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Knock Knock
This fictional memoir establishes Suzanne McNear as a distinctive voice in American literature. Written with the same quirky, ironic sensibility that brought praise for her story collection, Drought, it carries the reader through the upheavals of the sixties and seventies - the impact of Betty Friedan, the assassination of President Kennedy, and the Vietnam War - in a style that is comic and painful and true.
It traces March River's journey from before birth, through her early years in a small Midwestern city where she felt always slightly out of step, east to boarding school in Connecticut, and finally to Vassar, where she finally felt at home. Unfortunately, on graduation, and unlike most of her classmates, she has no engagement ring, nor promise of one. "Perhaps you're one of those people who will never marry," her mother , a woman known to rattle her pearls and hit a mean golf ball announces.
After various jobs in New York and a love affair that ends abruptly she follows what seems the only practical path; pregnancy, marriage, children and life in Chicago. Seven years later, after many upheavals, there is a divorce and a terrifying breakdown. Her husband's chief occupation was writing mystery novels and opening bottles of Heaven Hill bourbon. Life was marked by the birth of three daughters and economic disaster.
This is a portrait of a woman who is fragile, uncertain, sometimes overwhelmed by life, but also fiercely committed to the survival of herself and her daughters. With courage, black humor, and unusual literary friendships, which included Saul Bellow, she eventually becomes an editor at Playboy and finally finds a sense of peace and accomplishments.
It traces March River's journey from before birth, through her early years in a small Midwestern city where she felt always slightly out of step, east to boarding school in Connecticut, and finally to Vassar, where she finally felt at home. Unfortunately, on graduation, and unlike most of her classmates, she has no engagement ring, nor promise of one. "Perhaps you're one of those people who will never marry," her mother , a woman known to rattle her pearls and hit a mean golf ball announces.
After various jobs in New York and a love affair that ends abruptly she follows what seems the only practical path; pregnancy, marriage, children and life in Chicago. Seven years later, after many upheavals, there is a divorce and a terrifying breakdown. Her husband's chief occupation was writing mystery novels and opening bottles of Heaven Hill bourbon. Life was marked by the birth of three daughters and economic disaster.
This is a portrait of a woman who is fragile, uncertain, sometimes overwhelmed by life, but also fiercely committed to the survival of herself and her daughters. With courage, black humor, and unusual literary friendships, which included Saul Bellow, she eventually becomes an editor at Playboy and finally finds a sense of peace and accomplishments.
200 pages, Hardcover
First published December 1, 2012
3 people are currently reading
197 people want to read
About the author
Suzanne McNear
4 books2 followersKirkus Review wrote this about McNear's recent collection of stories: "An appealing, remarkable collection from a talented writer."
Suzanne McNear, a former editor and freelance journalist, now devotes herself to writing fiction and plays. Her essays have been published in The New York Times, Vogue, and Redbook. Her short story “Notes from a Wisconsin Childhood,” was published in 1997 by Midnight Paper Sales and included wood engravings by Gaylord Schanilec. Her first collection of short stories, Drought, was published by Canio’s Books in 2004 and included several stories originally published in the Vintage Quarterly and Redbook. Her first novel, Knock Knock, was published in 2012, by The Permanent Press. Suzanne McNear’s recent collection of short stories, Swimming Lessons and Other Stories, was designed by the Grenfell Press and was published in June 2020. This collection includes, “Swimming Lessons,” which won the first fiction prize from The Green Mountain Review. For the past twenty years she has lived in Sag Harbor, New York.
Suzanne McNear, a former editor and freelance journalist, now devotes herself to writing fiction and plays. Her essays have been published in The New York Times, Vogue, and Redbook. Her short story “Notes from a Wisconsin Childhood,” was published in 1997 by Midnight Paper Sales and included wood engravings by Gaylord Schanilec. Her first collection of short stories, Drought, was published by Canio’s Books in 2004 and included several stories originally published in the Vintage Quarterly and Redbook. Her first novel, Knock Knock, was published in 2012, by The Permanent Press. Suzanne McNear’s recent collection of short stories, Swimming Lessons and Other Stories, was designed by the Grenfell Press and was published in June 2020. This collection includes, “Swimming Lessons,” which won the first fiction prize from The Green Mountain Review. For the past twenty years she has lived in Sag Harbor, New York.
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
June 3, 2013
I read Knock Knock on my Kindle because I couldn't wait for it to ship, and it is one of those books that reads great on a tablet or e-reader. It was my first experience with Suzanne McNear, recommended by a friend who told me, "It's a novel, but it's really a memoir." I had heard about writers producing novels that were actually thinly veiled autobiography; even F. Scott Fitzgerald's Tender is the Night is said to be about his relationship with Zelda. But what I got out of McNear's new fictional memoir was something entirely different.
Halfway through the book, I couldn't stop telling everyone about it. Sometimes I feel like I am lost in a sea of illiteracy and the only other readers I get to talk to regularly are working their way through the "Fifty Shades" series or thumbing the sticker goop off the front corner of their drugstore pulp fiction. But I was too excited about Knock Knock not to make even the most unread of them listen. You see, I was about halfway through the book and trying to articulate why it was I couldn't seem to put it down.
There was a lot to pay attention to - what she puts in, what she leaves out, the way she breezes through several years, a wedding, a marriage, a couple of births, and then zooms right in, right up close, on one little moment of absent-mindedly gazing out a window. Her characters are crafted by the tiniest details, none of the big ones, nothing is said out-right. And it's a life, it's just a life, not a life of crazy adventures, no life-threatening disease, but a pretty regular life, not outstandingly happy nor outstandingly sad, just an average, middle of the road, life, full of the kinds of things that everyone else's lives are full of. And yet I never want to put it down, and I always want to know what will happen next. Why is that? What keeps me going? Where is the suspense? There is no suspense, but then what is this force that is like suspense that gets me so hooked?
Well, as can be expected, I soon reached the end of the book, (though not the end of the life, thankfully), and a kind of reflection that had been held back through the rest of the book. And I realized that it had all been very much like a conversation, and also like a journey. Looking back on the first paragraph again was like trying to remember moving into my freshman dorm room; it was looking back. McNear's book was everything it had promised in its title: "Knock Knock: A Life." We saw the main character, who paralleled McNear, through a variety of life experiences, cultural events, and social movements. As a young person, I felt as though I caught a glimpse of that wisdom that comes with age and how really it is acquired. And the "Knock Knock" part? Well, the book was very funny at different times; I even laughed out loud!
As a writer of nonfiction and an admirer of the slipperiness and versatility of the genre, it was a great treat to see this fiction/nonfiction hybrid and the way it all played out in McNear's masterful hands. Her short story collection, Drought, has made it to my Amazon wish list, and it is only a matter of time before it arrives in my mailbox. If you are a writer or an enthusiast of literature in any way, pick up a copy of McNear's Knock Knock. Even if you're not a big reader and you're looking for the next intriguing new work for the quarter or the year, you won't regret choosing Suzanne McNear's fictional memoir. Enjoy!
Halfway through the book, I couldn't stop telling everyone about it. Sometimes I feel like I am lost in a sea of illiteracy and the only other readers I get to talk to regularly are working their way through the "Fifty Shades" series or thumbing the sticker goop off the front corner of their drugstore pulp fiction. But I was too excited about Knock Knock not to make even the most unread of them listen. You see, I was about halfway through the book and trying to articulate why it was I couldn't seem to put it down.
There was a lot to pay attention to - what she puts in, what she leaves out, the way she breezes through several years, a wedding, a marriage, a couple of births, and then zooms right in, right up close, on one little moment of absent-mindedly gazing out a window. Her characters are crafted by the tiniest details, none of the big ones, nothing is said out-right. And it's a life, it's just a life, not a life of crazy adventures, no life-threatening disease, but a pretty regular life, not outstandingly happy nor outstandingly sad, just an average, middle of the road, life, full of the kinds of things that everyone else's lives are full of. And yet I never want to put it down, and I always want to know what will happen next. Why is that? What keeps me going? Where is the suspense? There is no suspense, but then what is this force that is like suspense that gets me so hooked?
Well, as can be expected, I soon reached the end of the book, (though not the end of the life, thankfully), and a kind of reflection that had been held back through the rest of the book. And I realized that it had all been very much like a conversation, and also like a journey. Looking back on the first paragraph again was like trying to remember moving into my freshman dorm room; it was looking back. McNear's book was everything it had promised in its title: "Knock Knock: A Life." We saw the main character, who paralleled McNear, through a variety of life experiences, cultural events, and social movements. As a young person, I felt as though I caught a glimpse of that wisdom that comes with age and how really it is acquired. And the "Knock Knock" part? Well, the book was very funny at different times; I even laughed out loud!
As a writer of nonfiction and an admirer of the slipperiness and versatility of the genre, it was a great treat to see this fiction/nonfiction hybrid and the way it all played out in McNear's masterful hands. Her short story collection, Drought, has made it to my Amazon wish list, and it is only a matter of time before it arrives in my mailbox. If you are a writer or an enthusiast of literature in any way, pick up a copy of McNear's Knock Knock. Even if you're not a big reader and you're looking for the next intriguing new work for the quarter or the year, you won't regret choosing Suzanne McNear's fictional memoir. Enjoy!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 5, 2012
Before she was born, March Rivers listened to the music of promise and dreamed the things she might do with this wonderful life. But her premature arrival as a “four-pound tomato” sets her off on the wrong foot. Failing to fulfill other people's expectations, March finds her own life also failing to live up to her dreams as she grows up.
Suzanne McNear’s Knock Knock, a Life brings a world of bright hopes and hard knocks into focus, where the Bishop rushes through confirmation, post-WWII songs play their soundtrack, and a father takes pictures of his daughter “to prove that she is pretty.” “To smile is to engage the world,” he says, and young March is learning to hide behind her smile.
Will success at school make her popular? Will finding a lover make her loved? Will marrying and carrying children make her the daughter she’s meant to be? But the world March grows up in is changing. Women’s roles broaden while men’s expectations hold them back. And the young woman who wants to fit in is condemned to feel like an imposter. March graduates, leaves home, gains her independence and returns with everything she’d hoped for and none of her dreams. But children bring connection to the present, even as depression drives March ever further from herself and her past.
The author uses detail to great effect in this novel, highlighting authenticity with echoes on the phone and the awkward determination of motherhood. Even as March stumbles into dismay, the world around her remains clear and true, hope shining through. “March,” her husband shouts. “March.” And she does, right through the disconnected mother-ness of life—not apple pie after all—tied to her daughters’ apron strings, and keeping on so they will have a firmer anchor in this changing world, until, as Robert Walser wrote, “patience brings roses.”
March’s studies and struggles finally come to fruition. The little girl who knew her neighbors so well eventually knows herself and tells her own tale, writing it down, bleeding an age into words, and delighting readers with hope’s ongoing fulfillment.
Disclosure: I received a free bound galley of this novel from the publishers, the Permanent Press.
Suzanne McNear’s Knock Knock, a Life brings a world of bright hopes and hard knocks into focus, where the Bishop rushes through confirmation, post-WWII songs play their soundtrack, and a father takes pictures of his daughter “to prove that she is pretty.” “To smile is to engage the world,” he says, and young March is learning to hide behind her smile.
Will success at school make her popular? Will finding a lover make her loved? Will marrying and carrying children make her the daughter she’s meant to be? But the world March grows up in is changing. Women’s roles broaden while men’s expectations hold them back. And the young woman who wants to fit in is condemned to feel like an imposter. March graduates, leaves home, gains her independence and returns with everything she’d hoped for and none of her dreams. But children bring connection to the present, even as depression drives March ever further from herself and her past.
The author uses detail to great effect in this novel, highlighting authenticity with echoes on the phone and the awkward determination of motherhood. Even as March stumbles into dismay, the world around her remains clear and true, hope shining through. “March,” her husband shouts. “March.” And she does, right through the disconnected mother-ness of life—not apple pie after all—tied to her daughters’ apron strings, and keeping on so they will have a firmer anchor in this changing world, until, as Robert Walser wrote, “patience brings roses.”
March’s studies and struggles finally come to fruition. The little girl who knew her neighbors so well eventually knows herself and tells her own tale, writing it down, bleeding an age into words, and delighting readers with hope’s ongoing fulfillment.
Disclosure: I received a free bound galley of this novel from the publishers, the Permanent Press.
December 30, 2012
Wow, what a surprisingly delightful book! I received a copy from the publisher and, admittedly it did take me a while to really get into the story. The book is described as a "fictional memoir" but it didn't read like a memoir to me. It was actually quite stylized and reminded me of "A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man." It sort of meandered from one moment to the next and the lack of quotation marks was at first difficult to adjust to but later helped the narrative to flow unencumbered.
Once I got into the story I couldn't put it down. It's beautifully written; in fact it's quite lyrical. The story is that of March, who begins life as a rather unhappy soul and descends into a downward spiral of depression and hopelessness. Eventually she slowly begins to come out and find her way in the world.
There did come a point where I worried that the story would go so deep into this woman's troubled mind, that I would somehow lose the empathy I had for her, or perhaps the belief I had that her struggles mirrored many other woman living in the same time period. But the author pulled her out, slowly and realistically, and in the end, while her life wasn't perfect, March indeed had a story that was worth sharing.
I highly recommend this book and hope to convince several of my friends to read it, as the constant literary references and unique story should lead to many interesting discussions.
Once I got into the story I couldn't put it down. It's beautifully written; in fact it's quite lyrical. The story is that of March, who begins life as a rather unhappy soul and descends into a downward spiral of depression and hopelessness. Eventually she slowly begins to come out and find her way in the world.
There did come a point where I worried that the story would go so deep into this woman's troubled mind, that I would somehow lose the empathy I had for her, or perhaps the belief I had that her struggles mirrored many other woman living in the same time period. But the author pulled her out, slowly and realistically, and in the end, while her life wasn't perfect, March indeed had a story that was worth sharing.
I highly recommend this book and hope to convince several of my friends to read it, as the constant literary references and unique story should lead to many interesting discussions.
December 17, 2012
My enjoyment of this book almost snuck up on me. I initially chose it for a glimpse of another time, but around the middle I realized I identify with March Rivers. Even though we hail from different eras and different points in our lives, I empathized with many of her life’s events. I see a lot of uncertainly amongst my peers and feel the same. We all approach the end of our lives as students and dread the unknown of the real world. March showed that same anxiety, but she also showed me mistakes are not damning. When one road came to a dead end, she simply made a U-turn and chose another route.
I really began to admire her commitment to herself and looked forward to seeing where life would take her next. She does not fit into some generic mold, but that’s what held my attention. I did not know where her next move would be or what job she would take up. I actually looked forward to those turning points in her life, because each marked a major growing point for her.
My only issue with McNear’s writing is her sense of time. I felt like she jumped from one moment to the next and it took me some time to get my bearings. But perhaps that’s in keeping with March. No one boasts a life of constant excitement, so maybe March just skipped ahead to the good stuff.
I think everyone stands to gain something from March’s story.
I really began to admire her commitment to herself and looked forward to seeing where life would take her next. She does not fit into some generic mold, but that’s what held my attention. I did not know where her next move would be or what job she would take up. I actually looked forward to those turning points in her life, because each marked a major growing point for her.
My only issue with McNear’s writing is her sense of time. I felt like she jumped from one moment to the next and it took me some time to get my bearings. But perhaps that’s in keeping with March. No one boasts a life of constant excitement, so maybe March just skipped ahead to the good stuff.
I think everyone stands to gain something from March’s story.
June 13, 2013
*Knock, Knock* seemed unlike any book I have read before. In this world of by-passed editors and self-publishing, I stopped shortly after beginning to check for a publisher. For, if " close 1st person point of view" is described as the reader seeing the story unfold from the shoulder of the protagonist, then McNear achieves a SUPER-close 1st person point of view--she takes you right behind the eyeballs of March Rivers Wright, to an assault of unprocessed impressions that culminate in shaping women through the 20th Century. The author captures a SYNDROME of feelings and events for which no single word describes.
The "plot" is movement along a known, historical timeline from 1949 to current day. In this respect, it reminds me of *Forest Gump.* As a "fictional memoir," the storyline pinpoints the source and essence of angst stemming from traditional female roles. Fans of Lorrie Moore will find McNear's technique familiar, although McNear is not as specific, sardonic nor as poignant as Moore's approach. Nonetheless, McNear's method is brilliant, exposing an amalgam of interwoven contradictions to which most American women can relate. Kudos for seeming to " break rules" while masterfully and successfully employing technique. *Knock, Knock* is a novel whose sum is greater than its parts.
The "plot" is movement along a known, historical timeline from 1949 to current day. In this respect, it reminds me of *Forest Gump.* As a "fictional memoir," the storyline pinpoints the source and essence of angst stemming from traditional female roles. Fans of Lorrie Moore will find McNear's technique familiar, although McNear is not as specific, sardonic nor as poignant as Moore's approach. Nonetheless, McNear's method is brilliant, exposing an amalgam of interwoven contradictions to which most American women can relate. Kudos for seeming to " break rules" while masterfully and successfully employing technique. *Knock, Knock* is a novel whose sum is greater than its parts.
August 29, 2013
Knock, knock.
Who's there?
March.
March who?
March Rivers, that's who, and she's no joke, she's the puckish, plucky heroine of this shaggy doggerel story that fairly leaps from Suzanne McNear's vivid, wry memory and imagination. A gimlet-eyed young mid-west gal, March heads east in a quest for self and other answers to questions that nice people didn't ask in those pre-Feminine Mystique days; at least not out loud. If you cherish Franny Glass and Holly Golightly, March Rivers will steal you away, heart and mind -- thanks largely to the jazzy way Ms. McNear writes. As with Salinger and Capote, the song is as much in the voice as in in the lyrics.
(Why is "Knock, Knock" called a fictional memoir? Because memoirs sell better than novels these days. Even autobiographical or confessional novels. Or so they say.)
November 16, 2012
I was surprised by how much I actually liked this book. I mean, what's a "fictional memoir"? I was annoyed by the idea, it seemed gimmicky to me. Basically, a memoir, but told like a novel, using third person and a fictional name. I was prepared to hate it. But, Suzanne McNear is an engaging writer with a great story to tell. I just couldn't help but like her (the fictional "her" anyway), and I wanted to know how the story ended! An easy read, you'll especially like it if you like memoirs, stories of the heyday of Playboy, or just the days when you could write a book and actually get it published even if you didn't have a national platform on the Web already!
December 10, 2012
I received an Advance Reader's Copy of this book.
Described as a "fictional memoir" - which I guess means that it's an account of the author's life, told through the perspective of a fictional character. I was surprised that I enjoyed this book as much as I did. The story is about March Rivers, who grows up in the Midwest, goes to school in Connecticut and Vassar, marries and has three girls. She eventually gets divorced but then goes through a nervous breakdown. She survives all of this and come out the other side.
I rooted for March throughout, even though I didn't always relate to what she was going through. This is a remarkable literary debut.
Described as a "fictional memoir" - which I guess means that it's an account of the author's life, told through the perspective of a fictional character. I was surprised that I enjoyed this book as much as I did. The story is about March Rivers, who grows up in the Midwest, goes to school in Connecticut and Vassar, marries and has three girls. She eventually gets divorced but then goes through a nervous breakdown. She survives all of this and come out the other side.
I rooted for March throughout, even though I didn't always relate to what she was going through. This is a remarkable literary debut.
November 23, 2012
Although this is McNear's first novel, she is no amateur writer, having spent years in magazine publications as an editor and later a freelance journalist. It is not clear if this might be a fictional creation or an actual memoir by the author using a fictional name. Nevertheless, it is a well written book with nice visual images that are presented as run-on phrases at times and yet has structure to take the main character from birth and an early struggle to mature adulthood.
This book was received from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
This book was received from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
January 14, 2014
One of those books that no matter how many times I picked it up, I couldn't get into to. I only manged to get about half way before I gave up, for now at least. Not to say that it is a bad story, but something about it just didn't pique my interest. Maybe one of these days I'll be able to pick it up again and get sucked in.
December 21, 2012
I appreciated the fun aura in this book. I must also add that I greatly enjoy novels and memoirs and Knock Knock quenched my thirst.
September 3, 2016
3.5. I liked the author's style of writing. A "fictional memoir" of sorts.
March 30, 2014
I loved this book!
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews