Skateaway

by Michael Grant Jaffe

Clem, Garrett, and Samantha are just trying to grow up normally in the Ohio River Valley, but their lives are complicated when their mother--an abortion doctor--begins to receive threats from the conservative, blue-collar community

260 pages, Hardcover

First published October 1, 1999

Reviews

[Kevin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I can see why this book wouldn't necessarily have a high rating on Goodreads. There are enough tangents, threads going nowhere, and setups with no payoff that it can feel like a frustrating piece of work, but once you finish the book it kind of all comes together. The story structure can seem odd and even hackneyed (the three Mercer children at childhood, adolescence, and adulthood) until you realize these specific time periods were chosen very deliberately for reasons I can't go into without spoiling the plot.

Long story short, it's a book that doesn't reveal its themes or explain its structure until after the story is finished, which understandably isn't the most enticing sales pitch, but I enjoyed letting the lives of Sam, Garrett, and Clem amble (skate?) by and it's easy to just enjoy Jaffe's writing. This is the second book of his I've read (after 'Dance Real Slow') and I'll likely pick up a third.

[Mallori · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book wasn’t bad, it was just long and drawn out. Just multiple snapshots of the lives of this family, nothing really interesting.

Very slow paced. The novel touches on multiple tough issues like abortion, sexism, mental illness, and the effects that all of these things can have on a family.

My issue is that the family’s reactions to everything falls flat. The father is carted away to a mental health facility and the children are unbothered. Aggressive protestors are outside of their house and no one bats an eye. Sam is punched in the mouth by a teenage boy and the only one who cares is her boyfriend.

I just don’t feel like it did these topics justice.

[Emma Burger · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book centers around a family where an artist father is struggling with what sounds like progressive schizophrenia and an OBGYN mother is forever locked in battle with pro-life protestors outside their family home in suburban Cleveland. The prose is lyrical to the point where it almost feels like reading a long poem. Definitely would recommend for fans of Eugenides & American Beauty. Good rust belt vibes. For something non-plot driven, it's a pretty fast read.

[Maria · Rating 2 out of 5]

I had a hard time reading this book. It had potential, but I just couldn't get into it and I wasn't sure why. Eventually I realized a few things.
- Sometimes Jaffe used too many details to describe things that were not relevant. This was distracting.
- Sometimes he used fancy words when a simple word would have sufficed. I suppose he needed a better editor.
- As there wasn't one main character, I didn't really feel like I got to know any of the characters very deeply. I have enjoyed other novels that are told from multiple perspectives, but this one didn't work for me.

The last few pages were better though, and I finished the book with goosebumps.

[J.M. · Rating 1 out of 5]

Could barely get through the opening. Just didn't hold my interest.