Ti | Book Chatter

The Space Between Us

Welcome to Thrity Thursday, also known as “The Space Between Us” read-along. We’ll be reading the book over the next few weeks. Thanks to Lisa for putting it together and thanks to these other bloggers for joining in on the fun!

Dar at Peeking Between The Pages
Staci at Life In The Thumb
Kathy at Mommy’s Reading
Booksync at Book In The City
Bailey at The Window Seat Reader
Mari at Bookworm With A View

Chapters 16-20

My Synopsis:

My hope is that after this read-along, some of you will get a copy of this book and read it on your own. Since that is my wish, my synopsis isn’t a play-by-play account of what I’ve read, but just a high-level overview of what took place. I don’t want to spoil it for anyone. With that said…

In this week’s reading, we learn what happened to Bhima’s family. Particularly her husband Gopal, and her son Amit. From earlier chapters, it’s clear that Gopal and Bhima love each other, but after an accident at work, the family feels the strain of Gopal’s injury and the added pressure to make ends meet brings out the worst in Gopal.

Sera and Feroz’s influence is what saves Gopal’s life, but their influence is not able to prevent the gradual decline that further stresses Bhima and the family.

My Thoughts:

The decline of Bhima’s family is just heartbreaking. She tries so hard to provide a good life for her family, yet her struggle to do so is outweighed by Gopal’s inability to function as the family’s provider. As you can imagine, the ability for a man to provide for his family is a matter of pride and without it, the man is left feeling completely useless. Such is the case with Gopal. On the one hand, I was frustrated with Gopal, but on the other, I could totally relate to his predicament.

As the story progresses, I find myself more and more frustrated with Maya. She’s young and educated yet she comes across as being a bit of an airhead. Her questions to Bhima border on “irritating” and she doesn’t seem capable of reading between the lines. As the story comes to a close, my hope is that she comes full circle and learns something from the mistakes she’s made and appreciates how hard her grandmother works to keep them together.

The Inn at Lake Devine Book Cover The Inn at Lake Devine
By Elinor Lipman
Knopf Doubleday
April 1999
272pp

The Short of It:

The Inn at Lake Devine is the perfect summer read. The setting and the characters do not disappoint and it’s surprisingly meaty given its summery feel.

The Rest of It:

It was not complicated, and, as my mother pointed out, not even personal. They had a hotel; they didn’t want Jews; we were Jews.

So begins the story of young Natalie Marx and her infatuation with the Inn at Lake Devine. Natalie’s mother sends an inquiry to the Vermont hotel inquiring about summer accommodations for her and her family, and receives a polite, but firm note back indicating that the hotel does not do business with Jews. Shocked, but intrigued, Natalie wonders about the person who wrote the note and in her own way, stages a rebellion from afar.

However, when Natalie discovers that a friend visits the Inn each summer, she realizes that it’s a chance of a lifetime and manages to get the family to invite her to join them for the summer. Her parents, knowing how this establishment operates, doesn’t want her to go, but her host family insists, so her adventure during that 1960’s summer begins.

I can’t really call this a “coming of age” novel because Natalie has a very strong sense of self, even as a young girl, but as she matures, her sense of self deepens and she seems to understand, or perhaps appreciate her Jewish roots more. Natalie is a pleasure to know. She flounders a bit with her personal life, but she never seems the worse for it and her pragmatic way of dealing with life made for pleasurable reading.

I’ve heard of Elinor Lipman before but have never read any of her books. The Inn at Lake Devine is my first experience with her writing. Her writing is very authentic with a touch of sarcasm thrown in. The writing is humorous, but not overly so. I especially enjoyed her depictions of “family” and the interactions between parent and child.

I was also charmed by the setting. A lakeside hotel in Vermont? I’m so there. I could see the porch, the out-buildings and the shimmering lake. It all felt so genuine to me.

As far as pace, I breezed through the book and read it in one sitting. There was one spot where it dragged a tad, and got a bit silly, but not enough to make me want to put it down. The first person narrative threw me off a couple of times. I don’t read too many novels written in this narrative but it seemed to fit.

An interesting tidbit…apparently such a letter existed. Lipman’s mother remembered the wording of the letter she received one summer, and it became the inspiration for this story.

I was quite happy with The Inn at Lake Devine and can’t wait to read another Lipman. For those that have read her before, which book should I read next?

Source: Borrowed from the library.

Recommended by: Thomas at My Porch.

Chatting with friends about books and life…