Genre: Contemporary Fiction
About:(From TLC)
The Financial Lives of the Poets is a comic and heartfelt novel from National Book Award nominee Jess Walter, author of
Citizen Vince and
The Zero, about how we get to the edge of ruin—and how we begin to make our way back. Walter tells the story of Matt Prior, who’s losing his job, his wife, his house, and his mind—until, all of a sudden, he discovers a way that he might just possibly be able to save it all . . . and have a pretty damn great time doing it.
Why I wanted to read this book:
- I thought the premise sounded interesting and that this would be a read outside of my comfort zone.
What worked for me:
- I immediately...and I mean immediately liked Matthew Prior. For me that was the clincher. I felt a connection to Matt. I could understand him because we're about the same age, we are both trying to survive during these hard financial times, have experienced emotional distance in our marriages , our parents are getting older, the stress level is getting higher, and are just trying to cling to that last vestige of sanity!!
- In a very crazy way, I say this because I'm hard-pressed to explain it, I thought the author's voice came across as authentic and real. I could imagine someone acting in a similar manner as Matt when faced with some of the curve balls that life pitched to him.
- I laughed, commiserated, and totally "got" Matt. So many people are in dire financial straits right now and the author wrote the story in such a manner that I think many people can identify with. There were a few "aha" moments within the pages too.
- I really enjoyed Matt's relationship with his dad who suffered from Alzheimer's. He resigned himself to the fact that his dad was stuck in the past. He just tried to enjoy him on a daily basis, even though he needed him for advice. He needed his dad for support. Matt had no one to really turn to and therefore, he made some bad judgment calls. Thankfully, he learned from them!
What didn't work for me:
- I had to buy into the concept of a guy, who was making good money, who decides to give up financial security in order to start a website that gives financial advice in poetry form. That was a bit far-fetched, but in order to really immerse myself into this book I pushed that away and moved on.
Recommend? Now this is the hardest part of my review because this wasn't a read that I could gush on and on about, but that doesn't mean I didn't enjoy it. Because I did...I read this in one setting and when I was done I was completely satisfied with the story. So I'm going to go out on a limb and tell you to give it a try! What do you have to lose but a few hours??? And you may end up like me...loving this one just because!
My Rating:
4.5/5
Thank you to
TLC Book Tours. for sending me a review copy. I was not compensated for my review.
My thoughts on this book were in no way influenced by the author or publicist.
They are my personal reflections based solely on
MY experience while reading this novel.
About Jess Walter
Jess Walter is the author of five novels, including
The Zero, a finalist for the 2006 National Book Award, and
Citizen Vince, winner of the 2005 Edgar Allan Poe Award for best novel. He has been a finalist for the
L.A. Times Book Prize and the PEN USA Literary Prize in both fiction and nonfiction. His books have been
New York Times,
Washington Post, and NPR best books of the year and have been translated into twenty languages. He lives in Spokane, Washington. Vist Jess Walter at his website,
www.jesswalter.com.
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