A Dangerous Woman

ANNOTATION
Martha Horgan is different. She stares at people. She can't stop telling the truth. She is prone to crushes so violent that she will call someone she likes dozens of times in a single night. The genius of Mary McGarry Morris's latest novel lies in its uncannily felt portrait of a woman who teeters on the edge of madness.
FROM THE PUBLISHER
Martha Horgan is not like other women. She stares. She has violent crushes on people. She can't stop telling the truth. Martha craves love, independence, and companionship, but her relentless honesty makes her painfully vulnerable to those around her: Frances, her wealthy aunt and begrudging guardian; Birdy, who befriends her, then cruelly rejects her; and Colin Mackey, the seductive man who preys on her desires. Confused and bitter, distrusting even those with her best interests at heart, Martha is propelled into a desperate attempt to gain control over her own life.
FROM THE CRITICS
Publishers Weekly
This second novel corroborates the remarkable talent McGarry displayed in Vanished , her stunning story of a child kidnapped by two misfits. Here again her protagonist is a woman who is not ``normal,'' 32-year-old, emotionally unstable Martha Horgan. Neither Martha nor her small Vermont town have recovered from an incident in Martha's teens when she was sexually humiliated by a group of boys; ``that night in the woods'' is the leitmotif of her life. Now universally known as ``Marthorgan,'' achingly aware that she is different but unable to govern her inappropriate behavior, Martha is handicapped by an outspoken candor unfettered by tact or guile. Having lost her only job and the benevolent attention of the kindhearted woman who hired her, Martha is obliged to return to the home of her aunt, the young widow of the town's richest citizen, who grudgingly assumes responsibility for her high-strung niece. When a seedy, erratic but charming boozer comes on the scene, Martha's uncontrollable sexual longing and the aftermath of her obsessive love breed inevitable tragedy. McGarry's portrayal of Martha's damaged psyche is unerringly empathetic, honest and compassionate. She turns the same clear-sighted eye on the book's other characters, a richly human mixture, and even the less admirable sometimes redeem themselves with thoughtfulness toward the self-destructive Martha. In the end, as Martha falls through the safety net her impaired condition requires, the community confronts its culpability in failing to provide emotional succor. In this compelling, suspenseful narrative, Morris speaks to larger issues while limning an unforgettable portrait of a vulnerable woman. 50,000 first printing; $50,000 ad/promo; BOMC selection; movie rights to Am blin Entertainment; author tour. (Jan.) .
Library Journal
Martha Horgan, the emotionally disabled protagonist, was gang-raped as a teenager; now, 15 years later, her life is finally flowing smoothly. She has moved away from her cold, domineering aunt and has a job at the cleaners, a room in a boarding house, even a worshipful admirer in Wesley Mount, the town mortician. But someone has been stealing from the till and ``Marthorgan,'' as her taunters call her, gets canned. Back at her aunt's place she is seduced by the caretaker, a frustrated, manipulative writer, and then must suffer through his affair with her aunt. What makes Martha a dangerous woman is her unfailing honesty; she hasn't learned the world's way of lying, of hiding behind a social mask. At one point Birdy, her friend, tries on Martha's glasses to see if she really does view the world differently. Though the subject matter is somber, Morris tells a powerful tale. Her first novel ( The Waiting Room, LJ 5/15/89) was a National Book Award and a PEN/Faulkner nominee. Recommended. Previewed in Prepub Alert, LJ 9/15/90.-- Doris Lynch, Oakland P.L., Cal.
AudioFile - Michael Ollove
Martha Horgan, the central figure in Morris’s deeply affecting second novel, is an endlessly exasperating character. Suffering a mental illness that is never defined, she yearns for love and human connections yet is incapable of fathoming how to fulfill those needs. Surrounded by people who are themselves selfish, self-absorbed or uncaring, Martha’s possibilities for happiness are dim indeed. In a heartbreaking and intelligent performance, Phimister conveys the depths of Martha’s desire and her frustrations at deciphering the nature of others. Phimister’s clipped voice captures the tortured young Vermont woman’s vulnerability, as well as the brittleness that intimidates those around her. As the story proceeds, the sense of impending calamity for a character you have come to like becomes almost unbearable. M.O. ©AudioFile, Portland, Maine

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Found at the Senior Center library

Very stressful and dark but also well done!

RELEASE NOTES:

RE-released back at the senior center..