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All That Matters |  |
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All That Matters | |
Jan Goldstein's stunning debut novel, All That Matters, is a deeply moving, endearing tale of a young woman who, with the help of her feisty grandmother, makes a journey from the very brink of death and despair into a full embrace of life.
Jennifer Stempler has nothing left to lose: the love of her life dumped her, her mother died in a senseless car accident five years ago, and her famous Hollywood producer father started a brand-new family -- with no room in it for her. So, 23-year-old Jennifer decides to pursue peaceful (permanent) oblivion on the beach near her home in Venice, California, drifting on a lethal combination of Xanax and tequila. But she can't even get that right.
Jennifer's depression is no match for her Nana's determination. Gabby Zuckerman refuses to let her granddaughter self-destruct. With promises made to Jennifer's father and doctors, Gabby whisks Jennifer back to her home in New York City, intending to prove to Jennifer that her life cannot possibly be over yet. In fact, it has just begun. Through jaunts in Central Park to road trips to Maine, Gabby teaches Jennifer how to trust and hope again. And by relating her own tragic and heroic experience during the Nazi occupation of Poland, Gabby bestows upon Jennifer an understanding of her own life's value. But when Gabby reveals a secret -- one that proves to be Jennifer's toughest challenge yet -- Jennifer struggles to find out whether the gift will sustain her.
Combining the unabashedly heartwarming sentiment of Robert James Waller's The Bridges of Madison County or Nicholas Sparks's Message in a Bottle with the irreverent humor of Jennifer Weiner's In Her Shoes, Goldstein's All That Matters is an inspirational first novel that leads readers to the core of what matters in life -- family, hope, and savoring each moment.
作者简介 Jan Goldstein is an award-winning poet and playwright and the author of two works of nonfiction. He lives with his wife and their family in Los Angeles.
媒体推荐 ". . . Goldstein gives us a gift that lightens the heart, lifts the soul, and takes us on a journey of wonderment." -- Barry Kibrick, host of the PBS author series Between the Lines
". . . a compelling, deeply moving story of love, friendship, family, and second chances." -- Kristin Hannah
". . . leads the reader through our own emotional maze . . . through the characters, we learn the true meaning of embracing . . . life." -- Marianne Williamson
"An uplifting story of the generations, exploring that special bond between grandchild and grandparent." -- Faye Kellerman
"Miraculous. This life-affirming, heartbreaking, disarmingly funny first novel will be the best cry of the year." -- Richard Carlson
编辑推荐 Destined to be a sure-fire weeper, All that Matters by Jan Goldstein is, nonetheless, a good story about a lost young woman and her aged grandmother, both of whom have scores to settle with life, and a great deal to offer each other.
Jennifer Stempler has taken herself to Venice Beach to get lost in the crowd, ingest enough Xanax and tequila to do herself in, and simply lie down and die. Instead, the metal-combed beach sweeper stops just short of her inert form and her plan is foiled. Jennifer has, in her opinion, plenty of reasons to exit the planet. Her mother was killed while walking when she would have been driving if Jennifer hadn't taken the car--at her mother's insistence; her father, having left her and her mother years before, is now remarried to Ms. Beverly Hills Aerobics and the proud father of a baby girl; her long-time lover, her this-is-forever guy, ups and leaves. Everybody seems to be leaving, so why not her, reasons Jennifer.
Enter the quintessential Jewish grandmother, Gittel "Gabby" Zuckerman, Holocaust survivor and fearless old lady. She convinces Jennifer's pompous father and her Doctor to let Jennifer go to New York with her, instead of being locked up someplace, drugged senseless and asked to talk herself to pieces. One of the best parts of the book is the sendup Goldstein does of shrinks and their various party lines.
At the beginning of the book, Jennifer carries a camcorder everywhere: "It wasn't just about focus, Jennifer told herself. Recording events meant time could be stopped, played back, even erased." This metaphor is, unfortunately, never followed up, and it's a good one for what happens to Jennifer. The relationship between the two women, one with a life ahead of her, if she will only claim it, and the other with a life she will soon leave, flourishes as they learn from each other that what really matters is offering the gift of love. --Valerie Ryan
专业书评 From Publishers Weekly
In this sentimental, uplifting first novel by rabbi and self-help author Goldstein (Sacred Wounds; Life Can Be This Good), a suicidal young woman finds her bliss with the help of her grandmother, a Holocaust survivor. At 23, Jennifer thinks there's little to live for: her mother is dead, her Hollywood-producer father is busy with his picturesque new family, and her boyfriend has given her the boot. ("Phillip had been the white knight of her childhood fairy tales, the prince she long dreamed would rescue her from a life she had no wish to live.") Enter Gittel "Gabby" Zuckerman, to take Jennifer back with her to New York and make everything all right. Jennifer may not be particularly sympathetic or convincing as a depressive, but Gabby, for all her familiarity (twinkly eyes, "floating halo of white hair," indomitable spirit) is hard not to love. When she reveals to Jennifer how she met her husband and escaped the Nazis in Poland, the story (though often told in fiction) transcends cliché and takes on some urgency. Elsewhere, there are clichés aplenty, but Goldstein unabashedly, effectively yanks readers' heartstrings—and some of them will love it.
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