Monday, October 5, 2015

Landline by Rainbow Rowell Review

Title: Landline
Author: Rainbow Rowell
Pages:  310 pages
Published: July 8th 2014 by St. Martin's Press
Source: eaudiobook library
Links: goodreads, Rainbow Rowell website

Georgie McCool knows her marriage is in trouble; it has been in trouble for a long time. She still loves her husband, Neal, and Neal still loves her, deeply — but that almost seems beside the point now. Maybe that was always beside the point. Two days before they’re supposed to visit Neal’s family in Omaha for Christmas, Georgie tells Neal that she can’t go. She’s a TV writer, and something’s come up on her show; she has to stay in Los Angeles. She knows that Neal will be upset with her — Neal is always a little upset with Georgie — but she doesn't expect him to pack up the kids and go home without her. When her husband and the kids leave for the airport, Georgie wonders if she’s finally done it. If she’s ruined everything. That night, Georgie discovers a way to communicate with Neal in the past. It’s not time travel, not exactly, but she feels like she’s been given an opportunity to fix her marriage before it starts... Is that what she’s supposed to do? Or would Georgie and Neal be better off if their marriage never happened?
I love that I got 3 audio books in on my long summer road trip. This is one of them... I have no idea why I chose this as one of the books I listened to! I think it's because people love Rowell so much and she gets so much buzz.  I have actually read two of her other books Eleanor and Park and Fangirl both were average for me.  It's just that I am not a contemporary reader.

This book is about a married couple, Georgie and Neal who have been married a long time and are just at that point in marriage where you have last the spark and are trying to get it back. Georgie has a great job and a big event coming up that might make her job even better.  She writes TV shows and a pilot has just been green-lit so over the Christmas holiday Georgie is supposed to work on it.  Her family (they have two kids) have tickets to go to Ohio for Christmas though with Neal's family.   So most of the book is about the two of them being apart and Georgie debating her marriage and what she has done right and what she has done wrong.

There is this past and present dialog going on through much of the book. I couldn't decide if I was reading a fantasy or not! We get the past narration from some magic phone calls.  Georgie is able to communicate with Neal in the past by using the landline in her mom's house.  Sometimes I would be annoyed because she never talked to Neal like the whole time her was in Ohio.  She would call and his mom would make excuses, her kids wouldn't let her talk to her husband... I mean, if it were my husband I would tell someone put him on the dang phone.  There were several times in the book were I was frustrated with moments like this.

I had issues with the whole job thing too.  I understand Christmas is important.  But if Georgie is the breadwinner of the family she needs to work to make a good life for them.  Sometimes... sacrifices have to be made for jobs.  I guess though if your marriage is on the brink going to your inlaws is pretty important. Rowell does write relationships really well.  Sometimes I really related with what Georgie was feeling when it came to her marriage.  I have been married as long as the characters in the book so most of their experiences I've dealt with.  

In the end I had a lot of issues with the Landline!  This time travel stuff.. I mean.. we never find out if Neal remembers these phone calls.  I know the phone line was set up for the plot.. so that we can see the characters interact.  I felt though like I never got to know the present day Neal only the 20 something Neal.  All in all this book is only average for me. 3 stars

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