A GATE AT THE STAIRS

Lorrie Moore's new novel, for which fans have waited more than 10 years, is a lyrical and edgy examination of growing up American. In it, we follow Tassie, a Midwestern college student, through the joys, tribulations, and all-out strangeness of being 20. Moore, a poet, has Tassie tell her own story in a voice that, like many English majors, is both naive and self-consciously elegiac. Narrator Mia Barron reads unhurriedly, emphasizing the eloquence of the words. This sounds just as Tassie might sound reading it aloud to herself, proud of the beauty of the text. While this irritates occasionally, it also seems right, and makes this an interesting novel read intriguingly and well. A.C.S. © AudioFile 2009, Portland, Maine [Published: OCTOBER 2009]