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This is an exasperating book! Before Marcuse finally decides to write the story, a reader must endure numerous descriptions of unimportant (to the story) minutiae about The Neighborhood. While the story takes place in one of New York City's more interesting neighborhoods (one of the most culturally diverse in New York, therefore, in the world), Marcuse's seemingly endless of descriptions of the locale and of its flora disrupted my attempts to concentrate on the story. On the other hand, her many references to plants does constitute a strong metaphor for Anita's grappling with the life and (especially) death issues she encounters as a social worker. Marcuse's description of Anita's working the garden soil as her dying cancer-riddled friend Barbara watches, is quite moving. This metaphorical contrast of people who both want and are able to die, with a person who wants to live, but knows she is doomed is very effective. It is made more so by the image of plants pushing through the dirt in a New York City alley garden, managing to survive in an unexpected and quite hostile environment. Barbara's strength is thus contrasted with the weakness of those suicides who still were capable of living. In her new job as a social worker, Anita Servi is soon thrust into a milieu in which, people are, seemingly, committing suicide. Susan Wu, supposed to be her new boss, turns up dead on the day that Anita is to be hired. As we read, we discover that numerous ill, elderly people served by her agency, Neighbors Helping Neighbors (NAN), have recently committed suicide. Anita is psychologically incapable of not investigating why about a dozen of NAN's clients have recently committed suicide, and why Susan, not elderly and, so far as she knows, in good health, also appears to be a suicide. As she gets drawn further into her investigation, the reader is also drawn into the story. One of my problems with this book is that the story just took too long to grab my interest. The first 100 pages or so are replete with diverting and, to me, prosaic descriptions that are too long with too much detail. As I read, I thought, "Too many Creative Writing classes!" Adding to my boredom, the main characters are not all that interesting, despite their rather off-beat careers for New Yorkers. I found the cliche of the amateur sleuth who happens to find a dead body in an unexpected place somewhat annoying. However, it is a cliche just because it works so well. So I guess this is more a comment about me than the book. Anita Servi adopts people. From her full of life, nine year old (soon to be) adopted daughter, Clea, to her dying friend, Barbara. These people appear to fill a void in her life as a social worker. She can connect emotionally with these people, something she cannot do in her professional relationships. Anita keeps reminding herself (and the reader) that social workers must not be judgmental, nor be too emotionally close to their clients. This is a real problem for someone who consciously decides to be in a caring profession. The story starts with Anita's emptiness, symbolized by her unemployment, to which she returns at the story's end. I am afraid that this metaphor is apt. I found this book leaving me empty, too. Ultimately, this is an unsatisfying book.
Reviewed by Howard S. Passel, July 2002
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