Why this Book: At a HS reunion, I reconnected with the author – a woman I’d briefly known in HS. In exploring how our paths had diverged over the last half century, I found her to be a fascinating and intrepid woman.  As our  discussion turned to books, she revealed that she’d written this novel, so naturally I wanted to read it.. Glsd I did.

Summary in 3 Sentences: The single mother of a girl/young woman living in Ireland is gravely ill, anticipates her death, and reconnects with the father of the girl with whom she’d had a brief affair 13 years earlier, and asks him to take care of the girl when she dies.  After the mother’s death, the girl moves from her small village in Ireland to live with her father in a very wealthy suburb in LA, and as she deals with her mother’s death, deals with rather traumatic culture shock as she gets to know her father in his very different setting and world from her village in Ireland.   The book takes us through her struggles to find connection in a world where the trappings of wealth, and the superficialities of appearance and  fame, trump most other concerns, as she confronts the many pathologies of the glitterati living in the fast lane of Hollywood and LA. 

My Impressions:  I very much enjoyed this book – very different from my usual fare.  I realized early on that the voice, tone and sensibility of this novel were different for me – and reminded me that most of the books I’ve read recently were written by men.  This may explain in part the softer more thoughtful and introspective tone of this book, which echoed themes from the last novel I’d read written by a woman:  The Red Tent, by Anita Diamant (my review here,) which is also about the struggles of a young woman in a challenging environment.

A Crack in Everything is not a long book at 270 pages.  It is a provocative look at love and conflicting cultural values, a subtle critique of popular American culture, and is populated with compelling and memorable characters.  In the book we are introduced to the cultures of rural village Ireland,  the world of Hollywood glitterati, elite academy high school culture of entitled rich kids, and additionally we spend time in Alaska, San Francisco, Hawaii, Greece, and Italy – all reflecting I believe, the life and experiences of our well-traveled author. 

There were five main characters in this book:

1. Aine – the gravely ill Irish mother who dies early in the book, but whose presence is felt throughout the story
2. Fiona – Aine’s daughter and the main protagonist.  She is also a prodigy fiddle and violin player, which of course heightened her appeal to me.
3. Alex – Aine’s very well to do erstwhile lover and self-made man, and Sofia’s biological father who suddenly becomes Sofia’s guardian. 
4. Joan – Alex’s sister to whom Alex is quite close, and serves as his conscience, and is Sofia’s closest friend and ally.
5. Mandy – Alex’s beautiful and ambitious girlfriend. 

Catherine Ingram told me that  A Crack in Everything is about a clash of values, which indeed it is  – in part.  Fiona the young girl protagonist was a very precocious 13 year who had grown up  in a remote village in Ireland, insulated from the fsst-paced snd very commercialized culture of American and other large Western cities . Aine, her single mother was barely able to make ends meet, and the families of her friends were likewise not very well off – what Americans would call rural poor working class – good people who don’t have the means to purchase the latest gizmos, fashions or media-hyped extravagances.  

The first line in the book is “Aine knew she would die soon.”  Knowing this, Aine had arranged for Alex, Fiona’a American biological father with whom she’d had a brief affair many years before, to take care of Fiona after her death. After Aine dies, Fiona is delivered to Alex in LA,  and thrust directly into the epicenter of American crazy consumer culture.  Because her father was  a very busy, wealthy, and successful movie producer,  he arranged for a woman to take care of Fiona during his many and long absences, and insists on sending her to one of the most prestigious private schools, where the offspring of the rich and famous send their children. 

 Fiona obviously doesn’t fit in at school, or anywhere in LA.   She is naturally shy and reserved, and at school, she is perceived as an unsophisticated lower class rube, and her values are considered quaint and irrelevant to their culture and times. 

Her father Alex is crazy-busy with his career, and initially has trouble relating to Sofia, in part because he is in a long standing relationship with Mandy, a beautiful and narcissistic model and aspiring actress, with plans of marrying Alex. Mandy sees Sofia’s sudden arrival in Alex’s life, and Alex’s responsibilities toward her as a threat to her plans.  This of course puts Alex in a tough position.

Another key character is Alex’s sister Joan, who had been good friends with Aine during the window when Aine and Alex were lovers.  Joan lives near Alex and when Sofia arrives, Joan immediately bonds with Fiona and serves as Alex’s conscience throughout the book, taking care of Fiona when Alex drops the ball, and trying, usually unsuccessfully, to get Alex to come back down to earth and take care of his personal life.. 

This sets the stage for Alex to be pulled in multiple directions by 1. his growing attachment to and sense of obligations to Fiona.  2. by his very demanding career and responsibilities at work; 3. by Mandy who demands as much of his attention as she can get, and has no interest in supporting Sofia; and 4.by the reminders from Joan about what is important in life. 

 Alex is perhaps the most tragic character in the novel.  He seems to be essentially a man of good heart and character, who appreciates Fiona  as an extraordinary young woman, but who has let himself succumb to the siren song of wealth,  fame, power, and the allure of a beautiful young woman.  (Hard for this old man to be overly self-righteous in criticizing him….)  And Alex just doesn’t seem to know how to do what he senses he must, and still hold on to all those accoutrements and perks he enjys and feels he has earned from his success in Hollywood. . 

Meanwhile Fiona is simply trying to survive amidst all of this turmoils at home and in school.    Joan and Joan’s home are Fiona’s sanctuary from the pressures of the entitled kids at her school, and the tension at home – Alex’s distance and absences, and his relationship with Mandy.

And in the midst of all this,  a slowly blossoming puppy-love romance develops between Fiona and another outsider student at the school.  This young man – Joshua – also doesn’t fit the mold of the wealthy entitled child preparing to launch into the jet stream of Hollywood culture.  Joshua is a black African from South Africa who has qualities and talents that – like Fiona’s – are not recognized nor appreciated in the valley-girl social culture of their elite Academy.  The other kids at school, and Mandy, don’t particularly care for Joshua.

Obviously, with all this going on,   something has got to give – and it does.    

Catherine Ingram also told me that, in addition to being about conflicting values, she sees the book as “a story of the heart.”   I’d expand on that and say that it is about love in many of its guises.  Similar to Love in the Time of Cholera  which explored different dimensions of love in the context of early 20th century Cartagena, Colombia, we experience in A Crack in Everything some of the challenges and different dimensions of love in early 21st century LA.  There are obviously some overlaps, but also some striking differences, driven by these very different contexts.  In each case, we see how good, and not-so-good people respond to and deal with it. 

We find in A Crack in Everything compelling and believable characters, and her depictions of LA culture, Ireland, Alaska and other areas I’m familiar with rang very true. Well written, well researched and provocative.   Highly recommended.