I can see why this book won the Pulitzer Prize. The writing is excellent. The story is extremely detailed and the characters evolve over time. I would love to give it 5 stars, but I just can't. Not regarding the book overall. Despite the talented writing, I had a really hard time with the main character! That took away some of my enjoyment in reading his story.
The book starts near the end of the story itself. We are introduced to Theo Decker as an adult. Then we go back to the beginning and move forward through this 771 page book. The story starts when Theo is 13 years old. He lives with his mother, his father having left them the previous year. His father, to sum it up in a neat, tidy package, is an abusive, self-centered, alcoholic, actor-want-to-be who blames his wife for his own failures as a human being. Theo's mother is Theo's foundation. So, when his mother has to take off work one day to take Theo to school to meet with a teacher (due to Theo's misbehavior), and she ends up being killed by a terrorist attack bombing in the museum they stopped by on the way to school, Theo's life falls apart. He is filled with regret, guilt and grief. He also has no one to take him in, since no one knows where his father went, and his (very unlikable) grandparents don't want him.
Theo ends up going to stay with the family of a childhood friend, Andy Barbour. The Barbours are wealthy - and certainly dysfunctional. The oldest son is a trouble-maker; Andy is the odd duck; the two younger siblings are quite annoyed that Andy is staying with them. Mrs. Barbour is distracted by her social events and Mr. Barbour is rarely home (and we find out later has some significant mental health issues). Oddly enough, this family ends up being the "center" of Theo's life, even though he is soon sent away with his father, who suddenly shows up one day to claim Theo.
Theo's dad moves Theo to Vegas with him and his girlfriend, Xandra. Theo's dad now earns his living by gambling and he has reportedly given up alcohol. (But not really) Theo's life spirals downward pretty fast in Vegas. He meets Boris, who is 100% trouble. These two boys live an unsupervised life filled with alcohol & drugs. It's painful to read. I actually took several breaks from reading this book! It took me almost 6 weeks to finish it. Theo's poor decision-making was a key factor in that.
Anyway, Theo ends up moving back to New York and he is taken in by Hobie. Hobie is the partner of Welty, who died in the same museum explosion as Theo's mother. Theo found and talked to Welty as he lay dying. Welty gave Theo his ring and asked him to bring it to Hobie. Welty also convinced Theo to take the famous painting, The Goldfinch, off of the museum wall to save it. This is, of course, an essential part of this story. Another key person in Theo's life is Pippa, who is also at the museum that day. Pippa is Welty's niece, who was living with her uncle because her mother had died from cancer. Anyway, Pippa survives the bombing, but is seriously injured. Theo falls in love with her at first sight, when he first spots her in the museum before the bombing.
This story is very detailed and very complex. Theo lives his life, hiding the famous painting, making really bad decisions, betraying people who care about him, trusting people he shouldn't, loving someone who can't love him back and planning to marry someone that doesn't love him back. I kept waiting and waiting for Theo to do something, anything, to redeem himself. I desperately wanted him to make a positive change in his life. I guess he does, ultimately, but it take over 750 pages to get to that point, and even then, it doesn't actually end the way I wanted it to.
Wendy's Rating: ****
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