Testimony- Anita Shreve

I am an Anita Shreve fan. I read The Pilot’s Wife and thought “wow. This woman can write some great real- life dramas.” Which is why it pains me to say that I found Testimony to be lacking. The plot is something I would find interesting: a sex scandal involving students at a New England private school and the ensuing fallout. As an alumna of a New England private school, I find anything discussing prep school life fascinating. Even the way it was written was interesting! Each chapter was from the viewpoint or followed an individual caught up in the scandal- parents, students, etc. and at times the individual’s voices really did come through. But the follow through was completely lacking. Certain characters deserved much more attention than they actually received (Sienna, for example), and there were characters brought up that could have been potentially fascinating or bring a different spin on the subject that were simply ignored. And the headmaster’s chapters were surprisingly boring, considering how much page space he was given. Perhaps this book was rushed to print, or Ms. Shreve did not devote much time to this manuscript. Shame.

2 ½ bookworms