The Next Chapter: The Goldfinch That Ate My TBR List

I was doing pretty well on my TBR this year. I wanted to read books by authors I hadn’t read before. I read books by Frederik Bachman, J.M. Coetzee, and Lauren Groff, among others. I even read the memoir by Broadway star Andrew Rannells. However, I saw the trailer for the upcoming movie The Goldfinch and I became obsessed with it so much I had to read the book.

The film has a great cast that includes Nicole Kidman, Luke Wilson, and Ansel Elgort from Baby Driver as Theodore. Between this film and playing Tony in the remake of West Side Story next year, he’s going to be a big star. I’m most excited though, that Jeffrey Wright is Hobie and from what I’ve seen, it could be an Oscar-nominated performance. I always liked Wright from when he was in Basquiat. Plus the film is directed by John Crawley who directed 2015’s Brooklyn.

My main problem is that if I see the film before reading the book, I never wind up reading the book. Some of the books I didn’t read after seeing the film include The Reader, Everything is Illuminated, Little Children, The Devil Wears Prada and The Nanny Diaries. I saw Shopgirl with Steve Martin but I couldn’t be bothered to read the 130-page book it was based on.

Also, The Goldfinch was a very big novel. The paperback edition I read was 962 pages long. I get intimidated by big books. I can be a slow reader at times. It took me about 2 and a half months to read Don Di Lillo’s 800-page epic Underworld. But I have read big books such as Bleak House by Charles Dickens and Sarum by Edward Rutherford and read them somewhat quickly. And I have big books in my collection that I want to read, mainly Ken Follett’s The Pillars of the Earth (1,000 pages) and And The Ladies of the Club… by Helen Hoover Santmeyer ( a mere 1,047 pages). It seems silly not to read them because I’m afraid it will take me a long time to read.

Thankfully, it didn’t take me too long to read The Goldfinch. It’s the story about a boy named Theodore Decker who winds up stealing a famous painting from the Metropolitan Museum during a terrorist attack that kills his mom. Donna Tartt is a great storyteller. Although it isn’t as tight as her first book, The Secret History, it has some twist and turns that keep you on edge. I thought the parts in Vegas dragged a bit, but towards the end, you get invested in Theodore’s story. It’s also a good examination of our connection to great art and why we need it in our lives. I’m glad I read it before seeing the film and think it might make my top 10 list of books this year.

Now I am back on my TBR. I am reading Crossing to Safety by Wallace Stegner. He seems to be a popular author and so far I love the writing. Still, I think of TBRs as a road map. I had no intention of reading The Goldfinch right away but when I saw the trailer, I knew I had to read it. Sometimes, you have to go on your gut feelings on certain books. I know if I didn’t read The Goldfinch now, it would still be on my shelf unread. Don’t be afraid to shake things up. In the end, with books, it’s about the journey. Always be up for the adventure.

About the author: Don Levy

Don Levy has been part of the Albany poetry scene since 1989, when he first read at the QE2 open mic. He has read at various venues and events in Albany, including The Albany Public Library, Poets in the Park, Poets Speak Loud at McGeary’s (where he was once roasted), and the Third Thursday Poetry Night at The Social Justice Center. He has hosted a number of readings over the years, the first being at The Albany Art Gallery on Jefferson Street, to his last, a featured reader / open mic series called Live From the Living Room, a straight-friendly reading held at The Pride Center of the Capital Region.

Don was one of the editors of Open Mic: The Albany Anthology., a fantastic book that featured work from the poets who frequented the local open mics in the mid-90s. He published 2 chapbooks with local artist Kevin Bruce: How Green Was My Big Eden, a collection of gay fantasy poems, and Super Queer Poet Saves the Day. He currently writes a book blog called The Next Chapter right here on the Albany Poets website.