Book Club: The Sisters Brothers & The French Exit

Last month our book club chose to read The French Exit by Patric DeWitt; they had previously read (before I was a part of the group) another of his novels called The Sisters Brothers and found his writing to be interesting.

I put both books on hold at the library and The Sisters Brothers came up first. You could probably categorize it as a Western novel; there's a journey west on horse back, and a lot of guns.  I honestly haven't read many westerns and I did find myself enjoying it -- once I got past the killing.

The Sisters Brothers are two brothers with the surname Sisters (I know, it took me a while to figure that out), who are hired as hitmen. Their next job takes them to San Francisco and along the way they find several people they deem unworthy of life.  It seems killing is just what they do to resolve any sort of conflict. One of the brothers is bothered by this and throughout the story weighs the pros and cons of getting out of the business and dreaming of what life could be like instead. His brother doesn't want out.

I wasn't sure about the book at first. It took a chapter or two to understand what was going on . . . and who the Sisters Brothers were. But after that I was hooked and it was a fast read -- and interesting! So, if you're looking for a Western that is a little different, you can check it out too!

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The French Exit is also by Patric DeWitt but is completely different from The Brothers Sisters. Not a Western. I actually don't know how to describe it. It read like a sitcom. You watch these characters (a 65 year old widow and her 30-something son) do some really absurd things and it just sort of unfolds before your eyes and you can't really understand the purpose of what they do. It's an odd story. Can I leave it at that? 

No? Okay. Francis and her son head to Paris because they are bankrupt. She has this idea of getting rid of all the cash she has left and then ending her life. It's a bizarre story, but within this one plot the author unveils much of their pasts too. Which is what makes it interesting. Nothing really "happens" until the very end but we get to see who people are and how they became that way.

It's a unique novel.

Last month our book club chose to read The French Exit by Patric DeWitt; they had previously read (before I was a part of the group) another of his novels called The Sisters Brothers and found his writing to be interesting.

I put both books on hold at the library and The Sisters Brothers came up first. You could probably categorize it as a Western novel; there's a journey west on horse back, and a lot of guns.  I honestly haven't read many westerns and I did find myself enjoying it -- once I got past the killing.

The Sisters Brothers are two brothers with the surname Sisters (I know, it took me a while to figure that out), who are hired as hitmen. Their next job takes them to San Francisco and along the way they find several people they deem unworthy of life.  It seems killing is just what they do to resolve any sort of conflict. One of the brothers is bothered by this and throughout the story weighs the pros and cons of getting out of the business and dreaming of what life could be like instead. His brother doesn't want out.

I wasn't sure about the book at first. It took a chapter or two to understand what was going on . . . and who the Sisters Brothers were. But after that I was hooked and it was a fast read -- and interesting! So, if you're looking for a Western that is a little different, you can check it out too!

_____

The French Exit is also by Patric DeWitt but is completely different from The Brothers Sisters. Not a Western. I actually don't know how to describe it. It read like a sitcom. You watch these characters (a 65 year old widow and her 30-something son) do some really absurd things and it just sort of unfolds before your eyes and you can't really understand the purpose of what they do. It's an odd story. Can I leave it at that? 

No? Okay. Francis and her son head to Paris because they are bankrupt. She has this idea of getting rid of all the cash she has left and then ending her life. It's a bizarre story, but within this one plot the author unveils much of their pasts too. Which is what makes it interesting. Nothing really "happens" until the very end but we get to see who people are and how they became that way.

It's a unique novel.