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Binding: PaperbackDewey Decimal Number: 813.6 EAN: 9780743247771 ISBN: 0743247779 Label: Free Press Manufacturer: Free Press Number Of Items: 1 Number Of Pages: 288 Publication Date: March 22, 2005 Publisher: Free Press Studio: Free Press Editorial Review: Amazon.com Review: Young Cassie Claiborne, the heroine of Haven Kimmel's egregiously ill-named novel Something Rising (Light and Swift), is a pool hustler. She learns to shoot pool for money when her unreliable father abandons her, along with her shut-in mother and her neurotic sister. Her growing-up is a dark thing: She has funny friends and pot-smoking good times out on country roads, but she's always carrying the financial and emotional burden left behind by her father. A good daughter, she lives with her mother in her small Indiana hometown till she's 30. Finally, after her mother's death, she decides to visit New Orleans to learn about her family's past. Up to this point, the novel is a sensitively written coming-of-age story, a little on the slow side. The book really takes off when Cassie hits the Big Easy. A taciturn, almost compulsively private person, she finds herself encountering enchanting strangers at every turn. A new friend named Miss Sophie grills Cassie about her line of work, and she replies, "I play pool for money. I just announce myself, I say I've come to a place to play their best, and for money, and that person is called. Or I wait for him." Miss Sophie replies "My interest in this is so sudden it feels lewd." The exchange gives an idea of the malleability and strength of Kimmel's style. You believe in both the gruff Cassie and the effusive Miss Sophie, and you believe they could charm each other. Such off-kilter connections are, in a sense, the point of the novel; it's a book about the serendipity of finding someone to like. --Claire Dederer Product Description: Cassie Claiborne's world is riddled with problems beyond her control: her hard-living, pool-shooting father has another wife; her mother can't seem to move herself mentally away from the kitchen window; and her sister Belle is a tempest of fragility and brilliance. Frustrated by her inability to care for so many, Cassie finds in the local pool hall an oasis of green felt where she can master objects and restrain her emotions. As Cassie grows up, she takes on the thankless role of family provider by working odd jobs and hustling pool. All the while she keeps her eye on the ultimate prize: wringing suitable justice from past wrongs and freeing herself from her life's inertia. In this uplifting story, Haven Kimmel reaches deep into the hamstrung souls of her fictional corner of Indiana to create an astonishing work of pure heartbreak. Average Rating:
 Rating:  - Eh.Ok, well, I liked this book. It's just that I really wanted to LOVE this book, because the writing is beautiful and the author comes with such rich acclaim. But I felt I was kept at arm's length from the heart of this book, like I should have been content being just a spectator when I really wanted to be a participant. The main character of this novel is Cassie Clairborne, who I suppose (to the casual observer) could be called a pool hustler. I love how she explains herself, though: ... Read More Rating:  - Who says small town life isn't epic? Certainly not Haven Kimmel.This is the second Haven Kimmel novel I've read, and I have to say I'm hooked. It's her characters. You'd be lucky to be a Haven Kimmel character. You might work in a tiny library and spend your life grieving the man who left you for a woman with a prior claim. You might never leave your kitchen table out of a fear of germs. You might be graceful, rock-hard pool hustler with a failing Mazda truck and a disputed cue. Whatever you are, you will be as deeply engaged in the world of ideas as any professor. ... Read More Rating: - Something RisingI must say I was a bit disappointed with this book after reading all of this author's prior publications. The transitioning is hard to follow and while the real situation is understood at the end, I found myself unsatisfied since the various pieces and scenarios preceding the finale did not all hold together for me. Rating: - Not my Favorite This is not my favorite Haven Kimmel novel, but it's worth reading, and like most, perhaps all, of Kimmel's work, redemptive. Rating: - an interesting bookThis is a really interesting book. The main character, Casey is evolving in the story. Keeps your attention. |
