I am in the midst of writing my full review of Tayari Jones’ Kin (will be publishing it in early June) as our official Magpie Book Club discussion piece, but I know a lot of us are itching to talk Yesteryear now, and I wanted to get the conversation rolling.
I finished Yesteryear in a fever dream in under 48 hours — I can’t remember the last time I’ve binged something so intensely. The writing is gripping, biting, vociferous. The animus both within and behind this book are intense; I don’t normally like to hang out in that octave, but the unhinged, spiky pace, charioted by truly propulsive prose, locked me in. There is a scene in the second half of this book where an animal trap snaps the protagonist’s ankle: an apt metaphor for the way this book held me. It was painful, snap-and-snarl reading!
At the beginning of the book, I found the critique of aestheticized domesticity, and the industry that supports “tradwives” in their performance of it, riveting. Burke writes in such a way that we are not so much waiting for the mask slip (as we might be while watching a video of the protagonist performing her life from the outside in) as we are watching the protagonist construct and fine-tune the mask. That behind-the-scenes look at the motives and methods is both fascinating and disturbing. But as the book continued, I found the singularity of the protagonist’s story, the way she grapples with her identity, her religion, her upbringing, her marriage, her dark view of the world, and especially her motherhood, overwrote some of the “meta” critique Burke seemed to be angling for. I found myself — sad. I found myself worrying about the dark headspace and heavy thoughts that appeared to sluice themselves through the protagonist’s mind. I found myself sick over the treatment of her children, and sick over her…how to characterize it? Her misguidedness? Her vitriol? Her mental unwellness? Her desperation? Mainly, I couldn’t wait to exit at the other end of the tunnel.
I found the mechanics of the second half of the book narratively confusing. I can’t tell if I’m being willfully resistant to metaphor or if I need to just let the book’s imaginative arc exist as it is, but I felt that the novel’s realism in certain parts complicated the unhinged middle section of the book. I still can’t quite understand how she went from the day Shannon left into some time warp where she woke up disoriented and couldn’t unpack what had happened. Were we meant to take this at face value, as in, she straight-up time traveled (fast-forwarding to her second set of children and forgetting how she got there)? Were we meant to think she’d had some kind of mental break? Or was it just a convenient plot device? Was it a big “watch what you wish for” deus ex machina moment? No matter which path we travel here, things feel unsettled. Maybe this is OK. This is a book that reads like a tilt-a-whirl anyway. But I found her children’s (the second set of children’s) responses to her entry into “yesteryear” strange. They seemed almost resigned to it, as in “this happens sometimes” — but this is never fully resolved. And Old Caleb’s shocking violence toward her — while he is villainous in other ways throughout the book — felt out of suit at that moment. It was almost as if Burke descended into some sort of nightmarish hall of mirrors place for that section without fully reconciling how it related to the rest of the plot. Was she dragging us into the worst possible outcome of wishing for a life of “yesteryear”? I couldn’t put it together, but it was ugly nonetheless. I started to have the sense that Burke just wanted to see the protagonist punished as violently as she could. And that in turn made me feel uneasy.
I think in the end the book does an incredible job of asking us what it means to perform, and of mucking around in patterns of thought that in certain contexts can be beautiful (religion, motherhood, dedication to family) and in others can be bent towards darkness and divisiveness. I was particularly disturbed by the protagonist’s mother’s talk about re-centering herself by imagining she is performing for God, or by considering God her constant audience. This is, I think, true on some level to me, but the artifice of it, the way the protagonist laminates that kernel into something unwholesome and hateful — yikes.
All in all, this book is worth the buzz. Burke is a tremendously talented writer and I loved the novelty of it. I’m delighted by the story of a first time author catapulting to the top of the bestseller list — and especially one who attended my own alma mater (UVA). Wow! At the same time, I felt uncomfortable on a soul level with the animus that governs the characters and the writing; it was difficult for me to process. There is a point in the novel where the protagonist observes that her biggest detractors are in fact her biggest and most loyal “fans” and I couldn’t help but see a trace of that in the authorship of this book. (All judgment is confession?) What did you think?
Next in My TBR.
+Currently reading Maine Characters on the rec of many Magpie readers — a much needed palate cleanser. More great beach reads for the summer here.
+Cannot wait for: Ann Patchett’s Whistler (releasing June 2). This will be our June book club pick. The owner of Wonderland Books received an advanced copy and absolutely raved about it. She said she hadn’t loved Tom Lake but this felt like a return to Ann Patchett core. Cannot wait.
+If you’re looking for more another buzzy, juicy memoir-ish read in the same general vicinity of Belle Burden’s Strangers and Burke’s Yesteryear, try Lena Dunham’s Famesick.
+If you’re looking for something gentler: The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion.
+BRAD rec (beach read after dark, a la Katie’s coinage): Elsie Silver’s latest cowboy romance!
Shopping Break.
+Loving these new statement pants, this blockprint dress (Doen vibes), this striped blouse (Staud inspired), and this fab shell from J. Crew’s latest crop of new arrivals. And don’t miss the nautical sweaters — this cardigan, this rollneck!
+OMG, if you got yourself a sailboat sweater, your little one needs this!!! ADORABLE.
+Eby just relaunched its lace bralettes — apparently these sell through with each relaunch. I’m ordering one to try given how much I absolutely adore the other bras in their line. Comfort first.
+Helix’s Mem Day sale is still ongoing! We just received our mattress for the guest bedroom along with their cooling pillows.
+Sale standout! 50% off a fabulous striped caftan.
+While we’re talking breezy stripes, how incredible is this ditty?
+My friend Mackenzie recommended this inexpensive gingham workout set, and…I love it! The fit is surprisingly good. Almost like a swimsuit material, super flattering and high-waisted. I wore it while doing some Melissa Wood Health videos outside this morning. Exercising outside makes it, like, 50% more enjoyable — lol. Reminder that they gave us 33% off with code JENSHOOP5. (And don’t forget the padded mat! Truly love this thing. Makes working on the flagstone patio possible and pleasant.)
+Always drawn to rich chocolate brown patterns — how great is this Me+Em for tucking into white shorts? (Also comes in a gorgeous dress variation.)
+Love the crisp poplin pintucking on this dress.
+These tailored shorts in the cocoa stripe.
+A great nautical striped lounge pant. Also love the options on this cotton tee — the ringer style, the stripes!
+Mother released their white kick flare jeans (a bestseller) in a petite inseam.
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