Gain

By: Richard Powers

Narrated by: Elisabeth Rodgers

Gain braids together two stories on very different scales. In one, Laura Body, divorced mother of two and a real estate agent in the small town of Lacewood, Illinois, plunges into a new existence when she learns she has ovarian cancer. In the other, Clare & Company, a soap manufacturer begun by three brothers in 19th-century Boston, grows over the course of a century and a half into an international consumer products conglomerate based in Laura's hometown.

Clare's stunning growth reflects the kaleidoscopic history of America; Laura Body's life is changed forever by Clare. The novel's stunning conclusion reveals the countless invisible connections between the largest enterprises and the smallest lives.

©1998 Richard Powers (P)2018 Recorded Books

Disappointing

I have very much enjoyed Richard Powers' books, especially Playground, Bewilderment, and Overstory; this one not so much. I listened for an hour or so. Perhaps if I had given it longer the story would have appealed. It was long on static and descriptive prose, albeit with interesting elements and metaphors, but so little action by the characters. I decided there are so many books to read/listen to that I didn't want to expend any more effort on this one. Oh well.