Ponder Post: The Magician's Assistant

As I prepare for visits from all my kids and grandkids for part of a week in mid-June and anticipate a vacation with friends in Seattle in mid-July, I came across this timely quote from Gretchen Rubin's happiness blog.

What we want out of a vacation changes as we age. It changes from vacation to vacation ... I think the best vacation is the one that relieves me of my own life for a while and then makes me long for it again. - Ann Patchett, "Do Not Disturb," in "This is the Story of a Happy Marriage".

How much more appropriate a pair of vacations is there than to be joyfully exhausted by the visits of family followed by a reunion with college friends? I wanted to read the rest of the source of this quote but, alas, I am on the waiting list at my local library for Story of a Happy Marriage. It is the most recent work of author Ann Patchett so in the interim I investigated other books available at the library by the same author.

I came across the Magician's Assistant. I had seen this book in an airport terminal several years ago and did not buy it. The title had intrigued me then as did the cute cover photo of the paperback edition.

This is adorable. On the front of the hardcover edition is a very boring picture
of a glamorous woman that would have never caught my attention.

Either the book had been too expensive or I'd already had enough to carry/read. I vaguely recalled having placed it on my mental to-read list so I checked it out of my local library this week and read it within 2-3 days. It was very engaging and I enjoyed it very much – except for the ending. The beginning is great. The book opens with

PARSIFAL IS DEAD. That is the end of the story.

No spoiler here. You know from the start that this is the story of a recently widowed woman, named Sabine, whose husband was a magician and she, his assistant. After his death Sabine discovers that his past life, before she was with him, is as much a mystery as were his magic tricks. She sets out to learn more about this man who has been a integral part of her life for over twenty years and who she loves very, very deeply. It is a love story and a mystery rolled into one.

I loved the characters Ann Patchett portrays and the way she tells the story in dream sequences part of the time. Some reviewers claimed that a few of her characters were insultingly stereotypical but I did not agree. In terms of characters, though, I wish I had understood more about Sabine herself. She was a very intelligent, hard-working, talented, beautiful woman, and although her magician husband was unique, unique does not mean irresistible in my opinion, and I never understood just why she loved him so deeply. Almost all of the book was great but I was befuddled by the ending. Could this ending have been intentional, like the trick of a magician that is supposed to leave you scratching your head when it is over?

Isn't this a cool photo? Just how did he do that?

Would  I recommend you read this book? Yes. Why? Because it is told in a very absorbing way that draws you in. It has some tense scenes – scenes where you'll find yourself really caring and concerned about the outcome for the characters involved.  There is one other reason you should read this book. I desperately need someone to discuss the ending with me!