Pineapple Street

As someone who grew up in a very WASP-y world, this title caught my attention, particularly because of the promise of multiple perspectives from inside and outside a family of means.

While the characters are given pretty rich detail, in many ways this feels more like a documentary – because it feels like you’re kept at arms-length, not necessarily knowing the characters’ motivations or truths, even what they look like.

But the dynamic is real. Insiders and outsiders. Protecting their own. Unwritten rules. Suffering in silence. Drinking their dinner. It’s a timely read as I work through some old family things, and I appreciated how all the loose ends were tied up, but in the end, this could have had more oomph.