- Paperback: 352 pages
- Publisher: Berkley; Reissue edition (Oct 1 1989)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 042511774X
- ISBN-13: 978-0425117743
- Product Dimensions: 17 x 10.7 x 2.3 cm
- Shipping Weight: 181 g
- Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars See all reviews (71 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #1,857,034 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Details |
Product Description
From Amazon
Maggie Moran's mission is to connect and unite people, whether they want to be united or not. Maggie is a meddler and as she and her husband, Ira, drive 90 miles to the funeral of an old friend, Ira contemplates his wasted life and the traffic, while Maggie hatches a plant to reunite her son Jesse with his long-estranged wife and baby. As Ira explains, "She thinks the people she loves are better than they really are, and so then she starts changing things around to suit her view of them." Though everyone criticizes her for being "ordinary," Maggie's ability to see the beauty and potential in others ultimately proves that she is the only one fighting the resignation they all fear. The book captured the Pulitzer Prize for literature in 1989.
--This text refers to the
Hardcover
edition.
From Publishers Weekly
In perhaps her most mainstream, accessible novel so far, Tyler spins a tale of marriage and middle-class lives, in an age when social standards and life expectations have gone askew. While she remains a brilliant observer of human nature, there is a subtle change here in Tyler's focus. Where before her protagonists were eccentric, sometimes slightly fantastical characters who came at the end to a sense of peace, if not happiness, Maggie Moran and her husband Ira are average, unexceptional, even somewhat drab; and outside of some small epiphanies, little is changed between them at the story's close. It's this very realism that makes the story so effective and moving. Taking place on one summer day, when Maggie and Ira drive from Baltimore to Pennsylvania to a funeral, with an accidental detour involving an old black man they pass on the road and a side trip to see their former daughter-in-law and their seven-year-old grandchild, the novel reveals the basic incompatibility of their 28-year marriage and the love that binds them together nonetheless. This is another typical Tyler union of opposites: Maggie is impetuous, scatterbrained, klutzy, accident prone and garrulous; Ira is self-contained, precise, dignified, aloof with, however, an irritating (or endearing ) habit of whistling tunes that betray his inner thoughts. Both feel that their children are strangers, that the generations are "sliding downhill," and that somehow they have gone wrong in a society whose values they no longer recognize. With irresistibly funny passages you want to read out loud and poignant insights that illuminate the serious business of sharing lives in an unsettling world, this is Tyler's best novel yet. 175,000 first printing ; BOMC main selection; Franklin Library signed first edition.
Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
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Most helpful customer reviews
1.0 out of 5 stars
God Awful,
By Eric Fecho "druss_the_legend2002" (Eau Claire, Michigan United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)
This review is from: Breathing Lessons (Paperback)
I must say, this book was the worst book I have ever read. Where to begin? Ah yes! It seems only logical to start with Maggie. She is what I envision when someone mentions a human tornado. Maggie moves through life trying to manipulate people into some ideal that she has, but only succeeds in ripping their lives to shreds. Her conniving succeeds in bringing about catostrophic arguments between her son Jesse and his ex-wife Fiona, which one can imagine will scar their poor daughter, Leroy.I would also classify Maggie as the type of person who is known for snatching kids out of carts at the grocery store. She only wants Jesse and Fiona to get back together so that she can take care of Leroy. God only knows what she would do when Leroy grows up, but I can imagine her snagging some child off the playground. Ira is also a distructive force in the novel, but his comes from pent-up self hatred. Ira detests the way his life has gone, but rather than blame himself, he blames his wife, his son, and his father and sisters. He doesn't say much in the novel, but when he does speak, the comments are usually derisive and harsh. He airs other poeple's dirty laundry (such as when he tells Fiona that Jesse has been sleeping with another woman), and he calls his own son hopeless and worthless. All in all, I can't say that he gets my vote for Father of the Year. The only people I felt sorry for in this pitifully tragic work were Jesse, Fiona, and especially Leroy. Jesse and Fiona are the pawns in Maggie's insane game, beeing lead arround by her in an ever more devious lie. Leroy is even more innocent, for she is a child with high hopes of meeting her father (hopes planted by Maggie) only to have those hopes dashed by a severly tramatizing family argument. This book is supposed to be this great insite into marriage, but I found it to be more of a glimpse into how far a person will go to make their make-believe wonderland come to life. I can't say as I would recommend this book to anyone.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Haunting and Fascinating Book,
By AliBelle (Bowling Green, OH~Go BG!) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Breathing Lessons (Paperback)
It is interesting to see how people review this book and how some loved it and some hated it. I personally love Anne Tyler and this book is an amazing work.The book has just the right amount of humor and drama. I felt by the end that I really knew the characters. I read it when I was 15 and reading it three years later I have learned to appreciate it more. I don't feel Maggie was condescending at all, she just desperately wanted to hold onto the past. Ira, although tactless, truly believed the truth would set people free. He was just that kind of person. Maggie had such high expectations for her son and truly believed he could do no wrong, whereas Ira probably saw a person who was living a life free of responsiblity. The book was so intricate with people's lives it seemed so real. I know people just like them. No one had bad intentions, no one was malicious, they just all had faults and I think the moral was that you just love people for who they are.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
Completely Credible Characters,
By
This review is from: Breathing Lessons (Paperback)
So many reviewers have gone over the plot, so I shall spare you yet another repetition. Like many, I was annoyed throughout at the level of dysfunction displayed by all the characters and not just Maggie; but this proves a point. Like most reviewers, including those who disliked this book, Anne Tyler thoroughly involves the reader in her story. I enjoyed this book as I have other Anne Tyler's books, basically because I find them "easy reads", stories that hold my attention, make me laugh and keep me turning pages. If I am any judge, then I feel that Breathing Lessons comes through as a deceptively simple story, as Anne Tyler is a master in control of her novel which is technically brilliant, humorous and filled with completely credible characters.
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