Book info

• Title The Goldfinch
• Author Donna Tartt
• Year 2013
• Genre Contemporary

Theo Decker, aged thirteen, is left alone in the world after surviving a catastrophe that kills his only close relative - his mother - and tears him away from everything he knows. Tormented by grief, drifting from home to home, he grows increasingly obsessed with a small, enchanting work of art which dominates his imagination and ultimately draws him, as an adult, into a much darker life than he could ever have foreseen.

Thoughts

I’ve read a couple of Donna Tartt books and enjoyed them. They’re very much of a type - detailed descriptions and evocative prose taking precedence over the story. That’s not to say the narrative is disappointing, although The Goldfinch did seem oddly far-fetched at times. It was a really good read, captivating and moving. You could feel the cloying heat of the desert and the refreshing busy city in New York.

But it was also intensely depressing. From the first incident, through several deaths, to disappointing family relationships, to the end result. The final twists and turns seem out of place, considering how relatively tame the first two thirds of the book are, but you have to go with it to find out how it all works out.

I enjoyed it, perhaps it wasn’t up there with The Secret History, but it was still a worthy book.

Rating: 3 / 5