So Long at the Fair

May 5, 2008
Fans of Schwarz’s Oprah Book Club selection Drowning Ruth
are likely to be disappointed by this convoluted novel about loyalty, love and obsession. Jon and Ginny Kepilkowski, high school sweethearts who were pushed into marriage by a freak accident, come to a crossroads when Jon, after an argument with Ginny, decamps to spend the day with mistress Freddi. Ginny, meanwhile, meets clients for her landscaping business, one of whom, Walter Fleischer, is part of a long-ago family conflict that is weakly developed in flashbacks to the summer of 1963, where Jon and Ginny’s parents are embroiled in a perplexing revenge plot against Walter over lust gone wrong. Back in the present, Ginny comes close to discovering Jon’s infidelity while Jon and Freddi are pursued by Ethan, whose clunkily rendered obsession with Freddi leads to a violent, if poorly presaged, climax. When the novel finally reveals its long-foreshadowed secrets, their import remains frustratingly unclear.

June 1, 2008
From the outside, Jon and Ginnys marriage is solid. ButJon must make a decision: should heend his affair or his marriage? He never intended to cheat on his wife; the affair just happened. The attention from a young, beautiful woman and Ginnys apprehension aboutstarting afamily made the affair so easy. What he doesnt realize is that Ginny is getting closer to realizing the truth. The long work hours and his strange attachment to his computer are making her suspicious. Over the course of one day, Schwarz follows Jon and Ginny, expertly describing the complexity of their marriage, revealing the thought process behind Jons adultery, and exploring the way in which Ginny rationalizes Jons behavior. It is an honest and balanced portrayal of a marriage in trouble. However, Oprah author Schwarz muddies their story with a flashback sequence abouttheir parents that ultimately has no bearing on Jon and Ginnys relationship. Read and recommend this for Schwarzs skill in deciphering relationships, and overlook the flashback clich'.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2008, American Library Association.)