Rating: 
Summary: Dazed and Confused
Review: Thank you for all of your reviews. They really helped me figure out this book. I had never read a Carroll book before. I bought this book because I liked the cover. And it confused the daylights out of me. The beginning of the book, the setup, was excellently written and cleverly devised, but then he seemed to forget the ending. The second half became a mismash of half plots and confusion.
Rating: 
Summary: Read him and change the way you see life
Review: There are writers we read for amusement, to learn something, or simply to keep our brains in motion. But there are a rare few who change everything. Jonathan Carroll's books change the way we see the world. THE MARRIAGE OF STICKS makes you re-think the way you live your life, the way you treat others, the way you perceive things. It is a book to re-read and treasure for years. What is it about? A woman who learns who she really is and along the way realizes too well that is definitely not who she wants to be. Is there a satisfying ending, as some people have complained about Carroll's books in the past? There is an ending that will make your mouth drop open and as far as I'm concerned, that is the greatest reward of reading.
Rating:
Summary: One of his best!
Review: There is a bitter sweet surreal quality about this book, that is often found in Jonathan Carroll's work that I find incredibly addictive. This novel offers glimpses into the selfishness of our world and also the fear that drives that me-me-meness. The magic of caring for another person to the point of rising above this emotional epidemic of our time shines as well as the price exacted by the wonder of it. Its a terrifying, wonderful piece of work...I only wish it were longer.
Rating: 
Summary: Highly Entertaining
Review: Vienna resident, Jonathan Carroll is well-known for writing about extremely ordinary people who become involved in extraordinary circumstances, thereby finding their lives transformed. These quirky and original characters often encounter fantastic dreams and nightmares, surrealistic visions and worlds within worlds, often with no warning at all. Anyone who reads a Jonathan Carroll book must be willing to remain open to a myriad of possibilities in life, possibilities than many of us simply have never held true.In The Marriage of Sticks, Miranda Romanac considers herself most fortunate to be working in a business she loves and at which she excels; she is a successful rare book dealer based in mid-town Manhattan. When Miranda attends her fifteenth high school reunion with her good friend, Zoe, she has more in mind than just a fun night out. Hoping to reconnect with her high school sweetheart, Miranda receives shocking news instead. Although she is yet unaware of its impact, this is news that will prove to be the catalyst of the slow-but-sure unraveling of the existence Miranda has so carefully carved out for herself. Miranda later meets the charming and witty but married Hugh Oakley at a dinner party. And art expert, Miranda innocently consults him regarding a business matter. The inevitable happens and the two are so highly attracted to each other they begin a love affair. This love affair escalates to the point that Hugh finally leaves his wife and children to be with Miranda. A little implausible, maybe, but certainly not out of the realm of possibility. It is Hugh who tells Miranda about the marriage of sticks. Couples write significant events, together with the date of their happening, on whatever stick in available to them at the moment. Every so often these sticks are then culled until the couple is left with only the most important and significant ones. At the end of one's life, when not much time is left, the sticks are burned, rendering the many into one. When Miranda and Hugh move into the home of Frances Hatch, an eccentric old woman who was one of Miranda's clients, the bizarre events step up their pace. (Crane's View, the home's locale, a small town on the Hudson River, is also the setting for Carroll's previous novel, Kissing the Beehive.) Here, both Miranda and Hugh experience visions of striking intensity. Miranda, in particular, is deeply affected as she experiences an ever-growing stream of visions and ghosts. All are, somehow, related to her directly and all help to lead her to the most important decision of her life. Carroll is a master at pacing and his story unfolds exactly as it should. There is no flab in this novel; every word counts, yet Carroll's presentation is effortless in its effect. Every detail is dead-on and the suspense threads its ways subtly through the lives of each character uniting all into one gossamer whole. The everyday and the mundane are transformed, the incongruous becomes the only reality. Carroll doesn't write works of undying artistry. But that's okay, not everyone wants to read that. What he does do is create novels that are highly entertaining yet extremely well-written. Novels that pull the reader in and allow him to escape for awhile into a completely different world. His unique talent lies in telling a darn good story and it is a talent he utilizes extremely well.
Rating:
Summary: Haunting, captivating, ultimately devastating... a must-read
Review: Welcome to the world of Miranda Romanac... or rather, the woman who remembers being Miranda Romanac... or (in a manner of speaking) the women who were and will be Miranda. The main question that permeates this tale is "Who is she?/Who am I?"... the scenarios are prefectly created, the characters live and breathe and the scenes unfold in fron of the reader's eyes with astounding grace. Certainly, when the very first dark and disturbing passages appear nothing prepares you to see the horror that evolves in the pages of this slim novel which spirals towards one of modern fictions' most haunting (though non-violent) finales. Addictive? Certainly! This is a good way to start on Carroll as any other... a fast-paced nightmare full of tender moments and humor, and insight. Miranda comes forth as a facetious, complicated and utterly unforgettable character, made (perhaps unconciously) to suit Calista Flockhart perfectly. A novel that will please horror mavens and novel addicts alike, whom will want to read, re-read, and treasure it for a long time.
Rating:
Summary: For Carroll Lovers Only
Review: What made me read this book was the first two sentences of the book. Probably the most captivating two sentences I have ever read. I really enjoyed the first half of this book. Having never read Carroll before and not even suspecting where he was going, it was like hitting a brick wall when ghosts, reincarnation, animals talking and other "strange" stuff started happening. I don't find this at all scarry, I guess because I don't believe most of it is at all possible. It is pure fantasy. I need some believability to enjoy my stories. I continued reading, hoping it would get back to some kind of reality, but it never did. There were however some really excellent observations, some worthy of quoting by someone, somewhere. There's one on how dogs show people what life is all about, eating, sleeping, going for walks and peeing when you need to - real good. I loved the reunion scene. I got lost in the ending. It was just too weird, but after reading the other reviews, that's what you guys like and enjoy so - eat it up. Re-read those first two lines and tell me they aren't some of the best two lines you have ever read!
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