[.ca] Reproduction is the Flaw of Love (ISBN 038533771X)

The next new new BIG thing - watch out besteseller list:
To say this novel is simple is reductive...and yet it is simple. Simple in premise "man goes out for a pregnancy test" simple, but so layered in meaning and raw existential thought that you can't help but think of Proust's Remembrance of things past..."man eats a piece of cake." And yet Reproduction reminds me (thankfully!) more of Hornby's High Fidelity than of Proust, The way that Grodstein grabs on to the reader from the beginning, and sends us down a path of remembrance.,,particularly sexual remembrance,,,it has Hornby's edginess with just hints of language that in this day even Proust might've been proud of. The only problem I see with the novel is that with our deep investment in the radiant players we get to the end confused about what we think is the solution,,,what should we want to happen,,,do we want her to be preganant? Do we want Miller to want chocolate again? Or will he setlle for bread, And if bread has a baby, what would those little tiny muffins taste like? Would you taste the muffins at all, or would you just have to live with all of them in the hell of a single kitchen (sans granite counter-top upgrades) you can barely afford? Grodstein;s novel ultimately asks the single most important question you can ask in a relationship,,,can circumstance govern your life? Should it? Or can you break free from what you;ve done if you feel it is going to change the course of your life entirely, And when she gives her answer, you get the greatest suprise of all: surprise that makes sense given the context,,,,not suprise for it;s own sake, but because of what it drives the rich, deep, characters to do, chose, feel, Abnd THAT is how you write a bestseller. Forget the Da Vinci Code or The Rule of Four...with their endless intellectual brain teasers, just wanting for something more, This one's the one to watch,,,only one puzzle...is she or isn;t she, and it keeps you captivated from page one,

The book proves the titleýs thesis:
This book, about a guy named Miller who reflects on his life and loves while his girlfriend waits for the results of a pregnancy test, has a catchy title. But to assume that it's about how the prospect of parenthood spoils all the fun of a relationship would be to trivialize it. Try this: the characters in this book - all of whom presumably were conceived in a moment that someone would describe as "love," are what's flawed. But then, aren't we all? And that's what makes this book so engrossing: because it's filled with real people experiencing the poignancy of ordinary existence. There are many books that thrill us with people and events way outside our frame of reference. This book moves us precisely because it has the ability to evoke in us real thoughts and emotions to which we can relate. And because, in the end, each of us knows that the ultimate adventure is life itself.

Obvious plot twists are the flaws of a good book:
This amusing, short, easy to read debut novel takes us into the head of a guy waiting for his girlfriend to take a pregnancy test. That head leads us back into his life, through his parents' failed but intriguing marriage, his best-friend's love life, a rich, beautiful ex-girlfriend and "The Great Gatsby" (paging Daisy, anyone?). The wry humor that fills the book (think of using gloves when handling baseball cards or arriving uninvited at a fabulous Hamptons house) makes up for a plot twist that you'll see coming. What is love? Security? Physical attraction? And why can't we love each other the same amount at the same time? And isn't one person's love enough? Occasionally the prose reaches for a false profundity, but overall it's a good, concise read.

A Wonderful First Novel:
I really can't say enough about this excellent, assured first novel. The story of a young man - Miller - in the longest hours of his life, Lauren Grodstein's "Reproduction is the Flaw of Love" treats issues of love and family with a deft touch, and a real feel for narrative. While Miller waits for the results of his girlfriend's pregnancy test, Grodstein moves seamlessly back-and-forth between his present agony, and the events leading up to it. From a purely prosaic standpoint, the novel is a textbook example of how to perform one of the most difficult tricks in storytelling: the framing sequence. Grodstein does it by firmly grounding Miller's present troubles, and declining the temptation to gild the memories of his troubled family or his enigmatic ex-girlfriend. It's a wonderful performance, moving and finely crafted. You should read it.