic job of revealing Amy's past and reasons for the way she is organically over the course of this novel, and as I gained enlightenment, I really rooted for Amy. But issues created over the course of a lifetime are not solved in a chapter and McClorey commits to Amy, who she is and how she relates to the world. I really liked this book and I'm still thinking about it. sem críticas | adicionar uma crítica
A moving and darkly comic debut novel about an anxious young woman who administers a self-made "placebo" treatment in a last-ditch attempt to rebuild her life Amy Harney has a job as a chambermaid for the summer, but on August 25, she will take the exam to become an EMT (third time's the charm!) and finally move on with her life. In the meantime, she doesn't mind scrubbing toilets immaculately clean or tucking the sheet corners just so. In fact, she tells herself that her work is a noble act of service to the rich guests at the yacht club. Amy's profound isolation colors everything: her job, her aspirations, even her interactions with the woman at the deli counter. And as the date for the EMT exam comes closer, Amy's anxiety ratchets up in a way that is both familiar and troubling. In desperation, she concocts a "placebo" program--a self-prescribed regimen for her confidence, devised to trick herself into succeeding. When her landlord, Gary, starts to invite her over for dinner--to practice his cooking skills as he awaits approval of his Ukrainian fiancé's visa--Amy makes her first friend since her mother's passing. Alongside this unexpected connection comes a surge of hopeful obsession that Amy knows she must reckon with before the summer's end. Tender and laugh-out-loud funny, Nobody, Somebody, Anybody explores the shadowy corners of a young woman's inner world of grief, delusion, and self-loathing, revealing the creeping loneliness of modern life and our endless search for connection. Kelly McClorey captures the hilarity and heartbreak of American ambition. Não foram encontradas descrições de bibliotecas. |
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Google Books — A carregar... GénerosSistema Decimal de Melvil (DDC)813.6Literature English (North America) American fiction 21st CenturyClassificação da Biblioteca do Congresso dos EUA (LCC)AvaliaçãoMédia:
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The main character suffers from isolation, depression, anxiety, delusion, and a recurring urge to self-destruct her life. She is neither likable nor particularly interesting. In fact, I found her so unlikable that I found myself rooting for the supporting characters to finally be free of her.
The book is dark and maudlin with an ending that I can only describe as plain dumb.
Additionally, the front cover photo is a strange mismatch to the actual story, implying some sort of historical twist to the narrative. ( )