The Goldfinch

Are any of you on Facebook?  I know, I know…it's not so cool anymore with the younger generation.  I, however, am on Facebook and there's been a post going around asking people who are tagged to make a post of the ten books that have changed their life.  Mrs. Kinross, MHS 10th grade teacher, tagged me in this post.  And to be honest, I replied to her with some book suggestions but wasn't quite ready to make my list.  I still am not sure I am ready.  Only ten books?  The pressure is too much.

But I recently finished a novel that I feel confident I would place on that list of top ten.  It is called The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt.  The only reason I requested it from the library was because I had seen so many of my Goodreads friends suggesting it, as well as bestseller lists.  I thought it was amazing.  I will also tell you that it was LONG.  771 pages long.

Okay, so here's the abbreviated version of those 771 pages.  It begins when Theo is a thirteen year old. He and his mom stop at a museum in New York City briefly to examine some paintings.  While they are there, a bomb goes off (well, two actually) and his mother dies.  Theo meets a man named Welty after the bombing but before he escapes.  Welty gives him a ring and tells him to save this famous painting of a goldfinch.  Theo obliges and runs home with the painting and ring, never telling authorities about it.  The painting follows him from place to place….to Vegas to live with his father and his girlfriend, back to New York City to live with a friend and confidante, Hobie, who later becomes his business partner.

There are so many things I loved about this book.  It is hard to keep my attention for 771 pages, but Donna Tartt was able to do just that.  Her characterization was well developed, and not just for the main character, Theo.  I felt like his good friend Boris could just walk off the page and introduce himself to me.  My heart tugged for Mrs. Barbour towards the end of the book when two people very close to her died.  When you feel like you know a character, like you could meet them in real life, like you see a person on the street and think, "That's Boris!" then that is plain 'ol good writing.

I also loved the imagination the author must have to spin such a creative, imaginative plot.  Every twist in Theo's life was unexpected to me and I loved that.  I also appreciated that Theo's character was not perfect.   Far from it actually.  Theo did a lot of bad, bad things over the course of the book, but was still able to learn things from his experiences.

And since a post would not be complete without some quotes from the text, I'll leave you with a few of my favorites.  "Isn't everything worthwhile a gamble?  Can't good come around sometimes through some strange back doors?" (Tartt 758).  This line addresses that earlier notion of Theo not always making the best choices or causing the best actions, but sometimes things still ended up okay.  Sometimes even better than okay and he was able to grow from his experiences.

The other line that really spoke to me reads, "A great sorrow, and one that I am only beginning to understand: we don't get to choose our own hearts.  We can't make ourselves want what's good for us or what's good for other people.  We don't get to choose the people we are" (Tartt 761).  This line comes near the end of the book when Theo is reflecting on his experiences through his journey.  So universal and it spoke to me as both a parent and a teacher.  My children are not exactly like me.  Neither are my students.  And that's okay.  They are who they are.  Something for me to embrace and appreciate.