The Biblio Blogazine

Testimony by Anita Shreve (2008)
Contemporary Fiction, 352 pages
Little, Brown and Company Reprint Edition (May 2009)

Review copy provided by Hachette Book Group

Advisory: Scenes of a sexual nature and strong language.

I won’t try to gloss this story over or say that it isn’t what it sounds like after reading the synopsis. It is exactly what they say…and more. In fact, there really is no need to give you a lengthy synopsis, here it is one simple sentence that gives you an ample idea of what you are about to read:

Enter a world upended by the repercussions of a single impulsive action.

I would change just one thing about the above though. The main plot is about that “single impulsive action”, but there are other actions taken that contribute to the ultimate one, which when put together combust and then consume all those involved.

Another key word mentioned on the back cover is “shame”. And there is plenty to go around. But it isn’t shame that makes this novel stand out to me. Blame and guilt are the two emotions most prevalent and powerful. These two words devastate all who feel them, use them, and abuse them.

Blame is what we do when we cannot accept responsibility for our actions or are unable to accept the faults of others and offer forgiveness. Or, like the media, use them to fan the flames that just make matters worse, not allowing cooler heads to prevail and make sense of what is happening, and to do what they can to mitigate as much damage as possible.

In Testimony, some are forever shattered, one fatally. Others seem to recover, but with scars that will remain as a reminder no matter how hard they try to hide them.

…I am amazed that we didn’t have any shame. I don’t know where the shame went. I guess the alcohol takes it away. I guess that’s the point of drinking, to take all the feelings and thoughts and morals away until you are just a body doing what a body will do.

A single impulsive action. Life is made up of these moments. It is how we react to them that makes the difference, if we survive them or not, if they change us forever – or not.

Anita Shreve writes of a difficult subject and handles it well, weaving us in and out of the minds of those affected. Having them tell us the story from their point of view. Here is where the reader may falter. Each person is given a chapter and a voice. Sometimes it is in the first person. Others, second or third. When asked about this the author explains:

Originally I started writing…from the headmaster’s point of view alone, and I realized fifty pages into it that he is not privy to certain bits of information that are critical. And I began to think about the play The Laramie Project and Faulkner’s As I Lay Dying…So I thought that taking each person who had been affected…and giving him or her a voice, would be a better way to tell the story.

The author also likes to use long sentences, but I never felt them to be overly used or misused.

There was a kind of seizure then in Mike’s chest as he suddenly, from a different part of his brain, received alarming and unwanted information not unlike an air traffic controller watching several blips on his radar screen inexplicably about to collide.

Initially, I thought about formatting this review much differently. There is a Reading Group Guide included in the back and I had entertained the idea of answering some of the questions instead of what you see above. However after reading the book, and being left with some strong emotions, I couldn’t

Part of problem is that I comprehend what I read using my own set of perceptions and a societal model formed by my upbringing and education. What I get out of a story may not be the same as anyone else. This was the case when I read the questions in the back. They are excellent discussion starters, but none of them coincided with what I wanted to express to you in this review. My mind had other ideas so I acquiesced and wrote the review you see here.

How to rate this? This book is a difficult read, or will be to some; not only because of its format, but for its content. I have to be honest, I couldn’t put it down. And when I did, it never left me. It still hasn’t. For this reason, I am giving it 5 out of 5 stars.

As a bonus, here are some links that will introduce you to the book and the author.

OpenBook™ Excerpt
Listen to an excerpt
Download a Podcast
Watch the author talking about the book

Anita Shreve