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| Plot Summary of Spadework |
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"Set in the times of Kosovo and the Clinton-Lewinsky scandal, the novel describes about a month in the life of the Kincaids. Jane and her husband Griff work in the theatre business in Stratford, Ontario. Jane does props while Griff is a budding actor. Griff gets into a homosexual relationship with his director so that he can prevent losing the good parts for next year's Stratford Theatre festival. He hides this relationship from his wife, resulting in his gradual withdrawal from the family, his wife alcohol abuse, and his son's mental damage. Jane searches for the truth, thinking that there is another woman, but develops a crush on the Bell Telephone repair man. The novel describes the mental turmoil of all parties as the Kincaid family falls apart."
Shawn Vaillancourt, Resident Scholar
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"In Stratford, Ontario, Canada, a gardener accidentally cuts a telephone cable, disrupting telephone service and interlinking several lives. As a result of the accident, theatre actor Griffin Kincaid finds himself sexually blackmailed. His wife Jane finds her marriage threatened not only by her husband's strange behavior, but also by her own obsessive desire for the handsome but mysterious telephone company repairman who arrives to fix the problem. The accident prevents a troubled young man from reaching help, resulting in a brutal murder. Throughout four months in the summer of 1998, a marriage is threatened and a murder mystery is resolved with tragic consequences. Findley's work is intriguing and accessible. The four interwoven plot lines are clear and easy to follow, and the reader is swept into the stormy lives Findley depicts. The novel also presents an interesting and insightful view of the theatre world.
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A. Antonow, Resident Scholar
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| Review Analysis of Spadework |
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Our unique search engine provides a wealth of detail about books by breaking them down into many different literary elements, all of which are searchable (click here).
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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot
Tone of book?
- thoughtful
Time/era of story
- 1980's-1999
Romance/Romance Problems
Yes
Kind of romance:
- playing footsy while inconveniently married
- rekindling lost love/marriage
Life of a profession:
- actor
Kind of sex:
- two guys doing it
Is this an adult or child's book?
- Adult or Young Adult Book
Job/Profession/Status story
Yes
Taboo sex story?
Yes
Main Character
Gender
- Female
Profession/status:
- artist
Age:
- 20's-30's
Eccentric/Mental
Yes
Eccentric:
- emotionally unstable
Is this an ordinary person caught up in events?
Yes
Ethnicity/Nationality
- White (American)
How sensitive is this character?
- sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor
- Strong but gentle sense of humor
Intelligence
- Average intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
Physique
- average physique
Main Adversary
Identity:
- none
- Male
Age:
- 40's-50's
Profession/status:
- actor/actress/producer
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in:
- a moderate amount
How sensitive is this character?
- hard edged
Sense of humor
- Cynical sense of humor
Intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
Physique
- very athletic
Setting
How much descriptions of surroundings?
- 5 (an average amount)
The Americas (not US):
Yes
The Americas:
- Canada
City?
Yes
Small town?
Yes
Style
Person
- mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death?
- no torture/death
- generic/vague references to death/punishment
Sex in book?
Yes
What kind of sex:
- vague references
- descript. of female anat. (the big B's)
- descript. of nude males (the big P)
- male homosexuals doing their thing
Unusual Style:
- a lot of flashback and forwards
- No single main character?
Amount of dialog
- roughly even amounts of descript and dialog
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Note: the views expressed here are only those of the reviewer(s). | |
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