Review: Maine by J. Courtney Sullivan

Three generations of Irish-Catholic Kelleher women grew up in different times, under different circumstances, and with different opportunities and expectations. Yet Alice (the greatest generation), her daughter Kathleen (hippie-inspired baby boomer), her daughter-in-law Ann Marie (yuppie-inspired baby boomer), and her granddaughter Maggie (generation X) each struggle with the same universal women's issues of the last century.

Rather than seeking mutual support and commiseration, the Kelleher women instead focus on their own private guilts, deep resentments, self-inflicted martyrdom, and need for control, preventing them from making meaningful connections. When unexpectedly reunited at the family's summer home in coastal southern Maine, the four are forced to confront hard truths about themselves and their relationships.

J. Courtney Sullivan's Maine is the story of twentieth-century women encapsulated in the Kelleher family. While individual issues, opportunities, and answers vary, every woman has had to come to terms with the questions of motherhood, marriage, and personal careers and fulfillment. And the manner in which a woman handles her own situation can have repercussions through the generations.

For example, a family tragedy in Alice's young life shaped her adulthood, creating a barrier that few, including her children, could breach. Kathleen, vowing to be everything her mother wasn't, smothers her children with too much friendship and moves to California to be an earthworm farmer. Maggie, a thirty-something writer living in New York, wishes Kathleen could have been more like other kids' mothers and has trouble understanding boundaries and personal privacy. Ann Marie, somewhat embarrassed by her upbringing, strives to rise above her own family and to prove to her in-laws that she is every bit as good as, if not better than, they are.

Through the alternating voices of these four women, Sullivan explores several other large issues, especially how the importance of the Church changed for women over time. The Kellehers don't discuss or ponder the gap between Alice's almost unquestioning belief and devotion and Maggie's indifference, making it almost impossible for the generations to understand each other.

Two other major themes are guilt and alcohol, both of which profoundly affect the Kelleher family dynamics. Maine also brings up the issues of caring for aging parents and outward image versus inner reality.

Alice, Kathleen, Ann Marie, and Maggie are in different life stages, but not one of them arrives in Maine that summer willing to take a frank look at herself or to take responsibility for her own actions. Readers stick with the Kellehers, hoping that despite the conflicts, the women will find at least some moments of acceptance--of themselves and of each other.

I listened to the unabridged audio edition (Random House Audio, 17 hr, 20 min) read by Ann Marie Lee. Lee's Irish-Boston accents added to the ambiance of the novel. Although she has a tendency to be an enthusiastic narrator, Lee well conveyed the underlying tension that colors the Kelleher family. My full audio review will be published by AudioFile.

Give it to me quickly: Three generations of women from the Irish-Catholic Kelleher family unexpectedly converge on the family's Maine summer home, forcing each to confront longstanding guilt, resentments, secrets, and disagreements.

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Published by Random House / Knopf, 2011
ISBN-13: 9780307595126
YTD: 64
Source: Review (see review policy).
Rating: A
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