Asta in the Wings
Jan Elizabeth Watson
2009
314 pages
Published by Tin House
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Special note for the FTC: I picked this one up at Powells, at some point. My memory is very grateful for price tags.
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Cheating:
Asta in the Wings is the moving and often darkly funny story of Asta Hewitt, a resourceful seven-year-old and intrepid narrator growing up in an isolated house in Bond Brook, Maine. Shut off from the outside world and restricted to the company of a delusional mother and a bookish older brother, Asta is content to be part of a “society of three” constructing dramatic and fanciful worlds of their own. When circumstances push her into a strange outside world — with all of its discontents — Asta must find a way to assimilate while remaining true to herself and her fractured family. Jan Elizabeth Watson’s debut novel puts her among the most promising new writers in the realm of imaginative literary fiction.
Yes, I took that from the B&N site. Mostly because I’m feeling lazy, but partially because of those last three words…”imaginative literary fiction.” Ummm, isn’t all fiction imaginative?
Anyhoosie. I was really enjoying this book. It’s a little creepy in parts, and the characters are both real and odd. But then we get to the end. And hello? I was ready to keep going. I needed resolution for Asta, and I’m afraid I didn’t get it. I needed her to find stability, and maybe some hope for love, in her placement. Although, since I do work for Social Services, I should know that foster care is all about instability. But all I was asking for was one more chapter, and some sort of aha moment. Because this is imaginative literary fiction, after all, and I need the author to carry on with the imagination part. Dammit.
Adding to my TBR. Damn you.
ps – I love the “cheating” bit.
Argh. I hate that when you’re left wanting at the end of a book. Booooo.
Coffee and a Book Chick´s last [type] ..Missing 33 Pages
oh too funny!!!!!!! and sad.
Amy @ My Friend Amy´s last [type] ..Review- Twilight Forever Rising by Lena Meydan
Lately I’ve encountered a lot of books with a final chapter that changed my opinion of the book. There has been a pretty equal number of amazing last chapters that made the book better than I thought it was, but there have been a few disappointing endings that have made a great book only okay for me.
nomadreader (Carrie)´s last [type] ..book review- Stiltsville by Susanna Daniel
There is nothing wrong with cheating! This, from someone who cheats regularly. Writing the book summary is my least favorite part of reviewing, so I leave it to others
I love it when the price tag reminds me where I got a book!
Erin´s last [type] ..Welcome and Giveaway!
I am really interested in this book since you mentioned that it shares some themes with Up From the Blue, but I am sorry to hear that there was no real resolution to the plot. This is a book that I do want to read, but I might wait one for awhile. I am glad to hear that you mostly liked it though!
zibilee´s last [type] ..Please Ignore Vera Dietz by AS King — 336 pgs
Ha, your reviews often make me giggle!
A friend raved about this a year or so ago, which had me adding it to the wish-list, and now I’ll definitely be reading it at some point. Already I am curious and want to know more but fear my interest will never be entirely sated…
Claire (Paperback Reader)´s last [type] ..I’m Dreaming of a Grey Christmas…
Oh, I hate when that happens. I guess you have to use your imagination to fill in the rest.
I really like the sound of this one. The cover and the title are good too.
vivienne´s last [type] ..Monday Mail
I want to echo Amanda. Down to the damn you. But I won’t. I’ll just go quietly add it to my TBR, cursing you in my mind the whole way.
Just kidding. But it does sound good!
Heather´s last [type] ..It’s Monday! What Are You Reading This Week
I have this on my wishlist, and I was so sorry to see that the ending as you described it wasn’t the best:(
Bibliophile By the Sea´s last [type] ..Saturday Stuff
Eeee! I have “Asta in the Wings” as one of my google alerts because my friend Jan wrote the book – she even included me as a character (the girl, Katie, in the movie theater, wearing a paper cap).
I think I was okay with the ending because Asta was reunited with her mother – I kind of get the impression that since they were back together, even for a few hours, it was that way that being with your mom tells you that everything else is going to be okay, it didn’t matter what it was….it just would be fine. (I still totally get what you’re saying, though – just wanted to give my two cents!)
Ack! I hate really good but unresolved books.
And yes … imaginative fiction seems to be an oxymoron. (I think that’s what an oxymoron is … I’m too lazy to look it up.)
Jenners´s last [type] ..Saturday Centus- Scary Story
Actually an oxymoron is a pair of words that contradicts itself ,like “jumbo shrimp.” I guess you’d call “imaginative fiction” a redundancy? *LOL*
It’s s shame this novel had a frustrating ending. If there had been too tidy a resolution, it would have been unbelievable. But as a reader, you want a moment that gives you some sense of closure.
Stephanie´s last [type] ..It’s Monday- What Are You Reading
The cover is imaginative…it’s too bad it’s missing the aha! moment is missing, leaving you wanting more.
Michelle´s last [type] ..Do You Roast
Grrr — that’s where you check to see if any pages fell out of the book. Harumpf
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