A Seahorse Year: A Novel

by Stacey D'Erasmo

A San Francisco family copes with a teenage son’s mental illness in “a wonderful book, with characters that bounce off the page” (Elizabeth Strout). Named a Best Book of the Year by Newsday and the San Francisco Chronicle   In this “profound, heart-wrenching, and resonant” Lambda Award–winning novel, a quintessentially modern family is transformed by the mental breakdown of their adolescent son (Francisco Goldman).   When Christopher disappears from his San Francisco home, his extended family comes together in a frantic search. But the sixteen-year-old is in much more trouble than they know, and their attempts to both support and save him will challenge their assumptions about themselves and one another. In “unflinching prose that’s both descriptive and soulful,” Stacey D’Erasmo explores the ways in which love moves us to actions that have both redemptive and disastrous consequences—sometimes in the same heartbeat (Time Out New York).   “Open A Seahorse Year and be mesmerized,” raved the Advocate of this exquisitely crafted novel that is “both deeply satisfying and quietly subversive” (The New York Times Book Review). A winner of the Ferro-Grumley Award for Fiction and other honors, A Seahorse Year is “a stunning achievement” (Suzan Sherman).   “[D’Erasmo] writes with a graceful, sometimes devastating directness, in clear, crisp phrases lined with subtle lyricism.” —The Boston Globe   “Alternating perspectives and controlled, nuanced writing bring depth and compassion to each character . . . [and] make D’Erasmo an author to watch.” —Library Journal   “After turning a page or two of A Seahorse Year you’ll know you’re into something special.” —Out magazine

Genres: Fiction, Queer, LGBT, Literature, Novels, Adult, Literary Fiction

373 pages, Kindle Edition

First published July 1, 2004

About the author

Stacey D’Erasmo is the author of the novels Tea, (a New York Times Notable Book of the Year); and A Seahorse Year (a San Francisco Chronicle Best Book of the Year and a Lambda Literary Award winner). Her writing has appeared in the New York Times Magazine, the New York Times Book Review, and Ploughshares. She is currently an assistant professor of writing at Columbia University.

Reviews

[Alesia · Rating 2 out of 5]

meandering......plodding....are we there yet? meandering......plodding....are we there yet? meandering......plodding....are we there yet? meandering......plodding....are we there yet? meandering......plodding....are we there yet? meandering......plodding....are we there yet?

[Lorri Steinbacher · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting study at how a child's mental illness can affect a family. Nan, Hal, Marina, and Christopher may be an unconventional family and yet they fall apart in all the conventional ways. What you might eexpect to draw a family tighter together can actually pull them apart (Nan, Marina) and that same thing can take a new relationship (Hal, Dan) and pull them together. I spent come time trying to reconcile both Marina's and Nan's behavior. Did they love each other, really, if they could not put aside their feelings of betrayal and hurt when it really counted? Nan, I think, is destined to never be able to give herself over fully to a relationship ever again. Her love and worry for Christopher, her willingness, her need to put him ahead of everything and anyone else will see to that. The fact that both Marina and her brother are both exiled, without ever really being given the possibility of forgiveness bears this out. Hal seems able to compartmentalize, can put aside his worry for Christopher (or tamp it down convincingly enough)and open himself up to other people. You know that there will be nothing more for this family than adjusting to Christopher's future changes, as his illness ebbs and flows, the family will be carried along (or swept away) by the current.

[Nicholas · Rating 4 out of 5]

The prose in this novel is spare, which I usually can't stand, but I was on board this time; at times it was quite gripping. It's very San Francisco -- a gay man and a lesbian raise their child with her partner -- and I was in the mood for a little queer San Francisco.

That said, it's far from light-hearted, focusing mostly on the mental illness of the teenage son and the way that it affects the family. D'Erasmo is great at talking about that illness, however, and imagining what Christopher (the son) is feeling and experiencing in a way that is not cheesy and struck me as entirely plausible without being sensationalized. And what I think I appreciated most is that the novel makes this central drama its focus, rather than the "unconventional" parenting of the gay San Franciscans. They're just people, after all, people who love their son and struggle to love each other in the wake of his illness.

[Sarahbel · Rating 1 out of 5]

I read D'Erasmo's Tea several years ago and didn't like it (I admit, I picked it up because it had a pretty cover), but I thought I'd give her work another chance when I came across A Seahorse Year at the library. The description intrigued me and I thought for sure this was going to be a book I would love. Unfortunately, I found myself remembering why I didn't like Tea and opted to not finish A Seahorse Year.
While she does make good use of imagery, D'Erasmo's writing is halting and uncomfortable to read. Also, I'm not sure how it took me so long to realize that D'Erasmo writes "lesbian fiction," for lack of a better term, but it seemed like the sexuality of the parents was forced into the forefront and took the spotlight away from the story that I was drawn into from the blurb on the cover. I consider myself to be rather liberal and I can count several gays and lesbians among even my closest friends, but I am still not entirely comfortable with reading the explicit passages detailing their sexual forays, especially when they seem to be peppered in with no real purpose other than to prove that the characters are, in fact, lesbians. Really, I may be a bit of a prude, but I don't particularly want to read such gratuitously graphic passages regardless of the gender(s) of those involved.
I don't expect that I'll be attempting to read anymore of D'Erasmo's novels, as they're just not my cup of Tea...

[Howard · Rating 4 out of 5]

Zach told me that one of the things he liked about this book was its structure. I didn't know what this meant when he said it, and now that I've read the book I may still not know what structure means. But I don't care because I thought it was terrific; and if that was because of its structure then count me a reader who believes that structure is very important. Otherwise I would say that what lifts this book is the entirely credible characters who are thrown into a crisis when the teenage son of two of them cracks up. The parents are a gay woman and the man who impetuously agreed to be her sperm donor when their mutual friend (his lover) dies. The third important character is the mother's unfaithful partner. In lesser hands this is a soap opera suitable for adapating as a tv movie made for broadcast on the Logo channel. But for me it was way more. I believed these characters and as the story unfolded I cared about them and understood their flawed responses to the crisis they were in. The plot could have gone many ways, and -- perhaps this is the structurall point -- D'Erasmo didn't telegraph her intentions at all. I'll probably go look for her earlier book after reading this.

[Malli (Chapter Malliumpkin) · Rating 2 out of 5]

Maybe some other time...



It pains me deeply when I have to write a review that is lower than three stars. I constantly ask myself if I should just try harder or to really sink my mind into the book or perhaps if I tried rereading everything would be more entertaining. However, I remembered that if I try to force things that I don't like on myself then it just gives me one giant headache.

With this book I just cannot engage my mind to stick to it. I had to call it quits. The amount of boredom that arose while I was reading this. My mind can't begin to hold all the boredom that had build.



The book started off great and I was enjoying it. Then somewhere along the line everything turned boring and made me want to hit my head on the dashboard of my laptop. Maybe some other time I'll be able to read this book and marvel in the text one day, but for right now I just can't. I can't even touch that book right now because I'm recovering from the boredom.

I hope other find this book more enjoyable than I did.

[Alix · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is one of those rare books that gives you the sensation of having fallen inside of it. Not because of an earthshattering premise/concept with clever gimmicks and witty insight. The writer is just a good storyteller.

I was a tad uncomfortable reading this at times as it deals with a young boy who's diagnosed with schizophrenia. However, the author also craftily shows the semi-madness in all of the characters...in a subtle and rather elegant way. A very human book.

[Jenn · Rating 1 out of 5]

There's nothing obvious that this writer has done wrong, except for starting at the wrong moment and with too many points of view, but try as I have, I can't get myself to care about it. I tend to finish even the books I don't like and maybe there are five I've stopped reading in the middle. Now there are six. I'm so disappointed. Twice I've heard Stacey give amazing lectures. I'd love to hear from anyone else who has read this book or tried to.

[Elaine Burnes · Rating 2 out of 5]

God, what a depressing book.

Well written enough, but I couldn't understand how two people who love each other so much could behave like that. Meaning, the writer didn't convince me, not that I couldn't be convinced.

[Jessica · Rating 3 out of 5]

The writing was clumsy. I did not find the characters convincing. But I did find myself thinking about this book in the middle of the night, so I give it 3 stars rather than the 2 I had planned to give it.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this but it took me a long time to finish, maybe because her prose and the plot feels so densely and tightly packed with words and images.

[Robin · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book irritated me somewhat. It isn't a bad book, just seemed to have too much going on.

[Hannah · Rating 3 out of 5]

nan is one of the most insufferable and unsympathetic characters I've ever encountered, but overall q very interesting book

[Marian · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked this book due to the authors writing style, but I found it very predictable. Like the characters were pieces moving on a game board. It seems like every question the author posed was answered in a correct and succinct way. Hal asked what goes with 2? Nan answers in an indirect way a few pages later, well 2. I felt that the only character that was complex was Christopher. I was very happy with the way that we got to follow his journey since being diagnosed with schizophrenia and through recovery. Nan, Hal, and Marina. Seemed to have their characters spelled out and never wavered throughout the entire book. Nan was always the hunter/the mother, she stayed loyal to Christopher always. Hal was the flower/the softie, he finds himself in love again. Marina was the dazed/dreamy one, she leaves for Egypt at the end.
I don’t know how to write books, but I feel as if in from traveling from point A to point B, the characters changed or evolved or made some type of realization then it would be more realistic. But part of me asks if that’s the point. A gene throughout the book is about how Christopher with his diagnosis and his youthful mind, is constantly thinking in a different way, reaching new heights. But his parents, are all doing the same thing in different ways. Maybe it’s supposed to be a testament to the fact that people rarely change, a stark contrast to Christopher’s brain that’s always changing it seems.
I can’t decide whether the author meant to do this or just accidentally made three very stagnant and predictable characters.

[Jess · Rating 3 out of 5]

I just wasn’t very entertained by this book, it did not ever end up going anywhere. I liked reading about a shizophrenic adolescent character, but there were too many other unnecessary character profiles going on. I did not like the relationship between Nan and Marina. I felt that Marina was too young and full of life for Nan. Nan just reminded me of a stoic, boring old lady. I didn’t really understand why Marina stuck around through any of the book and was happy when they ended things. I may have liked it when I was younger so I could relate to Christopher or Tamara’s character’s a little more, but I did not really connect with any of the characters. It felt like there were many anti-climatic moments throughout the whole story. The author had many different avenues to take some of the action, but just fell short.

[Christina M · Rating 3 out of 5]

mixed feelings

I'm not quite sure what to think of this book, despite a deliberate reading of it. It's slow, but paced. It reflects so much of each individual's internal experience, but without resolution. It requires one to be pensive, when one wants to rush. It creates unease and maintains unease. It does not rush to resolve.

I certainly wouldn't say it was a bad book, though I also didn't love it. It feels especially difficult to separate enjoyment from well-written in this case. All in all, I give it an average rating for that. I would rate 3.5 if that was an option.

[Ronald Wilcox · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very interesting presentation of a teenager’s development of schizophrenia and its effects on those around him. Only reason I did not give it five stars is because occasionally the writing is confusing with new characters that don’t really have an introduction into the story. Will definitely seek out other books by this author now though.

[Deb · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was a little slow.

[Hope Algarin-Tangeman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Believable, unique characters.

[Leslie · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars. Good character development, went on too long.

[Andi Plouffe · Rating 1 out of 5]

As dry as burnt bread.

[Karen DiMaggio · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful descriptive writing style… good character development and everything wraps up at the end …which I appreciate.

[Leeayn Chapman · Rating 3 out of 5]

As others have noted, I kept waiting for some clarity and completion of character development. The book just dragged on.

[Skyqueen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I gave it a four for her writing but I did not like the book. From the beginning, I could not get to a point to care about the characters because it was written so unemotionally, except to feel badly for the straight teenagers, Christopher and Tamara. No one seemed to have the capacity to understand them or even explore understanding them, only to impose their world view on the two, and use them to complete or fulfill themselves or the idea of themselves. Although they were not practically mature enough to handle the world, I felt they were way more mature in being able to really show emotion and love. The rest were too self-absorbed, confused, rash, lacking self-confidence, and introspective to the point of trivia ad nauseam and didn't seem to be able to grow past that. I am FOR living CONSCIOUSLY and look askance at people who don't appear to, but I mean are there really people like that, with that kind of excessive stew of dialogue in their heads? Can they not put themselves aside for the good of someone else and just do what needs to be done for others AND for themselves? Surely this is not a characteristic in the general sense of gays or people from California, but it sure aligned itself that way. Even Dan was detached in a problem solving way. And, well, I guess, Shiloh does have some insight into what is driving Marina (at least to seek Shiloh out) who is still lost at 40ish and trying to be perfect even though she doesn't know what perfect is.
And can someone please tell me what Dan means when he answers Hal out on the boat and says, "Is this Paris?" "Does this look like Paris?" "Do you see me standing here?" I have no clue, except maybe -- I'm here now with you not in some fantasy "we've always got Paris" sort of way. ?

[Kate · Rating 3 out of 5]

[spoiler alert] A family drama set in contemporary San Francisco, this novel seems a literary precursor to the film "The Kids Are Alright": sparring lesbian moms (one conventional, one artistic misfit) parenting a restless teenage son, whose biological father, a rebel tamed by a mainstream midlife career, dropping into the domestic scene now and then. But this is a much more piercing, less stereotypical examination of a nontraditional family than a two-hour, basically feel-good film can provide. What's here is distinctly anti-Hollywood, for Christopher, the teenage son, is diagnosed with schizophrenia, and his mental fracture both reflects and intensifies the divisions within and between the adults charged with his health and wholeness. Nan, his birth mother and the more conventional of his lesbian mothers, becomes the expected mama grizzly, sacrificing her other emotional ties in her efforts to slow Christopher's ever more frightening descent into madness. Hal, Christopher's (gay) biological father, a punk rocker-turned-accountant, appears to embark on a second adolescence as he struggles to find a partner for his externally put-together, internally needy soul. Marina, a painter whose artistic koan is to depict the perfect tree, has to confront her desire to roam outside her domestic life when that domestic life no longer provides stability she can rely on. [to be continued]

[Misha · Rating 3 out of 5]

Library Journal: In her second novel (after Tea ), D'Erasmo explores how a supposedly unconventional family is no different from a traditional one when confronted with difficult choices. Set in contemporary San Francisco, the story centers on Nan, an ex-Texan bookseller; Hal, an accountant who was once a local celebrity in a campy gay troupe; their teenaged son, Christopher; and Nan's artist lover, Marina. The balancing acts that define their lives are challenged when Christopher is diagnosed with a serious mental illness and disappears into the northern California hills with his girlfriend. Alternating perspectives and controlled, nuanced writing bring depth and compassion to each character, illuminating their flaws and contradictions to full effect. While this is a strong domestic drama, it loses momentum toward the end and is weakest in its depiction of teenage angst (e.g., the repetitive references to P.J. Harvey run thin). But the sympathetically drawn characters and brilliant moments in her writing make D'Erasmo an author to watch. Recommended for most fiction collections. [Previewed in Prepub Alert, LJ 3/15/04.]—MishaStone, Seattle P.L. --MishaStone (Reviewed June 15, 2004) (Library Journal, vol 129, issue 11, p56) .Kirkus:

[Shannon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Perhaps just above 4 stars.

I had never heard of Stacey D'Erasmo when I was assigned by my MFA program mentor to read A SEAHORSE YEAR. But it was clear to me early in my reading of this book that this would not only be an entertaining and emotional read, but that a study of relationships in fiction was my task. With the story told from more than five points of view interchanging fluidly throughout the entire plot, the reader is able to get into each character's thoughts, emotions, and motives. And each character is genuine and authentic-- flaws, mistakes, and all. Each relationship in the story is pulled tight by the circumstances surrounding teenage Christopher and the development of his mental illness. Some of these bonds survive, and some do not. All the characters are put to tests that they fail and pass in waves along the journey. Although it is fiction, this is a very real story, told in stark lines as well as beautifully flowing prose. I will definitely seek more of D'Erasmo's work in the future.

[Beth · Rating 4 out of 5]

On the light side, I enjoyed the Bay Area references, and I thought the writer really captured the predominant Berkeley/East Bay middle-class white people's culture in the lifestyles and attitudes of the main characters. I think she also took a big risk trying to portray a teenager with schizophrenia--and it worked. It was nuanced, sympathetic, and sensitive. She tried to imagine how someone with delusions would respond to those delusions (e.g., a dog talking to him), and she created a three-dimensional kid whom I immediately empathized with. And much of the time it's clear that his poor choices are as much about his adolescent desires as they are about his mental illness. The boy wasn't reduced to his label but became a full person on the page. A rare thing in literature, in my experience.

[badcat · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book had great reviews, but i found it to be clunky and slightly cheesy at times. kudos for trying to take stab at difficult topics, but i like to be shown rather than told, and this author loves to give you canned little character synopses that really turn me off. the characters come off looking like a bunch of teenagers, and the teenagers come off even worse. the plot is somewhat compelling, but then just dribbles off into nowhere with an awkward summing-up. also all the women seem to inhabit the cheesiest lone-wolf lesbian stereotype. even though the author does attempt to examine their methods and motives, it still falls flat to me. i did manage to finish it, but regretted the lost time instantly upon doing so.

[Crystal · Rating 5 out of 5]

We have heard so much about young men with mental illness recently, it is a godsend to find a
a book that treats this topic (any many others - all important in their own way) with so much tenderness and grace. The word 'love' has so many definitions - filial, maternal, romantic - and in real life, these are intertwined in ways that both enrich and complicate our lives. The connections that both strangle and support us are the true themes of D'Erasmo's beautiful novel and she traces them with intelligence and honesty. I won't give away any of the plot but if you are looking for a book that pulls no punches, with characters who are flawed and wonderful, about how we make a family for ourselves in this post millennial world - try this one. You won't be disappointed.