Book Opinion: Freedom, by Jonathan Franzen

Please note: my posts on what I think about books are merely reflections of my opinion. I don't fact-check, because I am lazy, but I do my best to write accurately about what happens in a book ; what I like about it, and what I don't. I also freely refer to plot points, so if you're afraid I will spoil something for you, don't read this until after you've read the book.

Like a lot of people, I read Franzen's break-out (and perhaps first?) novel, The Corrections (TC). Diving into Freedom was a lot like the experiences I had when reading TC: one minute I was bending over a book, and the next thing I knew, I was staggering out, not sure where I was in "real life." Franzen has a wonderful ability to get a reader "right there" from the beginning. I really felt as if I were of (but not in) the action and that it was all playing out in front of me.

And, like TC, I couldn't wait to get back to the story between reading sessions. Until…about midway through the book. At that point, my desire to firmly grasp each character by the shoulders and shout, "stop doing that!" into his/her face overrode my desire to see what would happen next. Soon enough, I had that same feeling of finding myself a rather unwilling participant in a horrible crime people were perpetrating on themselves and others. I let time lag between reading sessions. I became a little anxious.

When I finished TC, I felt jilted. The book ended and the characters went blithely on, with all their suffering unredeemed, all my adjuration to "stop doing that!" unheard. At about the mid-way point of Freedom, I suspected the same fate would befall my beloved Patty, Walter, Joey, and the daughter. So, you can imagine how very pleased and happy to see I was to see the climax turn into the most satisfying dénouement I have read in a long, long time.

(And yes, I did find Patty and Walter's reuniting completely believable.)

All the characters were well-rounded, with the exception of Patty and Walter's daughter, whose name I can't even remember. If I have a criticism of the book, it is this glaring omission. Don’t get me wrong, this book is like a five-course meal, but without a well-rounded daughter, it's a bit like no one thought about the dessert and handed you a thin mint as an after-thought. And when I think of what hay Franzen could have made with a nuanced and "real" daughter, I think he missed an opportunity.

This omission is especially unfortunate given that each character stood up so well as a reflection (or reflections) of so many qualities we Americans are in an almost-constant discourse with, and about: independence, reinvention, depravity, resentment, lust, greed, redemption. Franzen is particularly skilled, I think, at weaving each character's storyline into the overarching themes and events of contemporary American culture.

How all this plays out is quite amazing. Even with my caveat over the missing daughter, I recommend this book, and I think it deserving of all the kudos it received.

In my humble opinion, of course.