Blue Shoe,Used

From AudioFile In her narration of BLUE SHOE, Laural Merlington has found the essence of each character and offers it forth as a blending of her understanding and the author's meaning. The segments of the story are tied together by bright melodies played on strings and piano, firmly creating an ambiance of family life. Mattie Ryder is weighed down by a recent divorce, two small children, an unfinished house that smells of cat urine, and the desire to discover her family's personal history. Her projects and her findings, coupled with a welldirected production, result in a very listenable story. J.P. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award AudioFile 2003, Portland, Maine Copyright AudioFile, Portland, Maine Product Description The New York Times Bestseller from the beloved author of Bird by Bird, Hallelujah Anyway, and Almost EverythingMattie Ryder is marvelously neurotic, wellintentioned, funny, religious, sarcastic, tender, angry, and broke. Her life at the moment is a wreck: her marriage has failed, her mother is failing, her house is rotting, her waist is expanding, her children are misbehaving, and she has a crush on a married man. Then she finds a small rubber blue shoenothing more than a gumball trinketleft behind by her father. For Mattie, it becomes a talismana chance to recognize the past for what it was, to see the future as she always hoped it could be, and to finally understand her family, herself, and the everunfolding mystery of her sweet, sad, and sometimes surprising life. From Publishers Weekly Anyone familiar with Lamott's writing knows her strength is the portrayal of daily life: mothers raising children, lost love, ill parents and more. Mattie, recently separated from her husband, has moved back to the home she grew up in. She decides to renovate the badly rundown house, not anticipating the added complications in her life. Her mother is suffering from dementia, her children are misbehaving and Mattie is still drawn to her estranged husband even though he is involved with a younger woman. This unabridged audio captures the frantic pace of Lamott's work. There are long phone conversations between Mattie and her mother and talks with Angela, Mattie's best friend, who's moving away. Lamott aptly observes that Mattie seems more upset about not seeing her friend than not seeing her husband. Unfortunately, Merlington's quick, flat narration doesn't help bring the novel to life. Some may find themselves overwhelmed by the number of characters while others may struggle to focus on Mattie. While Merlington occasionally changes her voice when other characters are speaking, the overall impression is of a text being read too fast.Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc. About the Author Anne Lamott is the New York Times bestselling author of Help, Thanks, Wow; Small Victories; Stitches; Some Assembly Required; Grace (Eventually); Plan B; Traveling Mercies; Bird by Bird; Operating Instructions; and Hallelujah Anyway. She is also the author of several novels, including Imperfect Birds and Rosie. A past recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship and an inductee to the California Hall of Fame, she lives in Northern California.