It Was a Miracle, Considering How Sick She Was

I used to love sledding as a child. Whenever it snowed, my dad and I would trek up the hill near our neighborhood pond and I would sled right down the middle of the road (we don't live in a very hilly neighborhood). I reveled in the feel of the winter wind stinging my cheeks as I rode through our development. I remember one instance in which my mom had to throw herself in front of a tree to prevent me from running into it on my sled. After I read Edith Wharton's Ethan Frome I was never able to think of sledding in the same way. I didn't really like Ethan Frome too much the first time I read it. I loved the plot: an unhappy marriage in which a husband must take care of his sickly wife, an awkward affair, and a failed suicide pact, but I think the characters and the style of writing bothered me. Ethan's inability to commit is frustrating and Mattie's ultimatums come across as selfish and bossy. Zeena is self absorbed and unwilling to recognize the unhappiness of those around her. All in all I am unsympathetic with the plights of these characters. However, I enjoyed the premise of the story. This redeems the novel somewhat, in my opinion, and earns Wharton's work a B-. Hopefully I will be more impressed with her other novels on the list.

26 down, 975 to go!

"There are two ways of spreading light: to be the candle or the mirror that reflects it." (Edith Wharton)