The Secret History

A big thanks is in order to Amanda Ridings for 1) relentlessly recommending this book to me and everyone you know and 2) purchasing and gifting it to me during our visit to Strands Bookstore in New York to make sure I read it. Your recommendations never let me down.

Author:

Donna Tartt was born in “the most southern place on Earth,” the Mississippi Delta, and it is known as such for all the reasons that nickname may bring to mind. Tartt modeled the main character of The Secret History’s father after her own in some way as they were both service station owners. Tartt’s mother was a secretary with a pension for reading while driving. It could be that this early influence toward books is what led her to write her first poem at the age of 5 and achieve her first published work by age 13. As a freshman at the University of Mississippi, Tartt was called a genius by famous writer Willie Morris who later recommended she be enrolled in a graduate student writing course taught by Barry Hannah, a famous novelist. After impressing Hannah enough for him to call her a “literary star,” Morris and other mentor-like figures suggested she transfer to Bennington College in Vermont to study classics. This is where Tartt met Bret Easton Ellis and other up-and-coming writers. It was after she graduated that she published The Secret History with The Little Friend and The Goldfinch each following about ten years after the previous. Tartt seemingly enjoys living beyond the reach of the spotlight. In 2002, it was reported that she was living between New York City and a property she bought in Virginia, but there are other reports stating that she spent time in Boston and France as well.

Learn more about the author below:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donna_Tartt

Three words to describe this read:

Entertaining- Though there are seemingly slower parts of the story, even those don’t dull your desire to continue reading and figure out the ending. Tartt has a beautiful way of writing that keeps the reader interested even if the actual content isn’t groundbreaking.

Devastating- Without giving too much away, the end of the story will break your heart in some way or another. Tartt does a great job of leading the reader through these events while still pointing out the hidden beauty within them.

Thought-provoking- Once I finished the book, I found myself thinking back on a lot of details in the story that seemingly turned to dead ends. It would be foolish to think that Tartt made a point of including certain pieces that went nowhere, so I can’t help but wonder if she was trying to distract readers from the main point, or if there are deeper meanings to smaller events in the story that I have yet to put together. In the best way, this feels like a book I will think about often and likely read again.

Quote:

“But even that day, there on the porch with Charles beside me and the smell of wood smoke in the air, it had the quality of a memory; there it was, before my eyes, and yet too beautiful to believe.”

This is what I love about Tartt's writing and really any writing that can validate an unidentified feeling. Even though I never would have been able to describe it, I've felt this before; this feeling that what you're seeing right in front of you, plain as day isn't real. The memory of the event feels much more real than the ability to register it as it happens. It's easier to marvel at the fact that it happened than recognize its magnificence in the moment.