The Memory Keeper's Daughter

The Memory Keeper's Daughter The Memory Keeper's Daughter by Kim Edwards

My review

 rating: 3 of 5 stars
This was an interesting read. It was definitely a page-turner but I'm not sure if I really loved the book or if I just wanted to get it over with. After the first few pages I felt this was any old Hindi movie and wasn't sure I liked it. Then when Caroline Gill takes the baby with her I started to like it. The whole decision making scene seemed so un-contrived, it just seemed to flow in natural order. I could relate to the character and felt I would have done the same thing in her place.

Then came all that crap about Norah Henry in mourning forever. And David guilty forever - well that part I can understand in a way. But the Norah Henry character just did not do it for me and also David believing or "understanding" that he caused everything that happened with Norah's life or that everything that happened was a repercussion of what he'd done with Phoebe. Norah's depression - sure I can understand. For a year sure, for 5 - why not, for 25 yrs!! - ahem. And then her affairs, they started long after Paul's birth, long enough for Paul to understand and react to them. Humans heal better than that. What I would have believed would have been that there was always a part of Norah that remembered or longed for Phoebe, but that life went on. After a point the whole story seemed contrived - David's photography career - contrived, the pregnant girl in his old house - contrived, Al finding Caroline Gill - contrived, Caroline seeing an ad for a photography show - contrived, David bringing the pregnant girl home - come on. And so on.

Conclusion is that the book is your any day movie story, made for the movies. Up to one point it was a thought provoking book, and after that it looks like more thought was put into how to make it movie material.

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