Long listed for the National Book award this is a story of life and paralyzing loss. From the onset you know that a devastating tragedy has occurred in a small Connecticut town-a family has died in a house fire. As the narrative unfolds you learn that it was the morning of a young couple’s wedding, the young couple, the bride’s father, and her mother’s boyfriend all perish with the mother outside witness to the devastation. June the survivor leaves Connecticut and starts driving out west ending up at motel on the coast.
Varying viewpoints illuminate the dynamics of the town, the histories of the victims and of the surviving family members. June the matriarch is a divorced art dealer living with Luke a much younger local man whose life was derailed by a trip to jail. Because of his record Luke is the immediate scapegoat in the disaster. Interestingly the town bulldozes the remnants of the house immediately after the fire-there is no investigation beyond the cursory questions-a fact that is revisited later in the story.
The characters are interesting and richly told-you feel the loss of Lolly and her fiancé they had such promise. You empathize with the June’s missed opportunities and feel for Silas a local boy and his secret. Even Adam the philandering ex although a fairly minor character is not vilified. Clegg moves the reader from one history to another without disrupting the flow and in a little says a lot.
I expected this book to be a worthwhile burden-it was not at all a burden. Did You Ever Have A Family is a thought provoking must read, there is warmth and hope amongst the loss and recognition of our human flaws as part of living. Where I expected to slog through I couldn’t put it down and felt one of those great reader rewards when you know you have been touched deeply by something you have read.
a literary explorer 