- Paperback: 400 pages
- Publisher: Emblem Editions (April 2 2002)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0771014554
- ISBN-13: 978-0771014550
- Product Dimensions: 21.1 x 13.2 x 2.5 cm
- Shipping Weight: 318 g
- Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1 customer review)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #614,683 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Details |
Product Description
From Amazon
Sandra Birdsell's award-winning novel The Chrome Suite tells the story of Amy Barber, who, after growing up in small-town Manitoba in the 1950s, flees to Winnipeg and an unsatisfying marriage before breaking out into a career as a successful screenwriter and filmmaker. However, Amy's career path is fraught with ennui and loss, and the latest tragedy to befall her only underlines her life's emptiness and fragility.
There are certainly some fine passages in The Chrome Suite, and its early chapters are absorbing and well-constructed. The most striking turn has the main character struck by lightning: "And then I remember clearly how the air in front of me suddenly quivered.... I felt myself falling backwards, and in the final dim split-second of consciousness, I remember hearing voices." Unfortunately this epiphany comes at the beginning of the story, and the author doesn't really give the protagonist anywhere to go or do that can compare. The evocation of the '50s is mostly cartoon kitsch (hence the chrome kitchen suite of the title), and the plot and general ambience bear a remarkable resemblance to that of Margaret Laurence's The Diviners but without that novel's humanity. Amy Barber, a figure at once self-pitying and mean-spirited, cannot generate the empathy we feel for Morag in Laurence's epic tale. The Chrome Suite is an interesting read, but it stands as an artifact of the trendy nihilism of the early '90s rather than a great novel, and its author has mercifully moved on to better things (as in The Russländer). --Robyn Gillam
Review
"A miraculous novel.…Birdsell tightly controls the rich detail, the intense emotions of her story. . . ."
–Globe and Mail
“Part testimony, part remembrance, part discovery, The Chrome Suite goes inside out to tell a story of loss and remembrance.”
–Quill & Quire
“This novel has the power of all uncompromising fiction; Sandra Birdsell’s hard-edged, accurate prose and her unfailingly intelligent observations of the way people live are deeply satisfying to read.…”
–Winnipeg Free Press
“A masterful novel, which places her among the best of Canadian writers today.”
–Montreal Gazette
“The human landscape and the complexities of relationships ring true. Birdsell’s ability to enter the hearts of her characters keeps us hooked.”
–Calgary Herald
“A fluid quality to Birdsell’s prose bids you move ever onward, even into dark and menacing corners where unseen forces bind families, make them crackle with tension, make them unravel. She is that rarity, a consistently interesting writer with an original voice.…As Margaret Atwood captured the tensions that divide young girls in Cat’s Eye, so Birdsell explores the tensions – sexual, emotional, territorial – that fill Amy Barber’s house.…The Chrome Suite seems to have been written from some deep, dark well of inspiration.”
–Books in Canada
“The writing is always a joy, the kind that slows the reader down to savour every vivid moment.”
–Quill & Quire
“A passionate exploration of loss, betrayal, death, and the heartless whimsy of fate.…The writing is masterful. There is an uncompromising ferocity and harsh power to this author’s work.”
–Canadian Book Review Annual
–Globe and Mail
“Part testimony, part remembrance, part discovery, The Chrome Suite goes inside out to tell a story of loss and remembrance.”
–Quill & Quire
“This novel has the power of all uncompromising fiction; Sandra Birdsell’s hard-edged, accurate prose and her unfailingly intelligent observations of the way people live are deeply satisfying to read.…”
–Winnipeg Free Press
“A masterful novel, which places her among the best of Canadian writers today.”
–Montreal Gazette
“The human landscape and the complexities of relationships ring true. Birdsell’s ability to enter the hearts of her characters keeps us hooked.”
–Calgary Herald
“A fluid quality to Birdsell’s prose bids you move ever onward, even into dark and menacing corners where unseen forces bind families, make them crackle with tension, make them unravel. She is that rarity, a consistently interesting writer with an original voice.…As Margaret Atwood captured the tensions that divide young girls in Cat’s Eye, so Birdsell explores the tensions – sexual, emotional, territorial – that fill Amy Barber’s house.…The Chrome Suite seems to have been written from some deep, dark well of inspiration.”
–Books in Canada
“The writing is always a joy, the kind that slows the reader down to savour every vivid moment.”
–Quill & Quire
“A passionate exploration of loss, betrayal, death, and the heartless whimsy of fate.…The writing is masterful. There is an uncompromising ferocity and harsh power to this author’s work.”
–Canadian Book Review Annual
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Most helpful customer reviews
0 of 1 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
Complex, gripping novel,
By A Customer
This review is from: The Chrome Suite (Paperback)
I first read "The Chrome Suite" a year ago, but have reread it since. Each time, I find something new within it. It is an excellent novel with gripping characters, complex situations and beautiful prose. The only quibble I had with it was the sometimes confusing narration, though given attention it quickly remedies itself. I would highly recommend this book to anyone.
Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta) Amazon.com:
4.0 out of 5 stars (1 customer review) 3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
Complex, gripping novel,
By A Customer - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: The Chrome Suite (Paperback)
I first read "The Chrome Suite" a year ago, but have reread it since. Each time, I find something new within it. It is an excellent novel with gripping characters, complex situations and beautiful prose. The only quibble I had with it was the sometimes confusing narration, though given attention it quickly remedies itself. I would highly recommend this book to anyone.
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