Keep Quiet

Keep Quiet

Adult fiction audiotape
Two truths I have discovered in my time on this Earth:
1) There is never enough time to read all the books worth reading.
2) HOUSEWORK TOTALLY SUCKS.
Yesterday I came up with a brilliant idea. Katie had discovered and
highly recommended a prolific author, Lisa Scottoline. I put her work
on my lengthy to read list. I saw her novel, Keep Quiet, displayed
prominently on the adult audiovisual shelves. The blurb on the back
looked really interesting, especially since I am the parent of a teen
age son. This morning before I started the cleaning I put it on.
Within minutes I was pulled right into the drama. It was much more
interesting than television because my imagination was needed to
complete the picture. I guess it was like radio stories for the pre
TV generations.
If you are the mother or father of a teenager, you know this can
be an intense time for both parent and child. The youngster who
previously delighted in your company may be a lot less eager for
quality time now. In fact, you may have morphed into the most
embarassing person who ever walked the face of the Earth or a disliked
enforcer of rules. Of course we saw that situation from the other
side in our younger years. But our parents seemed somehow less
traumatized. This appears especially true for older parents in the
boomer generation. Our folks were comfortable with a more distant,
authoritarian role. We have been sold on a closer, more equal role
where emotianal intimacy between parent and child can exceed that even
between spouse and spouse. So any rupture can be torture.
This is the case with Jake, Scottoline's protagonist. He and
his son, Ryan, 16, have become increasingly estranged. He feels
pressure to mend the alienation before Ryan goes off to college. The
precariousness he feels in their relationship causes him to make a
very bad decision. He allows Ryan to drive at an hour the law does
not allow him to. They hit a jogger, killing her. Attempts to
ressecitate her fail.
At first Jake decides they will say he was driving the car.
Then Ryan shows him a baggie of grass and admits to having had some.
Jake sees his chances for a college, a career, any kind of a future in
jeopardy. He decides to go the hit and run route, convincing a
traumatized Ryan that it is the right thing to do, even as he is
inwardly horrified. "He'd just become the guy he hated. He'd just
become the guy everybody hated."
I'm sure you've heard the saying about deceit necessitating the
weaving of a web of lies. Jake's self-appointed task becomes
increasingly difficult, especially when he learns that the victim was
only 16 like his son, a student at has small school, someone he
probably knew.
If you like drama and mystery firmly rooted in insightful grasp
of the human heart and soul Keep Quiet is a great choice for a summer
read or listen.
On a personal note, I have noticed a generational change (and I do not
mean strictly going by years) in how women who take at least some time
out of the work force to parent describe themselves that is, I
believe, related to the changes in the parent-child dynamic. My
mother-in-law and her peers used the word housewife. The proof of
their achievements lay in the cooking and cleaning sphere. They
probably would not have worked even without children. My mother (who
would be older were she alive but had more education) and her peers
had a transitional term: homemaker. They had the daunting task of
keeping house like June Cleaver while taking on more responsibility
for their children's happiness. Many rejoined the work force of
desire or necessity. My peers and I are stay at home moms. The
pendulum has swung almost completely to child primacy. We also have
many more expectations of a vibrant, achieving, adventurous post child
raising life than either of the previous generations.
A great big shout out goes out to my fellow stay at home moms (and
these days dads) as we muddle through lives with seemingly constantly
changing rules and expectations.
Julia Emily Hathaway






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