On reading the story. The man - and then all mankind - will discover the meaning of true love. And the futility of sacrificing true love for man's notion of what is right.
True love is right. There is no mistaking true love. True love will bring a man down to his knees weeks, months and even years after it is lost.Pretty, but not all that pleasing Although I was not even alive in 1960, this book does much to evoke the flavor of that year in my imagination. This was my parents' generation and every page of this book was redolent of their habits and mannerisms. I found myself engrossed in the setting, avidly lapping up the sensitive details of music, dress, politics and culture.
That aside, the novel did not entirely work for me. Despite the sheer beauty of the final chapters, this is not Faulks' best work. While he tried to five the reader insight into the lives of the three main characters, their emotional portraiture was a little thin. This is especially true for the first three-fourths of the book which features some rather puzzling and possibly unnecessary flashback scenes. In all honesty, I found it difficult to sympathize with Frank and Mary until the final chapters of the novel.
Yet, that all changes by the end. The final chapters are thoughtful, luminous, and extremely moving. I will not give away the ending, but I will simply say that I found myself in tears and running to hug my boyfriend. It is not an ending that one can easily forget.
Charlie van der Linden is a senior-ranking Washington official at the British Embassy whose life is progressively degenerating as he stares at the world despairingly through his latest bottle of whisky. This novel proceeds at a pace echoing this decline, at times moving with a lethargy and reluctance that is characteristic of Charlie's perspective. He is fully aware that his own personal intellect is far superior to the requirementsfor his profession and finds his solace haunted by a presence from the past who looms large in the depths of his conscience. Charlie is a character disillusioned and left with the legacy from his own time served in the military causing him to be dispirited by feelings of inadequacy as he realises his own insignificance when it comes to fulfilling a role in other peoples' lives.
Comparatively his wife, Mary, appears comfortable with the glitzy social scene that surrounds her until she becomes aware that Charlie's 'problems' are starting to have a bearing on her own constitution. It is here that I realised just what nagging complaint that this book provokes in me; Faulks is wonderful with his characterising of Charlie and, later,Frank Renzo but even when Mary is at her most emotional, she simply fails to inspire any sense of sympathy or engagement from me. In one respect this highlights a quality of the writing since she encapsulates the perfect diplomat's wife; polite, demure and unlikely to court controversy,,but it is as though, for the most part, we are distanced from her. As Mary provides the emotional support for Charlie she attracts the attentions of one of his old friends, a newspaper journalist by the name of Frank Renzo with whom she starts an illicit affair after he courts her on frequent toursof New York. These are established as Mary's way of killing time when her depression-stricken husband is called away from work but often seem to represent an escape from the insipid tedium she finds in the US middle-class political scene.
Faulks isn't breaking open any secret vaults by adding this romantic intrigue but he depicts it with such precision that it seems as though the passionate edge I anticipated is somewhat lacking. On a more positive note though, Mary's continued worrying over her infidelity makes for an interesting clash with Frank's devoted love; even though they both know what they want, you begin to suspect that one's passion is greater than the other. Each character is linked through their tainted past and the constant feeling of guilt, exposure or reprisals is one of On Green Dolphin Street's strongest themes, seeping into the political lives and bringing discomfort to their leisure, disruption to their order, betrayal to their loyalty.
The feelings of disenchantment that run wild throughout this novel contribute immensely to what is certainly a fine novel. Apart from the failure to engage with Mary for the most part this is another definite read for Faulks' fans, just beware of the feelings of uncertainty, they progress quickly from page to reader.
This book is more literate than passionate. Faulks engages in poetic descriptions of feelings, cities, and settings, but leaves the reader without a good reason to like any of the three protagonists. Faulks also tempts the reader with a promising story line involving the Kennedy-Nixon campaign and Cold War tensions, but he leaves it all in the background. History is wasted. There is even a curious chronological slight, as Faulks places Frank fighting in Guadacanal in 1942 and then being shipped to France in 1945.
The ending is excessively melodramatic and any well-traveled news reporter would have allowed for a possible delay in an overseas flight, instead of giving up so easily and taking it out on the roof of a taxi. If a taxi roof had been nearby when I finished reading, I think I'd have taken out a few frustrations myself. Faulks offered enough to keep me rading but not enough to satisfy me in the end, to recommend this to another reader, or to pick up another of his books.
While I know France well, I don't know New York at all. I have to assume that Faulks, a wonderful writer and a wonderful chronicler of detail, portrayed New York accurately, for even though I am not at all familiar with the locations detailed, they did come alive for me; I felt as though I were really there as well, right alongside Mary and Frank.
"On Green Dolphin Street" is the story of a troubled marriage and a troubled couple, the very, very correct Charlie and Mary van der Linden. Charlie, a Washington-based diplomat, is the first character in the book to display signs of discontent. On the surface, his life is serene and any outsider would think he had every reason to be deliriously happy. He's witty, he's charming and he's smart, but he's also frequently drunk, at loose ends, and feeling the beginnings of depression.
Enter Chicago journalist, Frank Renzo, a longtime friend of Charlie's, one he met in Vietnam. Frank is everything that Charlie is not (or not longer is) and, he just happens to adore Mary. Frank and Mary are good, honorable people and both of them care deeply for Charlie, but, Charlie's duties keep him away more and more and Mary finds that filling the empty hours is easier in New York...with Frank as her guide. Frank shows Mary the real New York and, as he does, Mary inevitably falls in love with him, a love that is most decidedly returned.
Love triangles are nothing new in the novelistic world and, unfortunately, Faulks brings nothing new to the cliche. "On Green Dolphin Street" is as wonderfully written as Faulks' previous novels, but even his superb writing skills can't make up for the lack of a fresh and convincing story. Mary and Frank's discussions often seem stilted and artificial. As much as this pair swear they love each other, they lack passion and tension. No, they aren't cardboard cutouts, Faulks is far too good a writer for that, but something is definitely missing.
This is not to say that the book doesn't have its moments. It most definitely does and the best ones occur in flashback, during moments of high tension. This is, of course, Faulks' forte, pitting characters in flux against tumultuous times. Part of the reason for the relative tepidness of this book may be due to the relatively tepid times in which it is set.
It is not giving anything away by saying that Mary's life eventually begins to unravel and she is forced to make some very difficult choices. While the first two-thirds of this book may be lukewarm, the last third is quite moving. The final chapters even border on heartbreaking.
The 60s era is not an era I find intriguing. Those who do will no doubt like this book more than I did. And those who like their novels firmly rooted in the affairs of the heart will find more than enough to enjoy here. "On Green Dolphin Street" is a good book and one that is well-written. I just didn't find it up to the very high standard Faulks, himself, set with his previous work.
