A Hole in the Universe

by Mary McGarry Morris

When Oprah Winfrey chose Mary McGarry Morris’s Songs in Ordinary Time for her book club, she brought more than a million new readers under the spell of a novelist praised by the Boston Sunday Globe as “brilliantly acute . . . remarkable” and by USA Today as “extraordinary.”

In her stunning new novel, Morris introduces us to Gordon Loomis, who, after twenty-five years in jail for a senseless high school murder, cannot come to terms with the enormity of his crime and its violation of all that is good and right. A giant of a man, he has learned to preserve a polite low profile and meager expectations for his life. Pressed by his family to start over, he stubbornly refuses to leave his old home and neighborhood—now devastated by a quarter century of decline. A Hole in the Universe follows Gordon and the three women who care for him as they force him to confront real life.

Graced with Morris’s signature command of dialogue, her talent for creating vivid, unforgettable characters, and her masterful use of suspense, A Hole in the Universe is an engrossing story from “one of the most skillful authors at work in America today” (Michiko Kakutani, The New York Times).

Genres: Fiction, Literary Fiction, Contemporary, Poverty, Drugs, American, Novels

384 pages, Hardcover

First published March 8, 2004

About the author

Mary McGarry Morris is an American novelist, short story author and playwright from New England. She uses its towns as settings for her works. In 1991, Michiko Kakutani of The New York Times described Morris as "one of the most skillful new writers at work in America today"; The Washington Post has described her as a "superb storyteller"; and The Miami Herald has called her "one of our finest American writers".
She has been most often compared to John Steinbeck and Carson McCullers. Although her writing style is different, Morris also has been compared to William Faulkner for her character-driven storytelling. She was a finalist for the National Book Award and PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction. As of 2011, Morris has published eight novels, some of which were best-sellers, and numerous short stories. She also has written a play about the insanity trial of Mary Todd Lincoln.

Reviews

[Judy Mann · Rating 2 out of 5]

I honestly and truly have no idea how to rate this book. She is a good writer- there's no question there and she sure gets that dismal depression which has taken over a lot of the east coast-particularily New England. But gimme a break. It got to the point that I physically could not read anything about Jada.I could not read how passive this hulk named Gordon was. I mean quiet is one thing- but his guy was sleepwalking through the whole book. 300 pounds of dead meat. Really. And Jada's just waiting there to eat him alive- which she does.
Here's what I think. There had to have been SOME light, something alittle bit GOOD to make it believable-but there wasn't. The whole story just went from murky-to murkier. Just hideous gloom-all these parasites taking advantage of this Hulk .And him just taking it- right up to the end.He just takes it all.
Yeah me too- I need an Archie comic after this one.
Okay I just figured out what irritates me about this book. It's because there is this whole notion that says if a
book or a movie is depressing it makes that book or movie SMART. Intellectual.Sophisticated.
And if you want to put any light into it- that makes you dumb, superficial, shallow.
It just ain't so. Even the worst character in this story had to have a light at the end of the tunnel-something to live for- and they didn't . Not one of them. They were all consumed by their own gloom. That's just not true.
Even the most evil soul has invented a reason to live. These characters did not have that. Not one reason to go on. That's not the way it is.
Now-I really need an Archie comic. JM

[Erin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this book. Every time I had to put it down I was counting down until I could pick it up again. Beautifully written. I loved both the story and the characters. I'm partial to books set in Detroit, anyway. I could totally visualize the whole thing - it was like I was sitting on the street watching it all unfold. Other reveiwers have indicated that they couldn't understand the motivation of various characters, but I did not find that at all. I "got" each character and their complexities. That's probably one of the things I liked best about the books - there are no straw men here. Each character is nuanced and interestingly drawn. Definitely want to seek out more books by this author. Highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys books set in Detroit or enjoys complex characters. Reminded me a lot of Richard Russo, minus the humor.

[Marca · Rating 2 out of 5]

I stayed with this book until the end, but was dissatisfied by unresolved storylines at the end. This is a book full of characters that are really hard to like. Most of them live on a street filled with violent crime and drugs so they live a hard life. We have glimpses of their lives, but don’t have a good picture of them. Sometimes their motivation is clear, but not always. Gordon is the most frustrating. He is the main character and was recently paroled after serving 25 years in prison for a murder he may not have committed. He is a big man of very few words; he mostly says he is sorry. Is he mentally disabled? He seems to have completed some post-high school education, so why does he come off as he does? Why does Dolores pursue him relentlessly despite his constant rejections? Too many questions.

[E M · Rating 3 out of 5]

NEED ADVICE!!
Ever since I stumbled on "Vanished" I've been a huge Morris fan, but I quit "A Hole in the Universe" a quarter way through because of what might be called a severe phobia: I can't bear to read (or reread, in the case of books I previously enjoyed) anything that includes the death of a dog. I stopped reading "Hole" because I grew too anxious about the fate of the girl's dog. Can someone provide a signal on the dog's fate? I know this sounds stupid, but it's a very real problem for me ....
Thanks.

[Renee Hanley · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book took me some time to get absorbed into it. I did ultimately become invested in the characters and was anxiously reading more.

The thing I loved about the characters in this book is that although they were all flawed, you wanted the best for them. I could see so much of how circumstance, economics, family, and experiences all played a role in their poor decision-making process.

McGarry Morris did such an amazing job allowing us inside why each character was choosing to say, do, or not-do specific actions.

I really loved this book. The beginning was a bit slow and although I liked the ending it did sort of leave me wanting a bit more so that's why I gave it four rather than five stars.

[L · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sad, just a very sad book. The tale centers around Gordon, just home after 25 years in the slammer for a murder; his actual involvement was real, but is somewhat unclear. He has more sense about his responsibility and the results of that act than do the others in his circle. The romantic interest is so pathetic in her efforts to please (everyone, not just Gordon) that she made me cringe. And so it goes.

There is the expected "dominance of the human spirit" stuff here, but all in all the book made me sad. The characters are believable, yes. But these are not people I care about, particularly, or want to know except, perhaps, for Jada the neglected girl from across the street. In fact, it's Jada that raises the book to 3 stars.

[Krista Fornear · Rating 2 out of 5]

Picked this up on a whim at the local library (which I normally have great success with) though sadly not in this case. While the work was well written (hence 2 stars over 1) the story itself fell very flat and was very much a dud in my option. I didn't even finish it, which I have only done a small handful of times. All library grabs can't be great while this was not terrible by any means, I certainly wouldn't recommend it to fellow readers either. With a title Hole in the Universe I just expect so much more and sadly it just didn't deliver. Slow and clearly didn't hold my interest enough.

[Jan · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you have never read Mary McGarry Morris I will tell you that she is the master at writing about dysfunctional families -- if you do not like this genre you probably will not like anything she writes. She actually fascinates me and this book was no exception. Again this book was about lowlife dysfunctional characters but the reading is compelling --at least to me. Not a book for everyone.

[Nicole · Rating 2 out of 5]

I kept waiting for the story to develop and it never felt like it did.

[Joanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very rough story, but so well written.

[Julia Cheung · Rating 4 out of 5]

The hole is the hole of injustice, loneliness, brokenness and all that is wrong with the world - but the book is punctured with hope in the character of Delores, the overweight and optimistic retail worker who keeps giving herself away out of an unhealthy need for codependence - but still with outlines of redemptiveness. The book is gripping but requires intense focus because sometimes the action is described in a stilting way where you have to read slowly in order to figure out who is doing what. But what is most gripping is the way Morris sheds light into the characters’ motivations, painting each and every one in a realistic light so that they are all flawed yet realistic. The characters actually make you experience the gamut of emotions from anger and sadness to joy and mirth. Gordon Loomis is a large, bumbling, gentle man who accidentally stumbles into difficult situations through passive friendship with toxic people (ie Jerry, the high school friend who murdered Janine Walter, a young pregnant woman, but who pinned the murder on Gordon because Jerry convinced Gordon to suffocate her with a pillow until she was unconscious). He develops coping mechanisms while in prison, then when he comes out of prison, he has to find his way in the world and ends up being rescued by Delores, amidst many dramas of misunderstandings, false accusations and even imprisonment because he is the chief suspect in his next-door-neighbor’s murder. Many main characters are memorable and realistic - Dennis, Gordon’s high-achieving, energetic yet depressed and over-compensating dentist brother, his sister-in-law Lisa, his other neighbor Jada Fossum, the 13/14 year old ball of energy, also optimism, lies and pain. Makes you think really hard about policing, justice, poverty, drug addiction, the prison system, foster care etc. The whole story has a very suspensful arc and is a compulsive read, with enough complexity and emotional resonance to be highly stimulating.

[Kayla · Rating 4 out of 5]

“A Hole in the Universe” follows Gordon, a man who went to prison for 25 years when he was 18 for killing a woman. He is freshly out of prison and attempting to reintegrate into society with the help of his younger brother Dennis. Dennis is successful and has a wife and children but he also deals with some personal struggles (such as his affair). Gordon also relies on his friend (and lover?) Delores who he went to high school with and who visited him frequently in prison. Gordon struggles to accept help, to maintain relationships, to find work, etc. and the book follows this journey. Jada, a teenage girl who lives across the street from Gordon, tries to befriend Gordon as she struggles with her mother’s addiction and poverty. Jada presents a threat to Gordon’s freedom when her mother kills Gordon’s neighbour and Gordon is blamed for the murder.

Overall the story was very interesting and the author did a great job conveying the emotions and struggles of someone reintegrating into society after being incarcerated for an extended period of time. I thought some of the relationships between the characters were a bit bizarre such as Gordon and Delores’ relationship - Gordon seems to be annoyed by her generosity yet she continues to go out of her way to help him throughout the book. Nonetheless, I thought it was an interesting concept and story!

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like this author, but 95% of this book was horrendously depressing. Often I debated whether I could stomach any more. Gordon, the main character, was sent to prison for 25 years for a murder he didn’t commit. Once Gordon is released, people treat him like garbage and are quick to blame him for anything bad that happens. Even his only brother, Dennis, who claims to love Gordon, is quite willing to throw Gordon under the bus when Gordon discovers Dennis is having an affair. Dennis has always excelled at everything, has a successful career as an oral surgeon, and has married Lisa, the daughter of a very wealthy man. Lisa is beautiful, kind, and a wonderful mother to their two children, but Dennis is never satisfied with what he has and is willing to frame Gordon for a new murder to keep Gordon from revealing Dennis' infidelities.

Mixed into this already troubling tale are a bunch of drug addicts and women who repeatedly fall for married men who falsely promise they will one day divorce their wives.

The end of the book has a few of the good guys coming out on top, but you have to plow through a lot of despicable actions to get there.

[Lori · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow, this was a new one for me, it was about everything, and I enjoyed it, but I also read another reviewer's thoughts and I agree, the Jada and her Mom references, and the bleak and blighted neighborhood the book resides in was disturbing, and I guess all too true these days. This was another of my trip to Maine reads, and my sister in law and niece may recognize that I am reading all the books that we cleaned out of my mother in law's bookcase and that I took to donate to the fall library book sale. I liked it, it kept my attention, but it gave me a constant foreboding of what was yet to come. I was never really sure I knew the whole back story on Gordon, if he really did what they say he did to go to jail for 25 years, or, was he just there and was set up? Or, he was there and participated, but his partner(s) in crime finished the act and he took the fall? Also not clear on the ending- if anyone local wants to read this, I can drop it by! A good read, for sure, but I'd like a book club synopsis!

[Joey Brockert · Rating 3 out of 5]

This story is like a watching a train wreck – everyone is sad, and not getting better, except Gordon Loomis, ex-convict. Mr. Loomins has moved back home where he grew up after spending twenty-five (25) years in prison for murder.
I am not sure finished this story, it was such a train wreck. But I do remember that Mr. Loomis' brother is helpful, yet he has married and enjoys a girlfriend. The neighborhood is full of drug dealers, one of them is trying to get a 14 year old girl to do some dropping off and collecting for him, so her Mom can get the drugs she needs. Mr. Loomis tries to help the young girl get away from tose bad people, but does not seem to successful. In fact, a neighbor gets caught in the middle and is hurt.
This is about as far as I got, and I could not stand to read more.

[Claire Osgood · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a page turner chronicling the return of a man to his childhood home after a long prison sentence. This murderer is a quiet, polite person who just wants to work to support himself and fix up the old house. As the neighborhood has degraded, and the neighbors are poor, living there is much different than when he went to prison. The interactions between neighbors and the protagonist and his family and female friend are very interesting. The book is well written and a sad comment on our treatment of the previously incarcerated. Worth reading for many reasons.

[SharonSuzanne T.Racy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Every character in this book has a place and they help make the story that much more realistic. Without these minor characters, such as the employees at the market, this book would be a dud - mostly because Gordon is such a bummer. Delores is the real star - the descriptions of her style are fabulous.

MMM did a great job making the unhappy, hopeless individuals, families, neighborhood, and town at least be entertaining.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a well written book which starts with the reentry into society of a man who has spent the past 25 years in prison for a crime which he may or may not have committed. His old neighborhood has fallen on hard times. Drugs, robberies, crime in general.

The characters are all broken. I read to the end, hopng that they could find a kind peace together. I guess they did in a way, but it was a pretty grim journey. Not sure I would recommend this to friends.

[Liza · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent characterizations and visualizations by an incredible writer. You really get to know both the people (who for the most part are not anyone you want to hang with) and their surroundings (nowhere you would want to live/work). I listened to this on CD in the car and found I needed time outs on occasion because it was hard to bear what may happen next. Kudos to the actor who brought the book alive.

[Laura McConn · Rating 2 out of 5]

This isn’t a bad book, but I can’t say I enjoyed it either.

It’s just horribly depressing, and I wasn’t really prepared for just how hopeless this book feels. There’s a lot to unpack in the novel, questions of what makes a person good and how we hold people’s mistakes against them. But, man, is it just depressing.

[Connie Hess · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gordon Loomis has done his 25 years behind bars and is released from jail.
His brother, Dennis, arranges for Gordon to live in the house they grew up in, but the neighborhood has deteriorated and is full of drug dealers and unsavory characters.
Dennis expects Gordon to assimilate back into normal life and berates him for not being able to do so.

[Sidney · Rating 3 out of 5]

My second Morris book in two weeks. Hers is a writing I might be able to handle once every six months. Very gritty writing that leaves nothing to the imagination and this one made me a little mad. A young man serves 25 years for a murder he didn’t commit. Once home and trying to reestablish his life, he is once again blamed for just about everything that is going wrong in his old neighborhood.

[Debbie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have not read this author in so long. There was something so real and raw in these voices. they are members of a really down and out neighborhood, looking for belonging with really few resources. thank you for this book, Ms. Morris!

[Peggy · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you want to read about depravity, inner city horrors, and dysfunctional characters, this is the book for you. Well written, but not for everyone.

[Peggy Schuster · Rating 5 out of 5]

An emotionally exhausting read. Brilliantly written. As the book progresses the many facets of the characters are peeled back layer after layer. Absolutely engrossing.

[Trina · Rating 1 out of 5]

Dreadful. Story failed to grab me. Skimmed through to the end, but will stick it back in the Little Library in case there’s someone looking for an undemanding read with terrific blurbs...

[Laurie · Rating 3 out of 5]

The ending stinks. The rest was okay

[Terry · Rating 3 out of 5]

another train wreck but I wish I had hopped off early but I did not. Not worth my time

[Ann Murphy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story held me to the very end.

[Lucy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Even though this story was depressing, and I wanted to strangle a couple of the characters, the writing was so good, I just couldn’t put it down.