I was engrossed. I mean, totally sold on this book and these characters. When Rose Daniels left home and headed into the big unknown, I was ready to travel the path ahead with her. Who knew hat adventures lay ahead.
The very point where I thought the book would really take off and get exciting, the problems began. Rose finds herself in a train station, low on money and seeking shelter. As she moves among the homeless hoping to find safety somewhere, I began to realize -- this is an "agenda" novel. King isn't writing a story so much as he's trying to get me to sympathize with a character so he can then make a point.
Characters that were fresh, tight and intricate quickly began to get one-dimensional. Everyone is against Rose. The pregnant lady she asks for directions from curses her out. Why? Wait -- that's a big WHY? Why Just to show that society will kick someone when their down, even a pregnant lady can't be nice to poor Rose.
The villain I thought would be a great "bad guy" -- maybe one of King's best -- evaporated quickly. He's a cop, and a bad boy at that. But he's ALL bad. He's so nasty, he's unbelievable. How does this guy make it though life? People aren't just one thing; they are multifaceted. This is something King often excels in bringing to the page; but not in Rose Madder. Characters are good and bad. That's it. There is no complicated Roland or Eddie. What made the Dark Tower work was that the characters were both flawed and noble. We identified with them. In Rose Madder, everyone is painted in single strokes with little detail.
Yes, I feel for Rose when her back hurts. But scenes play out with such simplicity, the reader knows what's coming before it happens. There's not need for King to write out the scene where she goes to exchange her very expensive wedding ring, because the reader knows the moment she walks in the pawn show that the ring isn't worth anything. King is known for pulling surprises and plot twists; but so far, Rose Madder isn't doing much twisting.
THEN -- Rose encounters a painting that catches he attention. Could this be the plot twist? It's hard to hang in there, because even though I suspect there is something special about this painting (can she move inside paintings?), I'm not sure I want to travel the many pages it will require King to get to the point. Not because I don't love King's writing; usually I'm patient as he builds a story. But this one is becoming painfully predictable. King makes the mistake of boaring the reader.
In The Stand, there were plot twists I never saw coming. When King killed off the first batch of good guys, I realized: Anything can happen!
With Rose Madder, I'm beginning to feel like this is one of those John Grisham novels, written with more agenda than story. (Read the Street Lawyer, you'll see what I mean. And I loved that book, but it was definitely an "agenda" novel.)
But I'm still here. Still reading. Still working through this book. Because sometimes it takes a while for King to make the magic happen.
It's very funny, I didn't experience these misgivings at all at any real time that I was reading the book.
ReplyDeleteI knew from the start it was a "message" novel, yet it never seemed like I was being handed warmed over, wafer-thin plot basted in straw men.
I was engaged the whole time, really.
I think it might be because I realized there was other symbolism at work afoot here, and it had it's own kind of story to tell.
Oh yeah, it be gettin' weird alright.
ChrisC
This is a concise analysis and mirrors my own impression of the book. I felt the same way about Insomnia, Bag of Bones, Gerald's Game, and Dolores Claiborne.
ReplyDeleteIt was almost as if King spent the first half of the 1990s saying, "I have established myself as the most prolific author of the second half of the 20th century, so now listen to my sermon."