The Accidental Favorite by Fran LittlewoodGratitude
Thank you to Goodreads Giveaways and Henry Holt for the review copy of The Accidental Favorite by Fran Littlewood.
Description
In The Accidental Favorite, the Fischer family has gathered together to celebrate first the naming of the eldest daughter’s baby and then the mother’s seventieth birthday. Along the way, many crazy things ensue, including a clear indicator that their father has a real and evident favorite.
Told through the perspectives of the mother, Vivienne, and sisters Nancy, Eva, and Alex, the story moves between memories from the women’s childhood and the week-long family get together. Eva, the youngest and prettiest, has the oldest grandchild, and is now a successful entrepreneur. Nancy, the middle child, the one who acts out, is divorced with one child, and she became a successful doctor. Alex, the oldest, is an ambitious music teacher, married to another teacher, and together they have three children, including the youngest of the grandchildren, baby Dolly. At the same time the sisters have close, loving relationships, they also have insecurities and jealousies, begun in their childhood.
Told through the perspectives of the mother, Vivienne, and sisters Nancy, Eva, and Alex, the story moves between memories from the women’s childhood and the week-long family get together. Eva, the youngest and prettiest, has the oldest grandchild, and is now a successful entrepreneur. Nancy, the middle child, the one who acts out, is divorced with one child, and she became a successful doctor. Alex, the oldest, is an ambitious music teacher, married to another teacher, and together they have three children, including the youngest of the grandchildren, baby Dolly. At the same time the sisters have close, loving relationships, they also have insecurities and jealousies, begun in their childhood.
Would I Teach This Book?
Would I teach The Accidental Favorite plays on common family dynamics and entertains the question of if these dynamics shape who a person will be in their adulthood, as well as the impact that off-hand parental comments and favoritism plays on identity and behavior. Will the oldest child be the most responsible and successful? The middle child the one who gets in trouble and pushes boundaries in order to get attention? The youngest the most pampered and least tried, with a much easier childhood and adulthood than the others? Maybe. But I also wonder about the dramatization of the family structure in The Accidental Favorite.
The characters were mostly likeable and mostly understandable. Mostly, I was in their corner. Mostly. But Alex was really, really difficult to like at times. Really. She was so difficult to appreciate. Yes, she had a lot to deal with in her life, more than the other two women, but her behavior toward her sisters--well.
In addition, the idea that grown women in their thirties and forties would still be so hung up on sibling rivalry--I suppose it is something that remains throughout life, but to have such an impact? I don’t know. Is this common? Do many people actually experience this in their forties? Just thinking this one out.
The book might be a potential to be taught in a contemporary literature course--maybe. It lacks the bite of many things that I have read as of late. It is doubtful that I would teach it in a creative writing class. If I did, I would use it to teach writing through multiple perspectives.
The narration is in third-person, yet still demonstrates distinct differences when it is attached to each of the characters. The sisters have their own separate personalities, attitudes, and beliefs about themselves, the past, and the current reality. The names at the beginning of the sections and the time frame help to clearly orient the reader without being distracting.
I would readily recommend this book for a book club, as it offers a significant discussion about sibling dynamics and how to read the different characters
The characters were mostly likeable and mostly understandable. Mostly, I was in their corner. Mostly. But Alex was really, really difficult to like at times. Really. She was so difficult to appreciate. Yes, she had a lot to deal with in her life, more than the other two women, but her behavior toward her sisters--well.
In addition, the idea that grown women in their thirties and forties would still be so hung up on sibling rivalry--I suppose it is something that remains throughout life, but to have such an impact? I don’t know. Is this common? Do many people actually experience this in their forties? Just thinking this one out.
The book might be a potential to be taught in a contemporary literature course--maybe. It lacks the bite of many things that I have read as of late. It is doubtful that I would teach it in a creative writing class. If I did, I would use it to teach writing through multiple perspectives.
The narration is in third-person, yet still demonstrates distinct differences when it is attached to each of the characters. The sisters have their own separate personalities, attitudes, and beliefs about themselves, the past, and the current reality. The names at the beginning of the sections and the time frame help to clearly orient the reader without being distracting.
I would readily recommend this book for a book club, as it offers a significant discussion about sibling dynamics and how to read the different characters
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