Status
Checked out
Due 11 Apr 2024
Collection
Genres
Publication
St. Martin's Paperbacks (2006), Edition: Reprint, 336 pages
Description
A group of young suburban parents, including a stay-at-home dad, a former feminist, and an over-structured mom, finds its sleepy existence shattered when a convicted child molester moves back into town and two of the parents have an affair.
User reviews
LibraryThing member bookworm12
An educated stay-at-home mom, Sarah, and stay-at-home dad, Todd, meet on a playground. After an impulsive kiss, the two married parents begin an affair. At the same time a convicted sex offender, Ronnie, tries to adjust to life after prison.
My description of the book doesn't do it justice. It's an
Sarah's husband Richard has a strange subplot that only distracted from the real plot. I wish Perrotta had left it out or taken it another direction. Other than that I really enjoyed the book. All of the characters are selfish and deeply flawed, yet somehow I was still entranced. Each of them is so childlike in their desire to have a perfect life, though the "perfect lives" they picture are all very different. I finished the book feeling sorry for them, but also identifying with some of the feelings of desperation they expressed. I also felt Perrotta did an excellent job wrapping up the book. There's no easy way to end it, but he provides a completely satisfying and believable conclusion.
My description of the book doesn't do it justice. It's an
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interesting plot, with very adult themes, but it's Perrotta's ability to draw such vivid characters, not the action itself, that makes this book so captivating. I found myself constantly wishing I could return to the book when I wasn't reading it. Sarah's husband Richard has a strange subplot that only distracted from the real plot. I wish Perrotta had left it out or taken it another direction. Other than that I really enjoyed the book. All of the characters are selfish and deeply flawed, yet somehow I was still entranced. Each of them is so childlike in their desire to have a perfect life, though the "perfect lives" they picture are all very different. I finished the book feeling sorry for them, but also identifying with some of the feelings of desperation they expressed. I also felt Perrotta did an excellent job wrapping up the book. There's no easy way to end it, but he provides a completely satisfying and believable conclusion.
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LibraryThing member miyurose
This is one of those books where not a whole lot *happens*. You just sort of meander through the summer with Todd and Sarah as their relationship grows and other facets of their lives fall to the wayside. In the backdrop you have the saga of Ronald McGorvey and Larry Moon, a pedophile and the
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ex-cop who wants to drive him out of town. Mostly this book is about Todd and Sarah and their quest to figure out what they really want in life. The ending wasn’t really what I expected, and it’s a little surprising which of the two actually figures it out first. The title of this book is interesting, since the people who act most childlike are the adults — it seems that everyone is primarily concerned with instant gratification, not long-term consequences. I read this for my book group, and it was a much quicker read than I expected. I enjoyed it, and I’m curious to see how the other people in my book club approach it. Between the adultery, sexual fetishes, and somewhat misplaced feminism, I’m expecting it to be a lively discussion. Show Less
LibraryThing member book-aficionado
Tom Perrotta's 'Little Children' tells stories of young couples who are unhappy and dissatisfied with their lives. The dreams and hopes of all of these people have been shattered by the harsh ground realities of their suburban lives. Most of them do not have any financial troubles, and yet, there
Perrotta's novel is all about opportunities missed and opportunities taken; it deals with the choices we all make in our lives, sometimes willingly, sometimes not so willingly. Nevertheless, we have to live with those choices. And it is the realization that we have dug ourselves in a rut which makes us bitter with ourselves and with people who surround us. And some of us decide to do whatever it takes to break the monotony of their lives and to have one last try at that elusive happiness, at that elusive contentment which all cherish but only the chosen few obtain.
All the major characters in the book are well-rounded and completely fleshed out. There were no cliched personalities with stereotypical qualities. And one aspect of the book where Perrotta really succeeded was the fact that it is very hard for anyone to dub any of his characters just plain good or bad. The characters are just.....human....like all of us, with their very own flaws and strengths.
Todd, one of the main characters, has a problem in coming to terms with the fact that his life as a carefree youth has come to an end. He still sees himself as that jock in college with not a care in the world. His immaturity manifests itself in many ways throughout the book: through his football games, through his fascination with young skateboarders, his secret fantasies of running away from it all and starting his life afresh; all these attributes of his personality depict his yearning for the life he had before he got married; the life which he would never have again.
Even the supporting characters in the book were heart-breakingly human and oddly intriguing. Larry, the guilt-ridden ex-cop who feels morally superior by harassing Ronnie, the sex offender; Mary Anne, the control freak who is sucking life out of her four-year-old son with constant brainwashing about him going to Harvard when he grows up; Richard, Sarah's husband, whose Internet sex fantasy seems to have taken over his actual marital life.
One of the peripheral characters in the book which I personally found emotionally devastating was May: the sexual pervert's mother. This poor woman spent her youth suffering at the hands of her alcoholic, abusive husband; and she spent the rest of her life trying to defend a son who could not be defended. She spent decades standing up for her son, trying to tell the rest of the world that her son, too, could become a nice person; that he, too, could be rehabilitated despite his heinous crimes. She died on the street in front of her house defending his son against a neighbourhood that was foaming at the mouth to find a pervert in the midst of their seemingly flawless paradise.
Perrotta casts an unflinching yet compassionate look at the heart of modern day life in suburbia where everybody seems to be desperately trying to fit in the society; where the expectations of families and societies sometimes prove chokingly claustrophobic for its members. Perrotta's novel is about people who elected not to listen to their hearts while making choices in life; rather they heeded what their brains told them and took the rational, logical decisions which turned out financially rewarding but also came with a price tag of their own: the price being the loss of freedom; the freedom to live the life they wanted.
I loved Perrotta's compassion for his characters without taking sides with any of them; I loved his clear prose and deep insights into the souls of people; and I loved the way he sustained the narrative in the book without giving in to a thoughtless fast-paced plot, but rather deciding to let the book move forward on the strength of its characters. All in all, I found it a great character-driven novel which is right up there with my all-time favourite novels. I rate it five stars out of five. This is a modern masterpiece."
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is something in their lives which keeps troubling them. For some of them, it is a missed career; for others, it is a spouse who seems to be on a different planet most of the time; some of them find it very difficult to outgrow their youth and adjust to the demanding lives of adulthood entailing tedious obligations and responsibilities of familyhood. Whatever maybe the case, all these people find themselves at a place where they never expected to be just a few years ago.Perrotta's novel is all about opportunities missed and opportunities taken; it deals with the choices we all make in our lives, sometimes willingly, sometimes not so willingly. Nevertheless, we have to live with those choices. And it is the realization that we have dug ourselves in a rut which makes us bitter with ourselves and with people who surround us. And some of us decide to do whatever it takes to break the monotony of their lives and to have one last try at that elusive happiness, at that elusive contentment which all cherish but only the chosen few obtain.
All the major characters in the book are well-rounded and completely fleshed out. There were no cliched personalities with stereotypical qualities. And one aspect of the book where Perrotta really succeeded was the fact that it is very hard for anyone to dub any of his characters just plain good or bad. The characters are just.....human....like all of us, with their very own flaws and strengths.
Todd, one of the main characters, has a problem in coming to terms with the fact that his life as a carefree youth has come to an end. He still sees himself as that jock in college with not a care in the world. His immaturity manifests itself in many ways throughout the book: through his football games, through his fascination with young skateboarders, his secret fantasies of running away from it all and starting his life afresh; all these attributes of his personality depict his yearning for the life he had before he got married; the life which he would never have again.
Even the supporting characters in the book were heart-breakingly human and oddly intriguing. Larry, the guilt-ridden ex-cop who feels morally superior by harassing Ronnie, the sex offender; Mary Anne, the control freak who is sucking life out of her four-year-old son with constant brainwashing about him going to Harvard when he grows up; Richard, Sarah's husband, whose Internet sex fantasy seems to have taken over his actual marital life.
One of the peripheral characters in the book which I personally found emotionally devastating was May: the sexual pervert's mother. This poor woman spent her youth suffering at the hands of her alcoholic, abusive husband; and she spent the rest of her life trying to defend a son who could not be defended. She spent decades standing up for her son, trying to tell the rest of the world that her son, too, could become a nice person; that he, too, could be rehabilitated despite his heinous crimes. She died on the street in front of her house defending his son against a neighbourhood that was foaming at the mouth to find a pervert in the midst of their seemingly flawless paradise.
Perrotta casts an unflinching yet compassionate look at the heart of modern day life in suburbia where everybody seems to be desperately trying to fit in the society; where the expectations of families and societies sometimes prove chokingly claustrophobic for its members. Perrotta's novel is about people who elected not to listen to their hearts while making choices in life; rather they heeded what their brains told them and took the rational, logical decisions which turned out financially rewarding but also came with a price tag of their own: the price being the loss of freedom; the freedom to live the life they wanted.
I loved Perrotta's compassion for his characters without taking sides with any of them; I loved his clear prose and deep insights into the souls of people; and I loved the way he sustained the narrative in the book without giving in to a thoughtless fast-paced plot, but rather deciding to let the book move forward on the strength of its characters. All in all, I found it a great character-driven novel which is right up there with my all-time favourite novels. I rate it five stars out of five. This is a modern masterpiece."
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LibraryThing member Jenners26
Little Children starts (and ends) on a playground in the suburbs. On the very first page, we meet the bored, discontented, overeducated Sarah:
"The young mothers were telling each other how tired they were. This was one of their favorite topics, along with the eating, sleeping and defecating habits
As soon as I read this opening paragraph, I knew I was going to love this book. After all, it is set in my world: boring suburbia where I myself am one of the boring suburban women (who tries to break out of this boring world by blogging and writing book reviews like this one). I suspect any stay-at-home mom with a small child has moments of panic and desperation like Sarah. Although you love your children and there are moments of great joy, there are many many moments of brain-numbing boredom, self-doubt and isolation. But back to the plot synopsis...
Sarah's world detours into a far more interesting (and dangerous) tangent when she impulsively kisses the Prom King (aka Todd, the attractive stay-at-home dad who is the object of lust and curiosity among the playground moms). This leads to an unexpected affair between Sarah and Todd and causes them to question everything they thought was true about themselves, their lives and their marriages.
Unfolding alongside this new and illicit love affair is the arrival of a convicted child molester, Ronnie McGorvey, who moves back home with his mother after his release from jail. Ronnie's presence doesn't sit well with the townsfolk, and he and his long-suffering mother become the target of subtle and not-so-subtle attempts to drive him away from the "safe" life that suburbia supposedly offers.
Little Children is a wonderfully rich, deeply satisfying read. It is funny, heart-breaking, suspenseful and utterly believable. Perrotta gets all the little details right, and you get inside the heads of Sarah and Todd, and I found myself simultaneously rooting for them and against them. I thought the ending was just as it should be; anything else would have felt like a cop out. My only real quibble with the book was the subplot with Sarah's husband Richard, who gets increasingly involved with an online fantasy woman called Slutty Kay. This was the only area that didn't ring true to me, and I wish Perrotta had taken Richard in another direction. Other than that, I was utterly entranced with this novel. If you want an introduction this gifted author, then I think Little Children is the perfect start and may possibly be his best book.
Excerpt from Todd: He'd told Sarah he didn't know what had gone wrong, but that wasn't precisely true. He knew, he'd just never been able to put it into words. Something had happened to him over the past couple of years, something to do with being home with Aaron, sinking into the rhythm of a kid's day. The little tasks, the small pleasures. The repetition that goes beyond boredom and becomes a kind of peace. You do it long enough, and the adult world starts to drift away. You can't catch up with it, not even if you try.
Rating: 4.5 stars
"The young mothers were telling each other how tired they were. This was one of their favorite topics, along with the eating, sleeping and defecating habits
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of their offspring, the merits of certain local nursery schools, and the difficulty of sticking to an exercise routine. Smiling politely to mask a familiar feeling of desperation, Sarah reminded herself to think like an anthropologist. I'm a researcher studying the behavior of boring suburban women. I'm not a boring suburban woman myself."As soon as I read this opening paragraph, I knew I was going to love this book. After all, it is set in my world: boring suburbia where I myself am one of the boring suburban women (who tries to break out of this boring world by blogging and writing book reviews like this one). I suspect any stay-at-home mom with a small child has moments of panic and desperation like Sarah. Although you love your children and there are moments of great joy, there are many many moments of brain-numbing boredom, self-doubt and isolation. But back to the plot synopsis...
Sarah's world detours into a far more interesting (and dangerous) tangent when she impulsively kisses the Prom King (aka Todd, the attractive stay-at-home dad who is the object of lust and curiosity among the playground moms). This leads to an unexpected affair between Sarah and Todd and causes them to question everything they thought was true about themselves, their lives and their marriages.
Unfolding alongside this new and illicit love affair is the arrival of a convicted child molester, Ronnie McGorvey, who moves back home with his mother after his release from jail. Ronnie's presence doesn't sit well with the townsfolk, and he and his long-suffering mother become the target of subtle and not-so-subtle attempts to drive him away from the "safe" life that suburbia supposedly offers.
Little Children is a wonderfully rich, deeply satisfying read. It is funny, heart-breaking, suspenseful and utterly believable. Perrotta gets all the little details right, and you get inside the heads of Sarah and Todd, and I found myself simultaneously rooting for them and against them. I thought the ending was just as it should be; anything else would have felt like a cop out. My only real quibble with the book was the subplot with Sarah's husband Richard, who gets increasingly involved with an online fantasy woman called Slutty Kay. This was the only area that didn't ring true to me, and I wish Perrotta had taken Richard in another direction. Other than that, I was utterly entranced with this novel. If you want an introduction this gifted author, then I think Little Children is the perfect start and may possibly be his best book.
Excerpt from Todd: He'd told Sarah he didn't know what had gone wrong, but that wasn't precisely true. He knew, he'd just never been able to put it into words. Something had happened to him over the past couple of years, something to do with being home with Aaron, sinking into the rhythm of a kid's day. The little tasks, the small pleasures. The repetition that goes beyond boredom and becomes a kind of peace. You do it long enough, and the adult world starts to drift away. You can't catch up with it, not even if you try.
Rating: 4.5 stars
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LibraryThing member vfranklyn
I loved this book. I thought it was really well written and paced. I grew attached to the characters and found in each one flaws that were sympathic. I was satisfied with the ending, even. I saw the movie and really enjoyed it as well.
LibraryThing member colinsky
Not my usual kind of read, but I noticed it on a remainder table at a local indie bookstore with a note attached saying that it was 'better than the movie.' I can't vouch for that, but I can say it didn't leave me keen to see the movie. Two dimensional characters, wooden dialog, predictable plot,
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cliched ending. Show Less
LibraryThing member rosencrantz79
I think I had great expectations for Tom Perrotta's Little Children--maybe too great. Perrotta seems to be known for writing about what lies beneath the sunny facade of suburbia, and this book is no exception, tackling Internet porn addiction, adultery, and one community's reaction to a sexual
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predator in their midst. But Perrotta's reasons for why each character is the way he or she is seemed a little too pat--Sarah's and Todd's respective dissatisfaction with their marriages, Richard's obsession with porn, Larry's anger management issues--everything is explained immediately, as if Perrotta is worried his reader might not be able to handle a little obliqueness. His multiple-viewpoint narrative kept me from caring very deeply about anyone, and the ending felt rushed rather than climactic. Show Less
LibraryThing member KevinJoseph
Tom Perotta's "Little Children" depicts Suburbia, U.S.A as a dangerous place, where wayward cops, child molesters, and cheating spouses threaten to disrupt the peaceful ebb and flow of family life. Yet this novel dispenses its satire in a way that isn't mean-spirited or lacking in believability.
This is a disturbing tale, much as the movie "American Beauty" was disturbing. Yet this caustic brew is impossible to turn away from, as Perotta chases down its bitterness with a soothing writing style that's elegant in its simplicity.
So for me, Sarah succeeds as a contemporary Emma Bovary, and this modern twist on Flaubert's tragedy qualifies as an instant classic.
-Kevin Joseph, author of "The Champion Maker"
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That's because Mr. Perrotta has taken care to craft real, multi-dimensional characters who are flawed in ways that make them as child-like as the little children they are trying to raise, evoking understanding and surprising degrees of sympathy. And rather than forcing his characters into an artificial plot structure, he seems simply to wind them up and set them on a natural collision course, letting them fall prey to their tragic flaws This is a disturbing tale, much as the movie "American Beauty" was disturbing. Yet this caustic brew is impossible to turn away from, as Perotta chases down its bitterness with a soothing writing style that's elegant in its simplicity.
So for me, Sarah succeeds as a contemporary Emma Bovary, and this modern twist on Flaubert's tragedy qualifies as an instant classic.
-Kevin Joseph, author of "The Champion Maker"
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LibraryThing member mpicker0
Trashy in a Desperate Housewives kind of way; good mindless fun
LibraryThing member carmarie
This is one of my "all-time favorites". I picked this up on a whim because I needed one more book to get a deal at a well known book chain. And my goodness....the writing surprised me...everything did. I recommend this to anyone.
LibraryThing member LynnB
Some reviewers seem to think this book is a satire, but I'm not sure. I think it's more of a portrayal of comtemporay society. The story centres around a small community and the parents who are raising children there. Various parents have affairs, sneak cigarettes, fail to study for exams and play
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sports without proper safety equipment -- making the title a better description of them than of the children they are raising. A convicted child molester moves into the neighbourhood and the book shows his difficulties in integrating into society. A good read all in all. Show Less
LibraryThing member zenhikers
I have been waiting for a novel like this. I just wanted a fun-to-read book that wasn’t mindless entertainment and this book exceeded all expectations. It is about a collection of characters and their families, who are challenged by their relationships, their love for their families and the
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tensions that develop between people with opposing viewpoints. The story centers around the fear that seizes the community after a convicted sex offender moves into the neighborhood. The book is ver clever and smart and the author writes both male and female points of view equally well. I got totally sucked into the story and couldn’t stop reading until the conclusion. No, this book doesn’t have a traditionally “happy ending”, but it is a book that contains truth and empathy and offers a narrative that is a joy to sink into. Show Less
LibraryThing member Daisydaisydaisy
An enjoyable read. The novel follows a variety of characters, who act like small children in their selfish behaviour. It follows the thoughts and actions of a small group of parents and a sex offender living nearby who is living with his mother. Supposedly the novel is a cross between "Madame
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Bovary" and "Desperate Housewives", but as I've only read half of "Madame Bovary" and have never seen "Desperate Housewives", I wouldn't know! The characters are mainly in their thirties, and have discovered that life isn't quite all they thought it was going to be - there are frustrations with their work, their love lives, that they haven't quite got all that they thought they would - even the "perfect Mum" is revealed at the end to have enormous cracks in her relationship. All of the characters make bad decisions, the danger appears to come from the sex offender, but in reality comes from each one of them. I found some parts hard to understand - some of the characters play American Football and there are great long descriptions of matches (games?) which I couldn't make any sense of at all! Show Less
LibraryThing member rcooper3589
BOOK #16
This is one of those books where the cover (a bag with two goldfish inside) caught my eye awhile back and so, when it was on sale, I figured why not? I really enjoyed the story- even though it was predictable at times and the beginning reminded me of other suburban-based novels. I liked
This is one of those books where the cover (a bag with two goldfish inside) caught my eye awhile back and so, when it was on sale, I figured why not? I really enjoyed the story- even though it was predictable at times and the beginning reminded me of other suburban-based novels. I liked
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Perrotta's tone and his ability to weave a bunch of different stories together. And I really liked the ending- I won't give it away, but it didn't end the way I thought I was going to, which made me happy. If the book had ended the way I thought it would, the characters would've been flat and like every other character in a book like this, however, this ending made the characters more human and allowed them to really change and learn. The book was recently made into a movie, so I'm going to have to add it to my Netflix queue! FAVORITE QUOTES: It wasn't that easy to tell one weekday from the next anymore; they all just melted together like a bag of crayons left out in the sun. // After all, what was adult life but one moment of weakness piled on top of another? Most people just fell in line like obedient little children, doing exactly what society expected of them at any given moment, all the while pretending that they'd actually made some sort of choice. // "I've been searching for you for months, and when I finally give up, there you are, standing on the corner like some crack whore in the ghetto." // If it hadn't been for the worshiping G-D part, he would have happily attended church on a regular basis. Show Less
LibraryThing member bethmal
I loved this book and could not put it down. I still have not seen the movie but will be very interested to see it on film. I found it interesting that I didn't like the main character. She was very unlikable but was meant to be. This is a very dark look at life it suburbea. Loved it!!!
LibraryThing member clarkera
Easy, light, fun read, but not original with regard to characters, dialogue or plot. The characters were quite shallow, self absorbed and cynical. They didn't really interest me, but I think this was the point. However, the book was a welcome rest from more thought-provoking, complex and skillfully
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written books. Basically it is a quick, fun read that demands very little from the reader. Show Less
LibraryThing member gardentoad
This book is quite twisted. I admit that I had to finish it to see what happens, but I didn't really like any of the characters. I didn't have a lot of sympathy for them.
LibraryThing member brismom22
I thought the book was very good. It does show you into the world of stay at home moms a little bit. The panty scene was alittle off beat for me. The whole Richard thing was alittle weird but it made for good reading. I didnt care for the football and how much detail it went in to. I was very
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disappointed with the ending. It just kind of leaves you hanging and you dont know what happens to anyone. I would still recommend it. Its a good book for the most part. Show Less
LibraryThing member brianinbuffalo
Here's hoping the movie version is better. Perrotta's book just didn't hold my attention. While some of the characters are intriguing and there are a number extremely humorous moments, "Little Children" was an overall disappointment.
LibraryThing member lesleydawn
May's storyline and the how Perrotta ended the novel are the only things that saved this book for me. I considered not finishing it a couple of times, but I'm glad I stuck with it to the end. The last scene was a perfect conclusion.
LibraryThing member kmoellering
This has got to be one of my favorite books. Tom Perrotta is a great writer -so satirical and hilarious that if you have not read his books, you are really missing out on a treat. He is sarcastic and witty, but truly seems to love his characters and craft them with care. Set during a long hot
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summer, the novel focuses on several middle aged suburbanites and their relationships with each other. There are affairs, fights, romantic encounters and break-ups enough to make this seem like a soap opera, but the characters are so fine and believable it is far better than any sordid soap opera you will find on t.v. I enjoyed reading this novel and look forward to more! Show Less
LibraryThing member Zmrzlina
This is a bit too much like reading a television drama screenplay. Nothing clever and the characters are flat.
LibraryThing member TheBentley
Excellent. Very much the legacy of John Cheever's suburban dystopia. In the same class with Jay McInerney and Jane Smiley. The play on words that is the title is very well traced through the entire novel. The book is really about the adults, and the adults in the novel are all very much like little
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children--selfish, narcissistic, and overly sensitive. All the adults in the book are also very profoundly influenced by the parent-child relationship, whether it manifests itself with an actual parent, a pseudo-parent, or a much older lover. Very nice. Perrotta is a true literary talent. Show Less
LibraryThing member whirled
With his sly humour and compassion for his characters, Tom Perrotta rescues Little Children from drowning in the bitterness of its main subject matter: infidelity. The book is populated with people we should hate but don't - a wayward wife, a feckless husband, an internet porn addict who neglects
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his family. Even the character of Ronnie, a child molester, is afforded a slim measure of compassion. It's a mark of Perrotta's skill that he can bring this flawed bunch together and make Little Children an enjoyable, thought-provoking read. Show Less
LibraryThing member melorock
I found the the book an okay read but a little boring. I am going to watch the movie and see if that does it for me. Iistened to the audiobook instead of reading an actual book, maybe I cheated myself out of a good read, don't know.
Subjects
Awards
Language
Original language
English
Original publication date
2004
ISBN
0312990324 / 9780312990329
Other editions
Little Children: A Novel by Tom Perrotta (Paperback)