3.5 stars ( )

Beautifully written with wonderful characters and lots of philosophical questions about life. This book reminds me of 19th century novels -- a depth of character development and lots of ideas to ponder. I agree with some reviewers that there isn't much plot, but that doesn't matter in this kind of book....it's about human reactions to life. ( )

Beautiful writing, but too much philosophy and not much plot. Giving up halfway through as my TBR pile is growing. ( )

I loved this book. Something about the characters' reactions to life helped me feel more whole and normal. This is the sort of book you can't read just once. I look forward to "really" reading it a second time around. ( )

This is absolutely the best novel I have ever read. Packed with insight and intelligence, writing that illuminates and communicates, characters who live. Schwartz has created a whole world in which the reader can enter and relate, yearn, suffer, learn. As in other good books, the best books, I've read, each page is a delight, a joy to read, and yet sad because it is nearing the end, and you don't want it to end. The first half of the book explores mostly happiness, or the deep contentment that comes with having long time friends, acute intelligence, work one loves, marrying the right person, making the right decisions...then comes the wrenching loss and sorrow, all compellingly described, a true "disturbance in the field," that changes everything. Or does it? All mixed with a wry and forgiving humor, insights galore, a density of ideas and discoveries. I have personal reasons for loving this book -- it takes place in NYC, and there is a lot about Barnard College (I'm a Barnard girl) in it, I can identify with the discoveries of the place and of the mind (and of the time), and the happy marriage, the joys and frustrations of being a mother of four. I never had such a brilliant mind as her Lydia, and I hope never to have such a horrific loss, and I don't have Lydia's gift or blessing for friendship, but oh, how Lynne Sharon Schwartz serves the reader with what all of that is like. Fantastic writing!! Martha Huntley ( )