I read two books by Julia Glass in the last little while and I just need to talk about how spectacular she is. I read her first novel, Three Junes some time last year. I loved it. I loved the way she described characters so that you feel you know them, even when you know very little about them, her writing feels intimate from the moment you meet each person. I also loved the small details that she incorporates in every piece of her woven tales, they say it is all in the details, and she proves it is true. Her books are just nicely constructed, smooth transition shifts, just enough mystery to keep you intrigued. It won the National Book Award, rare for a first novel and well deserved all around.
Needless to say, I bought her second book right when it came out, at Barnes & Noble... that never happens. It was eased by the fact that my boyfriend's parents know enough about me to have bought me a gift card to a bookstore (more than half of which is still on the card, almost a year later, I know I'm weird about spending gift cards, but that is for another time). Anywho, her second book, The Whole World Over. I loved it immediately, I even read a sentence out loud to my mother at one point; who gave me a funny look, well deserved I was being ridiculous but the book was great. It incorporates as minor characters some people from Three Junes and it feels like you are revisiting great friends. Then, suddenly it took a turn, a September 11th turn... I rolled over in bed and said to my boyfriend, 'hmmm, this book has taken a turn.' He replied, 'for the better or worse?' 'I don't know...I just don't know'. However, it turned out to be tasteful, relevant and totally non-intrusive. God, I love her so much. It will probably be another 5 years before we get another book out of her, but it will be worth it. I've so far forced 3 co-workers to read at least one of them, and they all loved them (and I don't supervise them, so they are not lying!).
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