The Little Friend

Donna Tartt

I finished The Little Friend over this past weekend and I essentially agree with the Jeanies (with any number of Ns in the name ;-) I did think it substantially different from The Secret History and wondered if that's the basis of some of the negative customer reviews on Amazon. I thought Secret History a psychological exploration that was steeped in atmosphere and The Little Friend, by contrast, is a coming of age story of sorts -- a very intricately woven account of a precocious young girl who attempts to unravel the circumstances surrounding her brother's death at a very young age. It reminded me more of Atonement (although different in structure) - and also of Owen Meany in a very specific way - than Secret History.

I didn't object to the book's length nor did I think it would have benefited from more aggressive editing. I thought the detail that Tartt included was part of the book's appeal and I don't think it would have been nearly as effective were the reader not afforded the benefit of that information. I'd recommend it - and rated it a 4.