It's been a bit since I finished reading Mrs. March by Virginia Feito. I still don't really know what I read and think, should I read this again? I watch the interview by Jenny Lawson of the author (linked below) and it looks like I'm not alone in my boat!
Mrs. March was a book of the month from the Fantastic Stranglings Book Club and it's a damn doozy. I don't intend to spoil it but will try to take you somewhat down the path without really showing you everything.
Mrs. March is the wife of a famous author, George March. She lives a pretty well to do life in the Upper East Side in.... some time period. You can get some clues from context but the author never really comes out and says when this is set. You also don't know Mrs. March's first name. Every single reference to her, even when she's in a flashback as a child, she is referred to as Mrs. March. Her perfectly constructed world starts unravelling when she goes to her regular bakery and the woman behind the counter suggests that the main character in her husband's newest book is based on Mrs. March. Mrs. March is so appalled she flees the shop and never returns.
Why is she appalled? Because the character, Johanna, is a prostitute. And, apparently, detestable in all ways possible. That's really all Mrs. March knows about Johanna because she quit reading her husband's books long ago. But this, this is the start of the unraveling.
Mrs. March is a peculiar person. Her entire existence seems to revolve around how she appears to others. She'll go to a museum only to be seen at a museum appreciating art. She'll toss a throw over the back of the couch multiple times until it's achieved the "Oh this? I just casually got up from reading because I forgot I was throwing a party tonight" look. She's never HER. She's only the version of her that she wants people to see.
On the flip side of Mrs. March, she often has musings. Musing of killing people, such as poisoning everyone at the party she is throwing for her husband. She's sees cockroaches in her fancy apartment, believes people are constantly discussing her behind her back, and that her husband is a murderer.
Her flashbacks indicate some serious trauma but it's never really delved into. We only get as much as Mrs. March is willing to remember and tell us. Initially, my reactions to Mrs. March were "She has some issues." which fell into "What is wrong with this woman?? Something is seriously messed up" and ended up with "Holy shit, what just happened in her brain?!?!?" I ended with "What did I just read?" which is usually a sign of a really great book for me.
I can't recommend Mrs. March enough. Please read it and then talk to me because I still don't know what I just read.
