Read This: The Goldfinch

Every once in a while, I’ll discover a book which literally haunts me. I’ll see my neighbor on an airplane reading it. I’ll spot it on the beach in the Bahamas. A gym rat will be reading it whilst clomping along the treadmill (these types always render me speechless, by the way — HOW DO THEY SIMULTANEOUSLY READ and RUN?). It will come up in a casual conversation during a cocktail party. This is what happened to me with The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt. It felt like a trend everyone was dabbling in except for me.

And so I caved. I’m halfway through the Pulitzer Prize winner (it’s a long one, so be prepared to lug around a dictionary-sized book if you’re old school like me as it’s 700 densely written pages) and it’s a stay-up-all-night kind of read. The protagonist, 13-year-old Theo, is extremely lovable and the circumstances he faces are downright depressing, but there’s something triumphant and uplifting about his story. Mesmerizing, The Goldfinch is an old-fashioned story of loss and obsession, survival and self-invention, and the ruthless machinations of fate.

And I’m relishing every singe word. You will too.