The Story of a Marriage is an intimate meditation on the unknowability of other people, even people we love, as in spouses, friends, or relatives. A housewife in mid-20th Century San Francisco assumes that she understands her husband, knows who he is, and knows he loves her. This challenging novel is an example and an exercise in finding out how wrong such assumptions are bound to be. As stiff a challenge as this piece was to write, Andrew Sean Greer handles all the structural and all the narrative-order issues with a sure hand, never missing a beat or a cue. The result is convincing and memorable, and satisfies the reader that the author’s powers were equal to the task. The result has satisfying twists and turns which make a gratifying whole.

The story weds Holland, a strikingly handsome man who effortlessly captivates everyone, and Pearl, a woman whom Holland finds beautiful, much to her surprise. They seem destined to be together: they were teen sweethearts in wartime Kentucky before Holland was conscripted; they meet again a few years later by utter chance at Ocean Beach in San Francisco. They embark on married life and have a son, but a few years into this son’s life, a man comes to Pearl’s home and introduces himself as someone who knew Holland during the war.

Thus begins the heart of the novel. It takes quite a bit of time for Pearl to learn why this man, himself handsome, well-dressed, and mannerly, visits their home. Once she does, however, she feels her life begin to spin away from her, her young family and her way of life in jeopardy of disintegrating. The novel consists of her reaction to this realization, the dear assumptions she must abandon, and a suspenseful discussion as she readies herself for wrenching change.

All this is, as I say, very competently handled by Greer. However, Holland remains a cipher throughout most of the book. He’s the fulcrum, the nucleus of the story, and without knowing his mind, or how to read the signs of how he feels, we are held in suspense. The ultimate reveal occurs very near the end of the narrative, but even after the result is made known, this character remains mysterious.

And perhaps that is Greer’s pièce de résistance, the fact that we as the readers remain just as much in the dark about this man as do the characters in the book.

This novel is disciplined, logical, and satisfying. We dwell for a long time in a woman’s mind, a woman who suddenly has a lot to lose, and she comes believably across in that role. It evokes the zeitgeist of the time (the U.S. just as the Korean War winds down, but the Cold War remains at its peak) to a T, and has twists and turns enough to surprise and give us reason to appreciate the work as well-handled.

https://bassoprofundo1.blogspot.com/2023/10/the-story-of-marriage-by-andrew-sean... ( )

Deceptively short and simple book that is written like poetry and full of twists, turns and surprises. A beautiful work of art about a marriage lived in silence and the assumptions we make about those we love. One of the best books I have read in a while. ( )

Kun je een ander, zelfs de man met wie je al jaren getrouwd bent, echt kennen? In dit boek laat Greer zien dat het heel moeilijk is om de ander te kennen, te begrijpen. En toch neem je besluiten op basis van wat je denkt te weten...
Het meest gruwelijke stuk in het boek is dat over het Minnesota Hunger Experiment, dat niet is verzonnen, zoals ik net heb gevonden op internet.

I am giving 4 stars for the prose, which I found quite beautiful at times. I found certain aspects of the plot to stretch credulity, and thought that the characters could have been better drawn. ( )

An amazing book. I reached about page 40 and there discovered something that surprised me so much, I had to return to the beginning to try to figure out whether I had missed something, whether my presumptions blinded me, or whether the author had endeavored to hide it. I won't give away which of those was the correct conclusion. This novel is not only about a marriage but about war, and various responses to it, and what it means to be an outsider in America in the 50s (and, by extension, today). Highly recommended. ( )