There's something intimate about the lyrical rhythm of the book, as though we are truly inside the minds of the characters, listening to the voices within and around them. Occasionally a character or the author speaks to us directly; sometimes a passage can potentially be read as both. For example, here are Daniel's thoughts as he is writing about his life and recording his recipes:
"[Y]ou, reader, come and read it, and eat it, you eat my soul and you think nothing of it, you move on in your life but I'm in you. And you move on. I could be a plumber and be free. I could be a clerk in a grocery store and you would never consume me in this way."
Whether or not this comes from Power's personal feeling, and it may not, it's an effective image of a reader-author dynamic that can certainly stick with you.
Power's previous novels, Crawling at Night and The Good Remains were both New York Times Notable Books of the Year. Crawling at Night was also a finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Award and the British Orange Prize for Fiction. The Sea of Tears is a beautiful, engaging work that should garner some worthy attention as well.
"[Y]ou, reader, come and read it, and eat it, you eat my soul and you think nothing of it, you move on in your life but I'm in you. And you move on. I could be a plumber and be free. I could be a clerk in a grocery store and you would never consume me in this way."
Whether or not this comes from Power's personal feeling, and it may not, it's an effective image of a reader-author dynamic that can certainly stick with you.
Power's previous novels, Crawling at Night and The Good Remains were both New York Times Notable Books of the Year. Crawling at Night was also a finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Award and the British Orange Prize for Fiction. The Sea of Tears is a beautiful, engaging work that should garner some worthy attention as well.
