Amina CainRecensioner

"Indelicacy" is a strange butterfly of a book - it dips down into the corporeal realm and then immediately flips around and flits back into something delightfully intangible yet somehow still relatable. Watching the main character move through her strange world and examine the things around and inside of her was really satisfying and eye-opening; it felt like I was immersed in a POV period drama or a dream most of the time, but not one that was nonsensical. Almost the opposite, in fact! Cain has such a keen talent for describing moments that tend to feel indescribable while also opening the doors to new feelings and emotions. I can see how this book wouldn't be everyone's cup of tea, but personally I fell in love with this one. "Indelicacy" is refreshing, unusual, and beautifully written.

Much the same vibe as Indelicacy, which also intrigued me. Haunting and exquisite.

What a delightful read! This reminded me of Sylvia Plath's journals but with Emily Dickinson's whimsy. Cain has written an earnest narrator who documents her life without the clutter of overdeveloped scenery. It is tender without being sentimental, and I found myself snickering at our narrator's quick wit and offbeat jabs.

I devoured this book in two days! This story touched my soul in a way no other story has. An introspective look at the life of a female writer and the expectations from society and others. A quest for freedom and a search for honesty. A tale destined to be part of the classic feminist literary canon.

An absolute gem.

Described by Amazon as a "feminist fable," this is the tale of Vittoria, a cleaning woman at a museum who wants to write about art, her reactions and thoughts on art. She marries a rich man, and has everything she wants, including time to explore and write about art, yet she is still unhappy.
This was not the book for me. There is no sense of place (and I'm coming to realize a sense of place in a novel is a very important element for me). There's a lake, she walks everywhere, there are museums and theaters, but it's not a city. I thought maybe it was set in Europe or South America, but the author is American. Nothing happens that makes any difference to anyone. We know Vittoria is dissatisfied with the marriage, but we have no sense of her character, how or why she married this rich man, what their relationship was, or is. She leaves the marriage to "find herself," but in the end the whole novel seemed pointless to me.

Not recommended.
2 stars

amazing, unique, weird, delicious to read

Funny little book about a museum cleaner who wants to write. She marries a rich man who she doesn’t love and eventually leaves him after he commits adultery.

Weird” would be the way I would describe this short book, weird and introspective. The narrator is a cleaner at a museum. Although the city is never given nor whether the book is historical or contemporary, I pictured the city as being New York City. While cleaning, the narrator meets her wealthy husband and lives in a home where she spends her time as she wishes. As her love for her husband dims, she continues with her love of writing and in short pieces she describes paintings that have a relevance to her life. Amina Cain’s writing is flat and that mirrors the life of the narrator. She has two good friends, but even the friendships seem flat. But the introspection of the narrator brings to light emotions and thoughts many women might have.