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Title: Down and Out on the Farm
Review: Is it possible that such a strong, capable family could disintegrate over date rape? Yep - I guess in J.C. Oatesland it happens. In the 1990s I suppose everyone would be in intensive family therapy, but this novel is set in a time when rape did reflect on the victim. I disagree with readers who have said the family was just too perfect for the first 100 pages. Haven't we all known of families filled with high achievers?My disappointment with the book was that Judd was not as strongly characterized as his brothers and sister. In spite of that, this novel was a page-turner. Reading Oates' books makes me feel as though I've picked up a rock from the garden and looked underneath. In other words, she writes great fiction.
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