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The Lost Father |
Product Guide |
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Home: You are here: Books : The Lost Father |
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The Lost Father  Rating: Rating:  - Like one character with two different childhoods...Despite a back-cover claim that the protagonist of this novel is the same as in Simpson's first book "Anywhere but Here," I had trouble believing that. For starters, the young medical student generally goes by Mayan. It takes quite some pages to reveal that some people also call her Ann -- the only name she was ever called int he first book. Then, there is Mayan/Ann's childhood. In "ABH," she seemed to spend most of her time with her cousin Ben. In this book, Ben warrants a few passing mentions, but for the most part, Ann spends all her time with Emily and Mai linn -- characters never before mentioned. It's like Simpson has written one character with two different childhoods. Still, a number of things remain consistent, such as Ann's dysfunctional mother Adele and her quietly strong grandmother Lillian. It's not enough, though; as Simpson's writing is strong, she might simply have decided to create an entirely different character rather than striving for a sequel that didn't quite gel. As for the main plotline itself -- Mayan's search for the father who abandoned her as a child -- it's too drawn out. For reasons not clearly understood, Mayan has spent most of her life anticipating her father's reappearance; as a woman in her mid-twenties, however, she is nearly obsessed with a search for a man who is a virtual stranger. It takes a long time (and many, many pages) for Mayan to finally locate the man -- and when she does, Simpson does not really provide any reasons for the character's actions. While this is hardly the worst book ever, I wouldn't really recommend it. Your time can be better spend elsewhere. Rating:  - Finely crafted prosePerhaps because I did not come to this as a sequel (having not read or seen--at the time--either the novel, Anywhere but Here, or the movie), I found this a most engaging book. In particular I admire the finely crafted prose, the ability of Simpson to find a language to express the grammar of human emotions. Recommend highly. Rating:  - Is This Supposed to be a Sequel?I thought that this was a sequel to Anywhere But Here, but while the story lines parallel, the author (and editor)very annoying changed the characters names, as well as the the main characters hometown. The names are close--Ann August becomes Ann Stevenson, the hometown is changed from Bay City, WI to Racine...but my question is--why???? What was the purpose of it? They are obviously the same characters, and for readers who want to follow the story, it is extremely annoying. But at any rate, changed names or not, this story was far too long. About a third at least could've been clipped, maybe more. And it was just boring. Ann is dull, whiny, obsessed with finding this father of hers. And you wonder, why didn't she start with something simple, like look in the phone book in Los Angeles where he used to live. That's where she ends up finding him. All in all, a waste of time. Rating:  - Inconsistent and distracting.If you are approaching this as a sequel to "Anywhere but Here," you will be sorely disappointed with "The Lost Father." Important details, the things that stick with the protagonist (her Wisconsin hometown, her stepfather's last name, and her father's name, to name a few), are changed, and it seems this can only be the result of carelessness on the behalf of Simpson and *especially* her editor. If you are wondering what happened to the bratty and real Ann August, you will be disoriented once placed into the world of the overachieving Mayan Stevenson, a woman whose childhood amazingly parallels that of Ann's but doesn't quite match. However, if you truly enjoyed the academic side of Simpson's writing, the structure and voice and insight and whatnot, you will find she still deserves the three stars I've given this book. 1 2
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