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    The Uses of Enchantment: A Novel
    The Uses of Enchantment: A Novel
    The Uses of Enchantment: A Novel
    Audiobook10 hours

    The Uses of Enchantment: A Novel

    Written by Heidi Julavits

    Narrated by Shelly Frasier

    3/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    In late afternoon on November 7, 1985, sixteen-year-old Mary Veal was abducted after field hockey practice at her all-girls New England prep school. Or was she?

    A few weeks later an unharmed Mary reappears as suddenly and mysteriously as she disappeared, claiming to have little memory of what happened to her. Her mother, concerned that Mary has somehow been sullied by the experience, sends her to therapy with a psychologist named Dr. Hammer. Mary turns out to be a cagey and difficult patient and Dr. Hammer begins to suspect Mary concocted her tale of abduction when he discovers its parallels with a seventeenth-century narrative of a girl who was abducted by Indians and later caused her rescuer to be hanged as a witch. Hammer, eager to further his professional reputation, decides to write a book about Mary's faked abduction, a project her mother sanctions because she'd rather her daughter be a liar than a rape victim.

    Fifteen years later, Mary has returned to Boston for her mother's funeral. Her abduction-real or imagined-has tainted many lives, including her own. When Mary finds a suggestive letter sent to her mother, she suspects her mother planned a reconciliation before her death. Thus begins a quest that requires Mary to revisit the people and places in her past.

    The Uses of Enchantment weaves a spell in which the power of a young woman's sexuality, and her desire to wield it, has a devastating effect on all involved. The riveting cat-and-mouse power games between doctor and patient, and between abductor and abductee, are gradually, dreamily revealed, along with the truth about what actually happened in 1985.

    Heidi Julavits is in full command of her considerable gifts, and has crafted a dazzling narrative sure to garner her further acclaim as one of the best novelists working today.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherTantor Media, Inc
    Release dateJan 1, 2007
    ISBN9781400173495
    The Uses of Enchantment: A Novel
    Author

    Heidi Julavits

    Heidi Julavits is the author of four critically acclaimed novels (The Vanishers, The Uses of Enchantment, The Effect of Living Backwards, and The Mineral Palace) and co-editor, with Sheila Heti and Leanne Shapton, of the New York Times bestseller Women in Clothes. Her fiction has appeared in Harper's Magazine, McSweeney's, and The Best American Short Stories, among other places. She's a founding editor of The Believer magazine and the recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship. She lives in Manhattan, where she teaches at Columbia University. She was born and raised in Portland, Maine.

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    Reviews for The Uses of Enchantment

    3/5

    12 ratings11 reviews

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    • 4/5
      I wanted this book to be better. I love Julavits' writing, and the plot outline is stunning. I believe the author takes on bigger plots than she can handle, and part of the theme of the book becomes the impossibility of living up to the plot's basic premise. Worthy but disappointing.
    • 5/5
      This is a review, a written assessment of a particular product—in this case a book—that is meant to highlight its strengths and inform others of its potential flaws. Reviews can be great: reviews can catch the attention of the consumers, they give tried and true evidence that a product is worth buying (or not buying). This is also the greatest flaw of a review. Send out a message again and again that a product is flawed and the consumers will stop buying, even if that product is truly great.I first came across The Uses of Enchantment seven years ago while shelving books at the library. The cover enticed me immediately. The appearance of a hole burnt in the dust jacket, the colors, the beautiful hair, the font (great work on the cover of this one, cover designer peoples!) The novel's description completely pulled me in. Then I noticed other books by the same author on the shelf, and I read their descriptions and I knew, right then, I had found a new favorite author.Except when I got home and added the book to my Goodreads there was a huge red flag: The Uses of Enchantment had a rating that was barely rising above 3.0. And Julavits' other books weren't doing much better. The reviews blasted the book; there were so many one to three star ratings. The reviews were peppered with phrases like “I hated this book” and “what a waste of time.” And so I did what any intelligent consumer would do—I put the book on my “I'll probably never read this, but I'll keep it on my shelf because it's so pretty” shelf. My putting aside this book had nothing to do with following the masses, it had to do with experience. When I look back at the books I have read which have the lowest overall ratings, I must say that I disliked most of them. Prior to The Uses of Enchantment, the only book with a rating less than 3.25 that I absolutely loved was Rowling's polarizing The Casual Vacancy. I had too many other “good” books to read to waste time on something I'd probably hate. Yet, that small voice of hope from seven years ago would nag at me occasionally, telling me I'd never know if I didn't give it a try. Finally, I gave in.I'm not quite sure why I finally decided to give The Uses of Enchantment a go, but I'm glad I did. The book was phenomenal. It's possible that my super low expectations buoyed the book considerably, but I don't believe so; I think I would've liked this novel regardless of the reviews. First of all, the prose is amazing. Julavits writes with such beauty. I was reminded of two other authors whose work I enjoy but who also receive many poor reviews: Hannah Pittard and Meg Wolitzer. Perhaps there is something in the style of these authors that repulses some readers, but whatever it is, I want more of it. When I ponder the negative comments of others, and the complaints I personally disagree with, I think mostly of comments about “how boring” these works are, how “nothing happens,” or how “unresolved” they are. I would agree that not much happens in these books, and in the case of Pittard's first novel the lack of “anything” happening was the only barrier to a five-star review, but I would argue that enough happens, especially in the characters themselves. And perhaps that is the distinction here. Are these novel's largely character and language driven? I would say, yes. Apparently too much so for many readers. Personally, I find novels with absolutely no plot boring as well, but light plot is acceptable. Add some great character development and some wonderfully spun sentences and I'm hooked.As far as the argument that The Uses of Enchantment is unresolved, I disagree. Does the reader get a clear answer as to what happened or didn't happen? No, not really. But I think it can be deduced what likely occurred, and this is good enough for me. Study the psychology of these characters, pay attention to this “wronged-woman project” the school participates in, and I think that not only does the “what might have happened” fall into place, but also the importance of it not mattering. The brilliance of the novel is in the not knowing. What about Dora? Mary is asking. What about Bettina Spencer? What about all of us women who have been wrongly accused? Does it matter if all our facts fall into line, or is it enough that we are simply hurting? That's what I walked away with anyhow. And I applaud Julavits for a well-orchestrated story.So, take it from me, kids. Ratings can good, but they also be a tool of the devil. I mean, come on, this poignant story of a confused adolescent girl is worth only 3.04 stars, but Twilight, a story about an adolescent girl who plays baseball with vampires because she's so disturbed, wracks up 3.56 stars? Heed the advice of a book snob: Ratings are of the devil!
    • 5/5
      I love this book, in particular the "what may have happened" sections, but also how it all ties together. Another thing that I like, is that when I picked it for the firts time I wasn't so sure if I was going to like it, I thought: "ok, once more the girl becomes a victim", but this was not the case at all (the same thing happened the first time I saw Juno, although they are quite different).Previous reviweres have mentioned that they liked better the earlier version of Mary, that she was more interesting. Which is true. Nevertheless, if Mary had grown up and continued to do the same things she did as a teenager, she'd be a completely different person (without empathy for anyone's feelings, needing to be always the centre of attention). Instead, she is atoning for her past actions, and is trying to go unnoticed. As her aunt says at some point: "you were a teenager, you didn't know that anyone else existed". This fact, that as she grows up she discovers that other people exist and that her actions have consequences, is what makes Mary human and somehow more well-balanced that some of the adults in the book, even if not as adventurous as her younger self.
    • 2/5
      The protagonist of this book was a little too steeped in her own neurosis. I got tired of her wondering about her mother's feelings for her before I could get into the rest of the story.
    • 2/5
      Uninspired and unimpressive. I understand why an author would wish to create tension by using an unreliable narrator -- and I was compelled to finish the book -- but overall it was very disappointing.
    • 4/5
      First, I have to say, reading an advance reader's copy, which is what I got as a present, is an odd experience. More typoes, less punctuation, some marks where numbers or addresses are to be entered later... it's a bit offputting, but I don't think it ruined the experience.This book was a fast read, but a good one, for the most part. The story advances along three tracks, one on the course of an abduction of sorts when the main character is 14, one on the course of psychological treatment a few months after the abduction, and one when the character is returning home for her mother's funeral a decade and a half later. The writing style for each of them is set off, so it's easy to tell whose section you're in.I won't give away much about the story, but the themes are strong: how you believe in the people around you, and the stories you tell each other and yourself. It's pretty strong in this regard, and it's an interesting take. I enjoyed a lot of it.The dialogue, too, is good and crisp, and the characters are fairly lively. There's a lot of good continuity stuff, as well, so a close reading, even if it is fast, does pay off. There's a lot going for this book.And yet, it just doesn't feel like it comes together enough; lots of stuff is mentioned offhand or hinted at that seems like it'd be important to hear more about, and it doesn't come in. I'm okay with leaving some stuff to happen offscreen, but I think that the book would have been better with it in. I don't want to say exactly what, but if you're curious, I can tell you individually later.The conclusion: worth reading, sure, but I'd maybe just borrow it.
    • 4/5
      The Uses of Enchantment, Heidi Julavits

      Not to be confused with Bruno Bettelheim’s with The Uses of Enchantment, which is stringently assertive in it’s psychoanalytical study of tales, fairy tales, and other folklore. There are some interesting comparisons to the two books.

      Heidi Julavits has created a book in three parts, twisted and mixed together in alternating chapters. It is the story of Mary Veal who is famous for being a girl who was purportedly kidnapped, molested, and released two months later. Cast in and around Boston, the book carries literal and symbolic references to Witch Trials and the hysteria that surrounded them.
      1- Initial and following segments are titled “What might have happened”.
      2- The next segments are notes from Dr. Hammer, her psychiatrist who interviews her and attempts to help her after she returns.
      3- The third are 14 years later, when Mary returns home for the funeral of her mother and tries to put all the pieces back together.

      In the opening of the book, we see Mary migrate to a car outside her school where a bored man has been watching the girls smoke cigarettes on numerous days. She climbs into his car and plays on his emotions and undercurrent of desire to get him to play along with her “abduction”. She is well read but average in most every other fashion.

      Following throughout are sessions with Dr. Hammer as he unravels her story and becomes obsessed with the fact that she may be lying about her abduction.

      By the end of the book I was pretty enthralled. The aptly titled “What may have happened” segments leave you unsure at the end of your POV and analyzing her yourself, looking for a gleam of fact behind her fairytale. Is she telling the truth, is she lying, is she telling the truth when she says she is lying? Maybe a little of all three.

      Freudian discussion spatters all of Dr. Hammers notes and make you wonder exactly how much of Freud is actually relevant today; whether his mastery was only meant to be a stepping stone in the psychoanalytical world instead of a pillar.

      There is an interesting character in this book named Roz. She is an all encompassing Feminist psychiatrist who drove her points home in any (verbally violent) way possible. She really shines as an antagonizing pain in the ass. Another poitedly Feminist character, the man who “abducts” Mary has a fair amount of talk on the subject too.

      All in all a well researched and very well written book.

      (Review originally published 11/28/07)
    • 2/5
      Hmmm. Well, this one ended up being a bit of a disappointment. It had a good premise--teenage girl may or may not have been abducted, read on to find out more--but the story ended up being confusing and ultimately a bit of a bore. None of the characters drew me into the story at all. Oh well. I guess not every novel with potential pans out. And who knows, the next reader may think this is a terrific psychological study. We'll see.Fair warning though. This is an ARC, and it doesn't look like the publishers even had time for one pass at copyediting before printing it for BEA.
    • 1/5
      US writer, novel, Salem, kidnapping, schoolgirl, books I didn't finish
    • 3/5
      At the start of Heidi Julavits' intriguing novel, 16-year old Mary Veal disappears from her private school one afternoon in 1985. Three weeks later, she reappears claiming to have little memory of what happened to her. In the months that follow, numerous psychiatrists attempt to discern whether Mary is a victim of abduction and rape or a liar who engineered her own disappearance for mysterious, sixteen-year old reasons. Julavits novel switches back and forth between a narrative entitled "What Might Have Happened" that speculates on the events of those lost weeks, notes from the analyst who treated Mary after her reappearance, and the story of 30-year old Mary's return home after the death of her estranged mother. Of these three threads, the first is by far the most compelling. Here Julavits masterfully teases apart the complex motivations that underlie the developing relationship between Mary and the strange man whose car she climbed into that fateful afternoon. Unfortunately, the other two narrative threads did not hold my attention to the same degree. 30-year old Mary just wasn't as compelling a character as her younger self, and her interactions with her bitchy sisters and other parts of her past dragged at times. While the analyst notes depicting the cat-and-mouse game Mary played with the therapist who was hoping to resurrect his career off of his theories about her were somewhat more interesting, they were also obscure and Freudian to a degree that I found maddening at times. I finished this book with a mixture of admiration and frustration. The underlying questions about identity, sexuality and repression in this story were fascinating to me, but I closed the book feeling unsatisfied. Though Mary finds resolution at the end of her tale, the author simply did not provide enough information about for me to feel the same.
    • 2/5
      Not at all as good as I expected. Was she kidnapped or is she just making it up; what did various therapists have to say about it; and who cares anyway.