Book Review: The Goldfinch

Pulizer Prize Winner and #1 Bestseller The Goldfinch Was Well Worth the Wait

By Catherine Groves

Thirteen-year-old Theo Decker loves his mother but doesnt recognize the depth of his love until shes gone. After her tragic death, Theo goes to live with the family of a wealthy friend. Although appreciative of the kindness this family has shown him, Theo cannot embrace his new life on Park Avenue, nor can he even begin to communicate with his new friends. His constant grief and remembrance of the explosion he survived, create a black hole from which he sees no escape. The only thing that gives Theo any consolation is a small, mysterious painting of his mothers called The Goldfinch. It is this painting which begins to shape his destiny, and pull him into the underworld of art.

With The Goldfinch in Theos care, his life becomes one of shootouts, gangsters, and the black-market for art. His teenage years find him being a young man of whom he knows his mom would not be proud. Theo finds some solace in Greenwich Village with a gifted restorer of antique furniture, who shows Theo great kindness. From there he lands in a quite foreign Las Vegas, where he meets the young outlaw, Boris.

Pulsing with emotions, Tartt gives an intricate dialogue of the deepest of sorrow and survival, yet at the same time, captivates with chilling action. The Goldfinch is yet another reason to love Donna Tartt; her prose so full of dignity; her characters radiating with life; the drawing of joy and heartache in a single sentence. Tartt weaves a tale of many layers.

Donna Tartt is also the author of The Secret History and The Little Friend.

The Goldfinch can be found at most major bookstores, and can also be purchased on Kindle and Nook.