Beautiful Ruins

By Jess Walter; 372 pages; Harper; 2013
Reviewed by Sharon Stasiowski, April 4, 2020

I just finished reading "Beautiful Ruins" by Jess Walton. I tried to write a review earlier but couldn't put into words what I thought. Then I started a new book "Varina" by Charles Frazier and it became clear what I should say. “Beautiful Ruins” has interesting and entertaining characters. It begins in Italy in 1962 during the time "Cleopatra" was filming in Rome and goes back and forth between time periods involving different characters and how their stories all intertwine. I cared about these people from the beginning and enjoyed reading this book very much. I have a rule that I have to read 100 pages of a book before I give up on it. I am on page 65 of “Varina” and I think I am about to break my rule. It is a difficult slog. Sometimes I don't know what the author is trying to say, he doesn't use plain English and when I am reading fiction, I want the story to carry me along, I don't want to have to reread a paragraph several times to figure it out. This is the story of Jefferson Davis' wife, Varina. It begins in 1906 and goes back and forth between time periods as does “Beautiful Ruins.” But there the similarities end. And so far, I am not at all interested in Varina. I did finish "Cold Mountain," also by Charles Frazier, but it was never one I would recommend. We'll see how this one goes. I'll make one more attempt today and perhaps get to page 100. If not, I will just remember the lives of the people of “Beautiful Ruins” and move on to my next book.

My favorite coronavirus joke:
Twenty years ago we had Johnny Cash, Bob Hope, and Steve Jobs. Now we have no cash, no hope and no jobs.
Please God, don't let Kevin Bacon die!