What I Loved (Magill’s Literary Annual 2004)
At a glance:
- Author: Siri Hustvedt
- First Published: 2003
- Type of Work: Novel
- Time of Work: 1975-2000
- Setting: Manhattan
- Principal Characters: Leo Hertzberg, Erica Stein, Matt Hertzberg, Bill Wechsler, Lucille Alcott, Violet Blom, Mark Wechsler, Teddy Giles
- Genres: Long fiction, Novel
- Subjects: Family or family life, New York, United States or Americans, Parents and children, Teenagers, Crime or criminals, Murder or homicide, Twentieth century, New York City, Blindness or blind persons, Art or artists, Marriage, Friendship, Violence, Fathers, Divorce, Death or dying, Cults, Nightclubs, Morality or morals, Boys
- Locales: Manhattan, NY
What I Loved is divided into three parts, suggesting the fragmentation of relationships that is the novel’s major topic. Presented as a memoir by the now-elderly art historian Leo Hertzberg, the narrative explores his twenty-five-year friendship with the brooding experimental artist Bill Wechsler as they cope with the inexplicable unraveling of their marriages and families. It is Leo whose consciousness holds together this novel, which otherwise might easily disperse into a series of confusing and contradictory fragments. It is he who represents the spirit of investigation and...
[The entire page is 1912 words long]
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