Coe's 'Rain' falls short
|
The Rain Before It Falls If the title is to be interpreted as weather-related, Jonathan Coe's The Rain Before It Falls is a November drizzle with intermittent thunderstorms. The story of four generations of women has enough cold, non-nurturing women in it to make a reader pray for some sunshine. If this sort of thing is your cup of tea, then the book provides some positive features — the plot moves fast, the thunderstorms are horrific, and the basic premise for the story's telling is catchy. Gill, a middle-aged woman, inherits the estate of her aunt. The estate comes complete with a mysterious set of tape recordings to be forwarded to a cousin unknown to Gill. Gill and her grown daughters embark on a search for the missing cousin. Failing, they listen to the tapes themselves, as Aunt Rosamond instructed. Rosamond, in her terminal illness, has seen fit to recount the tragic lives of her aunt and that aunt's descendants, the last of which is the lost cousin. Aunt Rosamond was less than a complete bystander in the downward progress of the generations, having tried on more than one occasion to intervene in the dysfunctions of her aunt's progeny. That she failed and still regretted her failure makes her an appealing figure. However, why that last, lost cousin would want to know this history, dark as it is, may escape some readers' logic, for that child was adopted at an early age and, it seems, might be just as well off not knowing all this nasty history. The reader pushes on, hoping that someone will redeem herself, that Aunt Rosamond will keep it short, and that Gill and her daughters won't all fall into deep depressions. The subplot of Gill and her daughters is rather less than riveting, seeming to indicate a sequel in the making. We hope it will have a more balanced climate. Judith H. McKibbin is a retired instructor of English at Jacksonville State University. |
|
|
