The Book of Ruth

Ruth lives in a small town with her equally small-minded mother. Her brilliant brother gets out as soon as he graduates from high school, but Ruth seems content to settle into an unhappy oblivion of work at a dry cleaner. In theory Ruth is an interesting character because she is so ordinary.

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She’s not that smart or pretty or ambitious. She is an average person, one that you meet every day.

The problem in that in her ordinariness there doesn’t seem to be anything new to be said about her. She settles quickly for whatever life hands her, whether it’s a job where her mom works or the first man who expresses and interest in her. Instead of trying to get out from under the thumb of her overbearing mother, she continues to live with her even after she’s married.

I have an incredibly hard time relating to and respecting people like Ruth. She has an awful life, one that she continually complains about, but she does nothing to improve it. I just want to shake her and yell, “You can do better!” She marries Ruby, a man who is basically still a child. He’s lazy and spoiled. He forces himself upon her on their first date, but she decides that’s okay and agrees that taking care of him is her new second job.

The two most interesting characters in my opinion are Ruth’s brother and her aunt, both of whom always remain on the periphery. Both are villainized in some ways, particularly her brother, for working to improve their lives. By the end of the book I just wanted to be finished with all of the horrible characters I’d met.

BOTTOM LINE: I couldn’t stand it. I kept waiting for it to get better or for some lesson to be learned, but it never happened. I stuck with it because it was a book for my book club and I always read those all the way though so I can discuss them.

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Hamilton often writes beautifully and evocatively. Unfortunately, I found neither her charactors nor the plot particularly compelling. The ending was gripping, but by that time that time I'd ceased to care what happened to Ruth or her family. Wished I liked the book more.

Spoilers. I found this book disappointing. It is told as a first person narrative. A woman tells her story. She is thought to be stupid & is put into special (slow) classes, but the truth is that she is different & not stupid. Now she has found her voice & she is telling her story. Her mother is

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crazy & the relatives don't step in; she marries a mentally ill misfit and loves him; but she is unhappy and, again, nobody steps in. The husband finally tries to kill her & succeeds in killing her mother. I found this book tedious to read. The voice is not consistent (for example, she says something is "not novel" but refers to condoms as balloons).

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This is the story of Ruth Dahl, a somewhat dimwitted girl who lives with her mother in a small town. When Ruth marries and her husband Ruby moves in, the family relationships become strained.

Jane Hamilton writes beautifully, with phrases and images that are very powerful. I loved the style of this

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book, and the voice of the narrator, Ruth.

I found there was far too much foreshadowing. We are told over and over that something horrible is going to happen...that looking back, the author realizes certain things. This was done to excess. After a while, I thought "this better be worth it." Not sure it was.

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I liked this simple story. The main character really grabbed me, although her sheer dimwittedness in choices and narrative and then her miraculous academic achievements left a little to be desired.

A beautiful and harrowing book. Ruth tells the tale of a family tragedy, building her story slowly and from all angles. Ruth grows up an awkward girl in a sleepy midwestern town, tiptoeing around her volatile and emotionally abusive mother. As she comes of age, they remain within their precarious

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living situation out of a mutual need for each other. When Ruth marries and her new husband moves in, the atmosphere in the house becomes darker. Hamilton takes the time to explore the history of each character and the ways that these histories shaped and defined each person's view of the world. A fascinating look at the limits we set for ourselves and for other people, and the conflict between loyalty to one's self and to others.

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This book takes me to so many levels of emotion. From the beginning you can feel Ruth's utter lack of hope. This book puts it into a story that is played out day in and day out,things that happen in real life, but no one outside lives it. Watch the news? The book is wonderful if you can handle the

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emotions. I do admit that I wanted the book to end a little differently, but a great read all the same.

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Having read this book a long time ago it is hard for me to recall details. I remember that I fell in love with this book. The characters were well written and had depth. A great read that is on my reread list. Very well done! Grab your tissues and enjoy.

I didn’t really like this book…but I didn’t not like this book. The writing style didn’t exactly appeal to me. I never really felt I had a complete grasp of the time frame of this novel. And it focused for a long time on Ruth’s younger life…yet you never got a good look at her younger

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life. I connected with the story more once she became the adult who had been narrating from the beginning. I had a firmer grasp of almost all aspects of the story then. But it’s so very depressing. I don’t really feel a chance for redemption…and so much of her life was wasted by the non-interference of others. While in real life that is often how it goes, in this story it just made me all the more upset. Overall final thoughts…It was alright, just not what I expected.

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Ok..sort of a very weird, eerie story. Sad characters. Ending is violent. Sort of makes you sad. Like every day life. Oprah book choice.
rating=4
2/19/98

This book drew me in and I couldn't put it down. Although I vehemently disagree with one review that describes it as "authentically Dickensonian" (an overused and unimaginative comparison), it is definitely haunting and disturbing throughout.

This book is SO good that it suckered me into reading her next three books, which were nowhere near as powerful. Oprah be damned!

I found this to be a quite interesting read, but somehow I didn't really connect with the people in the story. The narrator is a working class woman living in a small town in mid-west America. She's trapped in a miserable world and, not surprisingly, looks to a marriage to lift her out of her

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misery. Again, not surprisingly, this doesn't work. She has a child, but that doesn't help either. In fact her only redemption comes through her relationship with her Aunt, who accepts her and encourages her. Perhaps I am just too removed from this context to really feel part of the story?

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I know I thought it was worth the read. That is all I know though.

Great character study, thoroughly enjoyed this one...

This is an emotionally difficult book to read, but extraordinarily well written. Highly recommend it. A very good book for group discussion. What happens is so chilling; but I believe Ruth will triumph and I would love to read a sequel.

good
Oprah's choice

This exquisite book confronts real-life issues of alienation and violence from which the author creates a stunning testament to the human capacity for mercy, compassion and love.

Ruth is a small-town young woman with not too much going for her. She works at the local dry cleaner; she and her husband live with her mother; she goes bowling on a Saturday night. Ruth's Aunt Sid has made a life for herself as a musician and teacher and their written correspondence gives Ruth a

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glimpse into life outside her small town.

The author has a beautiful writing style. She paints a picture of a complicated mother-daughter relationship and a troubled marriage as seen through Ruth's eyes. She has created a character who put me in mind of Rohinton Mistry's two beggars in 'A Fine Balance' - no matter how life kicks you in the teeth, you accept and carry on because, well, what else is there to do?

Toward the end of the book, a family tragedy changes Ruth's life - perhaps for the better. But I never really got the feeling that she felt she needed to be saved.

I liked this book rather a lot. It's pretty slow moving, but every page can be savoured.

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For the record, I read this WAY before it was an "Oprah's Book Club Selection." She actually came and did a reading at my high school. I think I was the only student who actually read the book after her visit.

"The Book of Ruth" is exquisitely written and disturbingly powerful. The story illustrates the painful life of dimwitted Ruth and how a single decision would change the landscape of her existence forever. This book is a page turner through to the end, and the climax is agonizing. I will not forget

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these characters for a long time. Beware that this book is NOT a warm & fuzzy read.

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This book was good but not great; it always seemed like it was on the verge of something but never getting there.