Frog Music: A Novel
Somewhere between Blanche having sex with various men (and maybe women) and Blanche whining about wanting to have sex with various men (and maybe women), there was a murder. On top of all the sex and the murder, there was the worst book I have read all year. This book is suppose to be some kind of engrossing look at San Francisco during the summer of 1876 when the city was plagued with heat and a small pox outbreak. Yes, Blanche suffered (more like whined) through the heat. Yes, Blanche had a run in with small pox. Did I think of this novel as a window to the past (like I think good historical fiction is)? Not even close. I'm not sure I understand all of the hype and raving reviews surrounding this book. I understand it was a different time and that it is unfair to use modern values to judge people of the past but, as a mother, I could not abide by Blanche's treatment of her son. She ships him off to be raised in an institution so she can continue her life stripping and whoring. Suddenly she sees he's being treated inhumanely and her motherly instinct kicks in. No. Just no. Again I understand it's unfair to judge the actions of the past with a modern lens but common practice for the time or not, I couldn't deal with it. It made me want to bend over (something Blanche talks about doing) a toilet and vomit (big surprise, Blanche's kind of bending over doesn't involve a toilet).
There isn't a person in the world I would recommend this book to. How it managed to be a raved about, best seller, I'll never know.
