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A review by booksbikesbeards
Our Souls at Night by Kent Haruf
3.0
I have adoration for this book in a way one might think of a favorite stuffed animal or blanket from youth. There is a certain comfort in this novel, and it is so simply written. I pine for the book that sticks. Happily reading this one shortly after my last Men’s Literary Syndicate meeting, I appreciated the time for these pages to settle in and grow some roots before diving directly into discussion.
It helps to understand the Our Souls at Night through knowing the circumstances in which it was written. Kent passed away in November of 2014 from lung disease. He knew his life was drawing to a close as he wrote this book in the summer of that year. The novel is filled with nuanced self-reflection.
Our Souls at Night main character’s lives are also waning and they still long for companionship. Past choices and tragedies shape the conversation between Addie and Louis. The rhythm of life has pleasantly slowed to gardening and going on a neighborhood stroll.
***Spoilers below***
As their relationship grows each share a personal defining point from their lives. The death of Addie’s daughter and Louis’ affair. These are pivotal life moments for each of the characters.
J. Alfred Prufrock by TS Eliot was briefly mentioned in the book.
Let us go then, you and I,
When the evening is spread out against the sky
Like a patient etherized upon a table;
Let us go, through certain half-deserted streets,
The muttering retreats
Of restless nights in one-night cheap hotels
And sawdust restaurants with oyster-shells:
Streets that follow like a tedious argument
Of insidious intent
To lead you to an overwhelming question ...
Oh, do not ask, “What is it?”
Let us go and make our visit.
This oft debated, 100-year-old poem reflects upon the end of life and sexual frustration. Kent Haruf’s novel is the counterpoint to Prufrock. In Souls at Night aging is accepted, graceful, peaceful, and misunderstood by offspring. A subtle appreciation for the rhythm of daily life rather than the materialistic acquisition driven society to which we have grown so accustomed. Sex is normalized, more of an appropriately shared experience between two lovers than how viewed by much of today’s hypersexualized culture.
The play referenced in the novel is one of Haruf’s own books “Plainsong” the first of his trilogy. A reflection on his own life’s work, or himself perhaps?
The minor character, Gene, is painfully consumed by his own issues that in turn cause strife for those around him. This enjoyable, reflective book is a welcome departure and reminder that the lens through which we see life is not the same as everyone else. A fact we can know intellectually, however enabling the heart to understand this is the more difficult task.
It helps to understand the Our Souls at Night through knowing the circumstances in which it was written. Kent passed away in November of 2014 from lung disease. He knew his life was drawing to a close as he wrote this book in the summer of that year. The novel is filled with nuanced self-reflection.
Our Souls at Night main character’s lives are also waning and they still long for companionship. Past choices and tragedies shape the conversation between Addie and Louis. The rhythm of life has pleasantly slowed to gardening and going on a neighborhood stroll.
***Spoilers below***
As their relationship grows each share a personal defining point from their lives. The death of Addie’s daughter and Louis’ affair. These are pivotal life moments for each of the characters.
J. Alfred Prufrock by TS Eliot was briefly mentioned in the book.
Let us go then, you and I,
When the evening is spread out against the sky
Like a patient etherized upon a table;
Let us go, through certain half-deserted streets,
The muttering retreats
Of restless nights in one-night cheap hotels
And sawdust restaurants with oyster-shells:
Streets that follow like a tedious argument
Of insidious intent
To lead you to an overwhelming question ...
Oh, do not ask, “What is it?”
Let us go and make our visit.
This oft debated, 100-year-old poem reflects upon the end of life and sexual frustration. Kent Haruf’s novel is the counterpoint to Prufrock. In Souls at Night aging is accepted, graceful, peaceful, and misunderstood by offspring. A subtle appreciation for the rhythm of daily life rather than the materialistic acquisition driven society to which we have grown so accustomed. Sex is normalized, more of an appropriately shared experience between two lovers than how viewed by much of today’s hypersexualized culture.
The play referenced in the novel is one of Haruf’s own books “Plainsong” the first of his trilogy. A reflection on his own life’s work, or himself perhaps?
The minor character, Gene, is painfully consumed by his own issues that in turn cause strife for those around him. This enjoyable, reflective book is a welcome departure and reminder that the lens through which we see life is not the same as everyone else. A fact we can know intellectually, however enabling the heart to understand this is the more difficult task.