Review: Domestic Violets
Domestic Violets: A Novel (P.S.)
“How have you been, dear?” Helen asks.
I decide not to tell her about the erectile dysfunction, the recent layoffs at my company, how my dad has taken to smoking pot in my extra bedroom, or how my hands smell like French fries even though I’ve washed them three times. “Oh, you know,” I say. “Not too bad.”
The book is about issues that someone my age shouldn’t really care about that much. A midlife crisis- complete with marital problems, the meaningless of corporate existence, kids- set against the backdrop of a cratering 2008 economy.
But it does resonate, not only because Matthew Norman has a hilarious, succinct wit that is painstakingly cut into in a meaty, complex story, (resulting in a goofy grin or chortle on every page) but because we have all had shitty bosses, that nemesis at work, struggled through romantic relationships (“If we were alone together somewhere else, it might help.”), and loved crazy family, even anxious dogs.
And Norman layers his somewhat sardonic, always interesting, insight and observations slowly, to the point where passages of unexpected emotional ferocity have crept up on you, it is almost tough to go on, and you’re wondering how the hell that happened, but you’re already looking forward to the next wave.
This is just a damn good, well-written book. Give the first ten pages a shot and you will be hooked.
-Shlok
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