Testimony

I haven't read all of Anita Shreve's books. I tend to shy away from most Oprah selected authors as I find their books to be too "happily ever after" in the face of true hardships. I was thrilled that this book was definitely not in that category.
Shreve opens her book with a bang - outlining the tragedies that have occurred as a result of actions at a boarding high school during a few shorts months. As the chapters rotate among the voices of various characters, we learn that one tragic night at the high school has caused shock waves that will last some for the rest of their lives. We also learn that the singular night might have been prevented if other actions had not occurred earlier in the year.
Shreve develops characters that are show more believable and stay true in the actions to what you would expect. I had a difficult time reading the book occasionally due to the tragic circumstances unfolding. However, I could not look away for more than a couple of minutes without diving right back into her gripping story.
Each character is flawed, as are people in real life. And no, we don't all have happy endings. I do feel there are many lessons to be learned from Shreve's story. An important one is that Shreve is a masterful story teller. show less

This was a bookclub read and would not be my usual choice in a book as I am not a fan of Anita Shreve and having read the blurb on this book thought the story sounded different and interesting.

The story is about a sex scandal involving 3 boys and one 14yr old girl and is told from the prospective of all those involved and affected by this scandal. The opening few pages shocked me and I wondered how Shreve would handle the rest of the story how in depth she would go with her characters and their reasons for their actions. But unforunatly that is about as much impact this book had on me and I was so disappointed with the developments of this story.

The story is told from several characters points of view and while I loved this idea I felt show more it did not work as Shreve's characters were never fully developed and as I thought I was getting to know one a little better it was on the next chapter and the next character and I was left feeling I needed more information. I think to be honest I never really cared about any of the characters to make me have any great love for the story.
I wanted answers and never seemed to get them and felt the book fell short especially on the characters of Sienna and Mikes wife.

On the plus side this novel really makes you think What If...... it was my daughter, my son, my neighbour how would I feel, how would I deal or cope with the situation, I kept thinking the whole way through the story that every action has a consequence and how you deal with the consequences can change the rest of you life and there is no going back. A very thought provoking novel and a great round the table bookclub discussion book but for me not a page turner and not enough character development and therefore a 3 star read. show less

Beautifully written, Testimony is a cautionary tale that examines the precipitating factors and aftermath of a student sex scandal at a private Vermont high school. Told through the alternating personal testimonies of 21 people involved or impacted -- the victim/perpetrators; their parents and friends; the headmaster, school staff and students; police; the media -- its creative structure is an all-out exploration of viewpoint: first-, third-, and even second-person, in past and present tenses.

The explosive premise brought to mind the Duke University lacrosse-team scandal and the local and national reactions to it. Short chapters drew me in, and the close-up points of view revealed character in a way that led to understanding and, in show more almost every case, sympathy. It was tricky at first to keep the characters straight while so many were being introduced. But as things progressed and an underlying story took hold, it became riveting. Perhaps my favorite novel by the author to date. show less

This was a wonderful, tragic, and unforgettable book about actions and consequences, about sinning and redemption, about life and death, about guilt and blame. At first I found the shifting perpectives a little difficult, but once I sank into the story, I ceased to even notice. It is hard to talk about the plot without spoiling the narrative- the central element for each person's story is one bad decision that ties into the bad decisions of others eventually escalating into a terrible act. Even though it became clear fairly quickly where the story was moving, I was still gripped by the hope that I was wrong. As events unfolded as I knew they must, I couldn't stop myself from crying even though I knew the whole time exactly where we were show more going to end. Shreve is a gifted writer, and this is an excellent book that will stick with you long after you have finished reading. 5 strong stars- highly recommended! show less

In Testimony, Avery Academy is an elite private school for some of the smartest young people and most promising athletes. Three of these students, Silas, Rob, and J.Dot are popular, athletic, and intelligent, all with bright futures ahead of them. But all of that is destroyed by the events of a few minutes one night when drinking at a party gets out of hand. Caught on tape is the three boys having drunken sexual relations with a 14 year old girl who also attends the academy. Soon after being made, the tape falls into the hands of school Headmaster, Mike, who must decide what to do with the boys. It’s pretty clear from the start what sort of difficulties he is going to face.

The story of the party and the aftermath is told through a show more variety of perspective. Everyone involved from students to parents to lunch ladies give their side, all except Rob, who is given one very significant part at the end of the novel. As the events unfold, you are witness to a number of different viewpoints, which all show different sides to how people deal with anger, fear, and sexuality. Testimony is about more than just the three boys, though, because the storyline exposes multiple relationships and secrets beyond the tape and the boys.

The way the story is written is unique. Some of the chapters are in first person, some in second person, and some in third person. This is a bit hard to get used to, but after a while you get into the pace of the book and the switching of person throws you off less. And sometimes, like with the second person scenes of Rob’s mother Ellen, it feels surreal and dreamlike. Since she is in a state of shock throughout, I believe that this was intentional. For others, you are meant to put yourself in their shoes, and others, to watch and judge.

This is a book that will leave you at war with yourself, as I did with me. You will question innocence and guilt, law and the nature of humans. You see that the boys are just boys, fallible and ultimately good. Do they deserve to have their entire lives ruined with a sexual assault charge? Do they deserve to lose their entire future for the events of one night? Is the girl to blame at least in part for wanting it; does this excuse what the boys did? Or should she be blameless because she is so young? Does the fact that she was consenting matter at all? You want to protect the child, but… who is the child? They are all children and you want to protect them all, even the girl, who comes across through her parts as very superficial and flighty. It didn’t help that the victim cried rape at first and accused the boys of giving her a date rape drug, an excuse she cooked up to keep from getting in trouble with her parents when the tape was discovered. Naturally, putting the blame on the girl makes you feel guilty as the reader, as it did with me, and the thought of a girl so young being involved with boys so much older is frightening. After all, Silas, Rob, and J.Dot should have known better. They should have.

But even good people sometimes make mistakes. Yet a mistake like this is, quite honestly, unforgivable? Or is it? You see? You will be at war with yourself. It is a hard one to think about. In the end, you sort of just wish that none of it had ever happened because it’s impossible to know who to blame, who to hate, and who to pity. I obviously very much enjoyed this book because it is very poignant, and it doesn’t shy away from a subject that is sensitive. show less

Probably my least favorite of Shreve's books (and I've read almost all of them). The story is about what happens to several members of a private preparatory school community in the aftermath of sexual assault. There was much that was sad in this story, and many of the characters were truly unlikeable (including, sadly enough, the woman who was assaulted).

The rest of this could probably be considered spoilerish:

I had a problem with the way the sexual assault was portrayed in this book, painting the young woman as having clearly been responsible for the incident. This is how so many real-life rapes are described, when in reality the women in question were most certainly NOT responsible for being assaulted. While certainly it is possible show more for a scenario like this to happen, it's not nearly as common as our society would like us to believe (because society has quite a lot invested in blaming rape victims, rather than placing the blame where it belongs, on the perpetrators). So, from that standpoint, I didn't enjoy reading yet another tale where the woman was the foul seductress, ruining the lives of otherwise upstanding "boys." (Although, in this case only one of them was portrayed as completely sympathetic).

Even putting that aside, though, I still came away from the book feeling dissatisfied. The only really likable - and most blameless - characters in the book are the ones who suffer the most, and there is nothing redeeming at the end to justify or ameliorate this. Especially considering how much I have enjoyed some of Shreve's other books, I found this one to be a big disappointment. show less

I read The Pilot’s Wife in 1998 and really loved it. Since then I think I have read all of Anita Shreve’s new books, and several of those that preceded TPW, looking for one that was “as good”. Testimony comes closest.

Set at a Vermont private school and told from both teenage and adult perspectives, it is the story of a sexual encounter among three male students, age 18-19 and a female student, age 14, and the events pre- and post that encounter. That central event is described in the first pages, so there is no real suspense, just a series of subplots surrounding it. This is fundamentally a sad story, with really no redemption at the end, but it does not have the same maudlin tone that I have not liked in some of Shreve’s show more other work. With the exception of the young woman involved in the sex (who appears to have some other emotional trouble going on), everyone else seems to accept the responsibility for and consequences of their own misguided decisions and poor judgment. Everyone suffers here, several characters behaved very badly, but Shreve makes you care about them all, even as you see their inappropriate behavior leading down a ruinous path. None of the characters are fundamentally bad people (a question on that for one of the young men), just people who made poor choices when it really counted, and I think Shreve’s ability to create that empathy for these characters is what distinguishes this from other perhaps similar stories

So, Testimony is not TPW, but definitely worth the read. show less