Minnie's Fiction Addiction

👀 First impressions:
We Are the Mulvaneys by Joyce Carol Oates, published in 1996, is a novel that traces the rise and fall of a seemingly perfect American family. The Mulvaneys live an enviable life on their idyllic farm until a traumatic event shatters their stability, sending each member of the family down a path of estrangement and struggle. The novel was widely praised at the time of release, even becoming an Oprah’s Book Club pick, which set my expectations high.

✅ What I Liked:
Oates has an undeniable gift for prose, and there are passages in this novel that are both lyrical and haunting. She captures the nuances of family dynamics, particularly the ways in which silence and avoidance can do more harm than words. The book’s ambition, charting the disintegration of a family across decades, is impressive in scope, and when it works, it hits hard.

❎ What I didn’t Like:
Unfortunately, the execution often dragged. The novel is sprawling, and its meandering pace made it difficult to stay fully engaged. Many sections felt overwritten, with tangents that diluted the emotional impact. While the central event of the novel is devastating, its handling felt frustratingly indirect, leaving me distanced from the characters rather than invested in their struggles. By the end, I felt more exhausted than moved.

📚 Why You Should Read This Book:
If you’re a devoted Joyce Carol Oates reader who appreciates her sprawling, gothic-tinged style, you may find more to admire here than I did. Readers who enjoy slow-burn family sagas with dense prose may also find value in it.

💭 Final Thoughts:
We Are the Mulvaneys has moments of beauty and insight, but for me, those were buried beneath an overlong and uneven narrative. It’s a novel that promises emotional devastation and catharsis, but instead I felt detached from the characters’ journeys.

🛍️ Where to buy
To buy your own copy click HERE

Final Rating ★★ – Ambitious but overlong, this family saga didn’t live up to its promise for me.