Rating: 
Summary: A Rough, Rewarding Walk Down Memory Lane
Review: The Amateur Marriage reads more like an autopsy than a novel, a postmortem analysis of the chronological demise of a marriage. From the moment they meet, we know the union of Michael Anton and Pauline Barclay is not going to go well. He's quiet, reserved, and serious; she's loud, gregarious, and flighty; oil and water. She snips, he snarls; but boy, isn't the sex good after a good ole verbal knockdown, drag-out! And that is the crux of the first five chapters, roughly half the book: two people trapped inside the crucible of a seething, though occasionally sultry, marriage.For someone who has experienced divorce firsthand, both from the child and adult viewpoints, I was uncomfortable with this book at first, and almost put it down; the bickering seemed much too familiar. But Anne Tyler's writing is attractive, and I held in there. At least the sparring is only verbal, and not physically abusive. Which in some ways makes the dissolution much sadder; even past middle age, he's handsome, she's beautiful; he's thin as ever, she's still shapely; so why not make loving comments, instead of accusations and torrents of blame? Ah, but they are opposites, and while opposites attract, they also attack. Structurally, though there are various flashbacks and moments of reflection, the novel is mostly linear, and the book could have been divided into chapters labeled Forties, Fifties, Sixties, Seventies, Eighties, Nineties, and 2002. After starting with an omniscient (or community) viewpoint, which reflects the first chapter's theme of common knowledge ("Anyone in the neighborhood could tell you"; "Everyone said later that"), most of the following chapters are divided by personal viewpoint, his and hers, like angry towels hung over the decades. Even daughter Karen and son George have chapters devoted to their take on specific time periods. What is sadly missing is a chapter inside the head of Lindy, the oldest daughter, who decides the safe thing to do is just fade away, giving the novel perhaps its greatest mystery; now, that would have been a trip! Every novel, we are told, should have a protagonist and an antagonist, but here the main characters take turns being both. Perhaps the hero of this story is love and marriage and the villain is hate and divorce. Halfway through I was ready to shoot both parents and toss the oldest child over a cliff. Then, miraculously, I began to care for them all, very much. And when the reading was done, I missed them: the truest sign of a fine novel. By mid-point, I figured this was a three-star book. Two-thirds of the way through, I thought maybe four. By the time I read the final, heart-wrenching lines, I realized this was not just a story of two people, or even a single family; it reflects American life since World War II: a walk down memory lane, for many of us. The scope is broad, the effect long lasting. If personal enrichment is a genre, then this is where The Amateur Marriage fits. I would recommend this book, but in the same way I would recommend a skillful dentist: it isn't always entertaining, but it's probably good for you; and, if you're young and yet single, it may keep you from having cavities of the heart.
Rating:
Summary: Just finished The Amateur Marriage
Review: One standard I've set for myself after finishing a book...do I think about it in the days to come? This book has so many echoes of my life, and I think many middle-class American lives that I'm sure I'll be sifting it over in my mind for days to come. I love Anne Tyler and was stunned when I requested this at the library and got it right away. I couldn't put this down. Not all of it was satisfying, and sometimes, I wanted to shake one or more of the characters, but I think it truly reflected lots of ordinary lives lived in this time period. My parents, easily as mismatched as Michael and Pauline, married in 1943 right before my dad was sent overseas. So many of my friends grew up in families where marriages occurred under similar circumstances, and as I read this book, I thought about my family and my friends' families. I think my parents had more tolerance for each other than Michael and Pauline, but they gradually grew apart and each pursued separate interests, tho they remained married, and my mom remained a stay-at-home wife and mother long after the children left. The triumphs, tragedies, and the "getting-by" of life with the Antons seems like a well-drawn portrait of what life was like then and an honest reflection of relationships both then and now. I even read parts to my husband and asked, "Are we that mean to each other?" (Thankfully, he replied "no").I see Paulines and Michaels among our friends and acquaintances. No, I didn't like the events the story revealed, I didn't like the ending, I didn't like how much was "wrapped up" quickly in the final chapter. But I appreciate that this is the way life moves, sometimes, and it all seemed very realistic to me. Not always an easy read, but I really loved Tyler's prose, her insight into characters who couldn't see nearly that much for themselves, and her weaving of the various eras that the book encompassed. I've got to find a friend to discuss this with!
Rating: 
Summary: Though Interesting Characters, Book is Anti-Climatic
Review: You grow to enjoy reading about these characters, but you hope for something more for them. You want to see the "do" something...but it very anti-climatic and you don't understand exactly why the people are the way they are. You want to know more of their thinking...
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Summary: My Favorite Anne Tyler Novel
Review: I have read eight novels by Anne Tyler, and this is my favorite so far. How refreshing to have a writer who only improves on her own perfection. She has taken the edgy, imperfect, exasperating moments of marriage and woven a tapestry of life and its changes in the course of a fifty-year relationship. Michael and Pauline first meet in the fervor of patriotism that swept their neighborhoods in the days immediately after Pearl Harbor. They loved, they fought, they made each other miserable, and they married. They continued to fight and make each other miserable and the love was not so easy to see. They had three children and were conflicted by their raising of them. The whole family seems to change when the oldest daughter runs away from home. The pain of that act leaves its indelible mark on all of them and things are never as good as before, though they weren't all that good before. Anne Tyler has taken an ordinary couple and placed them in a commonplace situation like she always does. Yet she manages to make each page riveting, a can't-put-down read that involves the reader so deeply in the lives of Pauline, Michael and their family that one is reluctant to say goodbye. Surely, this outwardly ideal looking family can be "fixed." Surely the fighting will stop, Lindy will return home, and they will all live happily ever after. Surely. But, alas..... There are ordinary moments and there are extraordinary moments in this novel, but all become riveting in the hands of the masterful Anne Tyler. Will Pauline ever achieve her ideal of marriage as an interweaving of two souls? Will Michael be happy if he can attain his view of marriage, which is two people traveling side by side but separately? Can two people who don't like each other very much overcome that when the love just won't die? Can two good Catholics raise a grandchild named Pagan? From its compelling opening to its tearful ending, this is Anne Tyler writing as good or better than she has ever written. If you're already a fan, you'll adore it. If you're new to this author, it's the perfect starting point.
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Summary: Great writing
Review: I found this book so interesting and enjoyable to read. Anne Tyler is an amazing writer. It's true that sad things happen to the characters, but to me they are so real and true to themselves that everything makes sense, including the end. Unlike Hollywood movies, there are no sudden changes of heart and epiphanies that solve all the problems in an instant so that everybody can live happily ever after. Sad things do happen to people, and real people struggle with how to solve their problems. If reading this book makes some people examine their own lives a little more closely, and maybe even helps them avoid some of the same mistakes, that's great. But no lives are mistake-free, and honestly, they'd be less rich if they were. We don't get a chance to go back and do things over, and neither do Michael and Pauline. Their kids have to figure out what to make of their own lives, and yes, their parents didn't make it easy for them, but who has perfect parents? Michael & Pauline's grandson seems to survive the unkindest treatment of all and come out reasonably healthy. Even Michael and Pauline aren't bitter by the end. Maybe it's my own rose-colored glasses, but this sends a message of hope to me.
Rating: 
Summary: Scenes from a Marriage
Review: Even a writer as talented as Anne Tyler has trouble making the "Amateur Marriage" of Michael and Pauline Anton interesting for 300 pages; though as always some of her insights are first rate: "Pauline must think that words were like dust or scuff marks, or spilled milk, easily wiped away and leaving no trace. She must think a mere apology-or not even that, just a change in her mood-could erase from a person's mind the fact that she's called him stuffy and pompous and boring and self-righteous." Veritable opposites, Michael and Pauline seem so carried away by the romance of their first meeting and Michael's subsequent entry into the Army that they don't realize how unsuited for each other they are. Pauline: "...(Pauline always) gave the rouge and lipsticked version of things...(she's only) concerned with the looks of things, even within the family." Michael: "...like blotting paper-just dense and matt-surfaced, absorbing all that came his way and giving nothing back."
When the children come, they become the mirror, the reflection back of all that is wrong with the Anton's marriage. As son George reflects: "His mother had not been a fluffy-headed dingbat; she'd been...scared, scary, angry, bitter, remorseful unhappy, jealous, bewildered, at a loss."
"Amateur Marriage" is flawed, not Tyler's best work but always readable: filled with Tyler's insightful and gorgeous prose. And as such, it is a must read for all those interested in contemporary American writing.
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Summary: I Found the Ending Redeeming
Review: This was a hard book to like for awhile. The main characters, a married couple Michael and Pauline Anton, just weren't all that likeable. The story begins with the couple meeting immediately after the bombing of Pearl Harbor in working-class Baltimore neighborhood. It's a tough read because the marriage is not only amatuerish, it just doesn't work and we get to see glimpses of its dysfunction over a number of decades, through marriage, children and aging. While this relationship could not be termed tragic in terms of abuse, it just didn't generate a lot of happiness. As I was getting to the 3/4ths point of the book, I started to question the point of it. Why did Anne Tyler write this book and why was I reading it? Without giving away the story I think the ending tied up the loose ends for me and gave me some comfort for reading the book. Any reader can take away a number of messages from the book, but in it's own goofy way, I think this book reaffirms love and marriage. I say that because there is no textbook "perfect" family. We all find a way to get through life and our relationships adapt (or fall apart) in response to what happens to us. Stronger people with stronger relationships react and adapt well, while others don't. This book provides an informative glimpse into relationships both strong and not-so-strong. It's quirky and you will read it even as it makes you uncomfortable. It will make you think about your relationships too.
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Summary: I Wanted More Out Of This-----------
Review: I agree with most reviewers in that Tyler really got to those underlying places of a marriage & showed us emotional errosion in all its glory. She was clever to show so many characters' sides of this & was constantly reminding us that there are two sides to every coin.
I really flipped from four to three stars mainly because I feel so many aspects of this book's plot could've been explored much more. I would have loved to have heard Pagan's version of all this, especially after Lindy came back into the picture. I felt Pauline was abruptly removed when, if left, could've given this novel some really pivotal turns. Overall, I felt that after Tyler opened up all these little corridors, the book could've easily gone another 200+ pages to make it compelling. The image comes to mind of packing a suitcase really full, then finding you must dash quickly out the door, so you're sitting on that suitcase, trying, trying, to squash it together so the lock will catch.
The ending tempted me to give it a well-deserved four stars, but I just couldn't shake the feeling of not getting the entire main course.
This is the second novel I've read of hers and, yes, I'll read Tyler again. I really enjoy her style of writing & her keen ability to take us into this enchanting, complex world of family and marriage.
Rating:
Summary: A Superior Novel!
Review: Anne Tyler is a great writer. This novel delves into humanity unlike any other story I've read recently. It looks into the the human psyche and shows raw emotion. This book is funny and shows a great perspective through the individual characters. I was entertained throughout this novel. The Amateur Marriage is a tale that grabs a hold of your attention with lessons of what husbands and wives can do to each other over the years of a lengthy marriage. If you have been married for a long time, you'll be able to relate to the situation in the story on many varying levels. This book can be used as a teaching tool or seminar, if you will, for all marriages.
Rating:
Summary: Wonderful!
Review: Anne Tyler does it again with this wonderful book that spans a couples marriage over fifty years. Tyler is such a master at character development that I feel as if I know her characters personally. She really brings her characters to life and in "An Amateur Marriage," they jump right off the page and into your heart. "An Amateur Marriage" follows Pauline and Michael through the ups and downs of marriage. There is no sugar coating here and sad things do happen, but through it all you see the love the two have for each other and their drive to keep their marriage together. In the days of quick divorces, it is nice to read a book about a couple surviving marriage and making the best of it. This is just a truly glorious book.
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