She's Come Undone - Wally Lamb

She's Come Undone by Wally Lamb is one of the hardest books I've ever had to get through. The story of a horrible abused young woman named Dolores Prices who's troubles all start with her brother Anthony Junior. Anthony strangles himself to death before he gets out of the womb. His mother breaks down so thouroughly that she becomes a zombie of her former self around the house. Followed by a painful divorce, her mother having a stint in the psychiatric hospital and having to go live with her grandmother, Dolores endures even more hardship that sends her into a downward spiral. With a mother unable to deal with mental instability in herself let alone others, and a relatively non-existant dad, Dolores becomes a brat and indulges in her pain and suffering so much that she takes herself to the brink.
Even when she established a relatively normal life, she is still so emotionally dependant and unstable that her entire life is just horrible. I was struck with such a hopelessness and utter helplessness embodies by the unfortunate Dolores Price that a sick feeling stayed with me for a long time after I finished the last chapter. She simply makes it worse for herself and cannot seem to find the strength to do anything for herself. She fucks up and she fucks up good.
This book is intensely feminine, to the point that I felt I was inside the head of Dolores. It shares secrets of the feminine world that no male would think of, so draws you in with complete believability. That is why it is such a shock to find out it is written by a man.
Great writting, great characters, but very far from a feel good book. It really delves into what it's like to be a woman in more ways than simply the general male object stereotype so often emphasised by other writters. It is a real book about pain that lasts and hurts for a lifetime. A brutal realization that the past can never be burried and that you have to face your mental demons, She's Come Undone is definitely a must read, but not when you've got suicidal tendancies already. I don't and I was put into a severe funk. Make sure you have someone cool at hand so that you can stare at moon rises and laugh in the rain with, cause you're going to need it. Ok thats a bit much I make it seem like this is the end of the world. It's great to have a friend like that at hand anyway, but this book isn't that depressing, it's just not as polar as most books. The ending isn't at either end of the spectrum, it's just plain old life that goes on and on instead of having each day as interesting and new and great. It's the way a lot of people cop out and live life.
Well I refuse. I will play with bubbles and face my problems head on. Write some poetry. Sounds silly but it helped me and I'm not the kind of guy who would really write poetry. More importantly, as more than just a single solution, in everything that you do, be enthusiastic and excited because otherwise you're not and what fun is that? And why would you not want to have fun in a life as short as ours?
Figure it out.
Andrew