"We Need to Talk about Kevin"
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I'm deep into this novel by Lionel Shriver, which is narrated by the mother of a Columbine-type teenager killer. In it she reviews her past, her worries about motherhood before her child's birth, her relationship with her husband, and much more. It's a really good novel, with passages on nearly every page I'm tempted to underline. And I'm impressed with the narrative voice, since I routinely (and mistakenly) think of the book being written by a woman.
The book is being turned into a movie now, with Tilda Swinton cast as the lead. Although she's a fabulous actor and will be excellent, her face has a kind of built-in haunted look. Her high, chiseled cheekbones and huge, light eyes look too easily like the face of someone traumatized by fate. I kind of wish they had cast someone with a round, friendly face and small quotidian eyes instead---a Kathy Najimy type. Hard to find, though; the really successful indie actresses tend to have those striking eyes and cheekbones (Patricia Clarkson, Catherine Keener, even Jane Lynch).
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I'm deep into this novel by Lionel Shriver, which is narrated by the mother of a Columbine-type teenager killer. In it she reviews her past, her worries about motherhood before her child's birth, her relationship with her husband, and much more. It's a really good novel, with passages on nearly every page I'm tempted to underline. And I'm impressed with the narrative voice, since I routinely (and mistakenly) think of the book being written by a woman.
The book is being turned into a movie now, with Tilda Swinton cast as the lead. Although she's a fabulous actor and will be excellent, her face has a kind of built-in haunted look. Her high, chiseled cheekbones and huge, light eyes look too easily like the face of someone traumatized by fate. I kind of wish they had cast someone with a round, friendly face and small quotidian eyes instead---a Kathy Najimy type. Hard to find, though; the really successful indie actresses tend to have those striking eyes and cheekbones (Patricia Clarkson, Catherine Keener, even Jane Lynch).
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posted by Anonymous at
9:23 PM
3 Comments:
I continue to rejoice, Kibble, in the streaming good reviews you apply to this publication. Yars. Yars. Hrmph. Quite.
Ironic: Just as you posted this I was starting to get a little fed up with it. One character in particular is driving me crazy, and the book is starting to seem awfully long. I'm only halfwat through and feel like I should be nearing the end.
Yars.
Turns out, per Julie, that Lionel Shriver IS a woman.
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