The Drowning Season

By Alice Hoffman

Book Overview

The New York Times bestselling author of The Rules of Magic presents a "stunning and hypnotic" novel that "interweaves past and present with piercing images and unfailing energy"( Publishers Weekly ). On a secluded waterfront estate on the North Shore of Long Island, a matriarch named Esther rules over her clan. But in spite of her sharp tongue and manipulative ways, she cannot quite keep control over her charges. Her son, Philip, routinely tries to drown himself each summer; her granddaughter sneaks cigarettes and dreams of escape. Esther has hired Cohen, a Russian landscaper, to watch over the family as well as the grounds. But Cohen has been watching Esther as well. And his love for her is growing wild enough to uproot them all...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0425184757
• ISBN13: 9780425184752
• Release Date: July 2002
• Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group
• Length: 240 Pages
• Weight: 0.66 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 5.1" x 8.0"

Customer Reviews

Magic

Totally recommend if you enjoy stories of complex relationships with a dash of magic.

Strange characters. Very well-presented.

This story exemplifies Alice Hoffman's talent for drawing the dysfunctional family so well. The characters, although weird, were each likeable in their own way, and it was captivating to read about their plight.

STRANGE as STRANGE CAN BE

The characters of this book are more eccentric than my neighbors. The tales intertwined in this book belong more in a 19th century novel than they do in today's writing world. The biases and idiosyncracies of the characters are Hoffman-esque. Oh, are they ever so ever Hoffman. By the time we learn what a drowning season is, we learn that the person who likes to attempt hydro-suicide ventures (almost as often as the tortoises lay their eggs) is not necessarily the most mentally disturbed family member. Maybe, you have to think, the others drove him to the shores to fill his lungs with salt water. Hoffman writes well. Extremely well. And, knowing that many of her other books deal with single women raising teenage kids -- something which I must assume she knows a lot about -- this book surprises you as it stays away from that common theme. If you do not like this book, I can guarantee you will not like many (or most) of her other novels.

Very entertaining and a unique look at life and destiny.

After reading Turtle Moon I had a quest for more of Alice Hoffman. The Drowning Season gives a unique perspective of issues that I had never looked at before - namely death and obsession with a quest. Suicide is not an easy topic, but this is an eye opener. Hoffman has a timemachine built into her novels that transports us into these worlds almost through magic. I have never been disappointed with any of her novels, and eagerly look forward to the next adventure into the human spirit that she takes me on. Her characters are human and fallible - like all of us. The stories are lessons learned that touch our lives over and over again. She is so timely with stories on AIDs, abuse, gangs, new age beliefs, abandoned unwanted juveniles, and even crime. Each is almost a modern day parable. I couldn't put this book down, it traveled with me until I finished it.

Very poignant story of famial love

While browsing thru notes I made on books read years and years ago, I came across my remarks about Angel Landing, another Hoffman book, and remembered how impressed I was with her writing style and characters. I decided to see if she had written any more books and had no idea she had written so many others, including one selected by Oprah's reading group. I was not disappointed to be reading her again. Her characters, always quirky and strange, are written in such a lyrical tone that they seem very real and human. In The Drowining Season, Esther the White is the matriarch of a very dysfunctional yet loving family. Hoffman slowly reveals the past deceptions and future dreams of all the family members culminating in life-changing decisions made by all three generations. Your only hope is that all will have found the peace and love so desired. A great read!