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Binding: PaperbackDewey Decimal Number: 813.54 EAN: 9780452282827 ISBN: 0452277205 Label: Plume Manufacturer: Plume Number Of Items: 1 Number Of Pages: 464 Publication Date: 1996-09 Publisher: Plume Studio: Plume Related Items:
Browse for similar items by category: Click to Display Editorial Review: Amazon.com Review: Oprah Book Club® Selection, January 2001: A happy family, the Mulvaneys. After decades of marriage, Mom and Dad are still in love--and the proud parents of a brood of youngsters that includes a star athlete, a class valedictorian, and a popular cheerleader. Home is an idyllic place called High Point Farm. And the bonds of attachment within this all-American clan do seem both deep and unconditional: "Mom paused again, drawing in her breath sharply, her eyes suffused with a special lustre, gazing upon her family one by one, with what crazy unbounded love she gazed upon us, and at such a moment my heart would contract as if this woman who was my mother had slipped her fingers inside my rib cage to contain it, as you might hold a wild, thrashing bird to comfort it." But as we all know, Eden can't last forever. And in the hands of Joyce Carol Oates, who's chronicled just about every variety of familial dysfunction, you know the fall from grace is going to be a doozy. By the time all is said and done, a rape occurs, a daughter is exiled, much alcohol is consumed, and the farm is lost. Even to recount these events in retrospect is a trial for the Mulvaney offspring, one of whom declares: "When I say this is a hard reckoning I mean it's been like squeezing thick drops of blood from my veins." In the hands of a lesser writer, this could be the stuff of a bad television movie. But this is Oates's 26th novel, and by now she knows her material and her craft to perfection. We Were the Mulvaneys is populated with such richly observed and complex characters that we can't help but care about them, even as we wait for disaster to strike them down. --Anita Urquhart Product Description: The Mulvaneys, at first a close and very lucky family, drift apart over the years, until the youngest son, Judd, discovers the secret of their downfall and sets out to help reunite the family. 75,000 first printing. Average Rating:
 Rating:  - Not to be missed - a quintessentially American storyWe Were the Mulvaneys tells the story of the Mulvaney family: handsome, successful patriarch Michael Mulvaney Sr., who owns a thriving roofing business and enjoys the friendship and contacts of many of the movers and shakers in small Mt. Ephraim, New York; blue-eyed, lithe, religious Corinne, mother to the Mulvaney clan and avid antique collector; eldest son Mike Jr., a football star at local Mt. Ephraim High School; Patrick, the brainy, analytical son who graduates valedictorian of his high school ... Read More Rating:  - Help! I'm drowning...Without doubt this must be THE most depressing novel I have read to date. The only words that come to mind to describe this tedious tale are: bleak, grim, dreary, cheerless, desolate, gloomy, dismal, sad, dragging endlessly on! Rating: - yawns, yawns & more yawnsThis sounds like a good one but it's not. The story line is fine but it takes so long to get into! It's over-written almost & too over-descriptive. I keep waiting for something to happen but this book jumps between too many flashbacks & present happenings. I think I will give up & return this to the library. Only on page 63 but this book has "suck" written all over it. Rating:  - Elegant & Heartbreaking ProseIf you enjoy stories about the complexities of family life, this book is probably one you will like. I've read this years ago and loved it. I believe this is one of JCO's best books although I've come across some readers who do not agree. I immediately joined the Mulvaney clan -- disliking much of what they represented. Loved the relationship between brother & sister. Could not relate to either Mr. or Mrs. Mulvaney although I think I knew from whence they came. As a reader, this book satisfied ... Read More Rating: - An Intense Novel That Kept Me ReadingFirst of all, I read this book during my move from one apartment to another. Why am I telling you this? Because I had to take breaks between packing and hauling just to read. I couldn't put the book down. Joyce Carol Oates has a way of revealing situations by the use of detail that will keep you turning the page. For example, if a girl gets raped, the author will not simply state the fact blatantly, but rather let the character's actions speak for themselves. This is her best skill. Also, the ... Read More 
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