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Reviewer Jennifer Flygare

Jennifer Flygare

Jennifer Flygare is a Research & Learning Librarian at the University of Central Oklahoma.

Title

The Women

T.C. Boyle

Review

T.C. Boyle is one of my favorite all time authors. The characters in his books are rich, multi-faceted, and so realistic. He really has a gift for writing about difficult and interesting characters. 20th century architect Frank Lloyd Wright is one such character, and provides Boyle with a great subject for one of my favorite novels.

I did not know much about Wright's personal life before I read this book, and was quite shocked at the drama that seemed to follow this character. The Women focuses on the chaotic personal life of Frank Lloyd Wright. Yes he was a genius architect, but his personal life was a mess. He was a difficult narcissistic character who demanded perfection and adherence to his aesthetic ideals of all those who were caught up in his sparkly genius.

This is a tale written about his messy relationships and the real drama that played out in Taliesin, Wright's primary residence, studio, and original campus of his architectural school. There are other novels out there about this fascinating character, but this book is so much richer and the characters are so much better developed. This is a great book with a lot of drama and the construction of the story is beautiful. The historical material is fascinating, but the story is a joy to read.

Review Date

Reviewed November 2013