Cheap Breathing Lessons (Book) (Anne Tyler) Price

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Customer Reviews of Breathing Lessons

Tyler's characterization is surrealistic
As I was reading others' reactions to this novel, I found that many complained about Maggie's annoying character and how her scatterbrainedness seemed to detract from the story. Although I have to agree that this character enraged me at points in the story, I would also like to inform these critics that IF AN AUTHOR CAN CHARACTERIZE A PERSON IN THE STORY SO WELL THAT A READER IS REPULSED BY HER, SHE CERTAINLY DESERVES RECOGNITION, and this is the conclusion I have come to in my process of assessing this novel for my English class. Yes, it went slow; yes, the characters were sometimes aggravating. But Tyler's books are some of the most skillfully written which I have ever had the experience of reading. She reinforces the sacred institution that marriage is, gives us a model in Ira's patience, and shows us how important a person at whom you can, as Serena told Maggie, steal a glance when others are bothering you and you can't complain out loud. Rather than complaining because this book isn't the shallow, exciting "story" that typical readers expect, let's praise Anne Tyler for her skill.

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Maggies not a meddler but downright cruel
Many reviews refer to Maggies as a hopeless but well intentioned character. I found her actions at times bordering on cruelty particularly in her treatment of Fiona. Fiona, teenaged and pregnant, living away from her mother and incredibly vulnerable was manipulate and plain lied to by Maggie - and what for? So Maggie could become a grandmother and have a sense of self - worth and so also she could feel that her son was somehow noble and sweet - injecting herself into her son's and her daughter-in-law's lives. The saddest thing ever in the book was Jesse's failure to make the cradle - the supposed promise that he would - Maggie's lies about Jesse's intentions was the clincher for Fiona in making her decision to continue the pregnancy. Maggie cannot accept that her son is a loser who sends child support payments many months late and her attempt to encourage Fiona back to him when she has gotten on with her life is cruel in the extreme - not to mention for the little girl. We discover when disaster strikes that Jesse has been seeing another girl anyway - thanks to Ira's outbursts. How can Maggie possibly justify the fact that her son never visits or seems to wish to play in any role in his daughter's life. All the characters in this book made me cringe and the only one I felt any sympathy for was Fiona - as for Maggie - she just needed a few good hard slaps (not that I condone violence!!).

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Love Battles with Reality in Humorous Ways
Most people love a lover. Also, most of us would like more love in our lives. If you read nonfiction books on the subject, they tell you to be more loving to others to receive more love in return. But most of us feel frustrated in that quest. What would it be like to pursue love in a more unrestricted way? That's the subject of Breathing Lessons.

Now, this could be a pretty heavy subject so Ms. Tyler wisely chooses to leaven her lessons with humor. Her protagonist, Maggie Morgan, will remind many of other fictional characters beginning with the lovable red head, Lucy Ricardo, in I Love Lucy. Those who have Dreamed the Impossible Dream while watching Man of La Mancha (or while reading Don Quixote) will recognize elements of Don Quixote in her character. The humor plays the same role that the fools play in Shakespeare's tragedies, to lighten the atmosphere from profoundly sad situations.

Maggie is a klutz who doesn't let her klutziness stop her. She's a one-woman pile driver intent on her purposes of spreading love and connection among all she meets. Her husband, Ira, plays the foil (the Desi Ricardo/Sancho Panza role) to help us know what the real situation is. Ira is almost all reason while Maggie is almost all love. You will find Ira to be interesting for examples of how reason needs to accommodate love.

Breathing Lessons shows a typical day for Maggie and Ira in an atypical environment . . . while on an out-of-town trip on a Saturday for a memorial service for the husband of Maggie's old friend. That environment turns the day into a quest (like Don Quixote) and they meet many interesting characters on whom Maggie has an unforgettable impact.

Many will look for a heroic ending featuring accomplishment. But did Don Quixote have such an ending? Ms. Tyler redefines heroism in terms of continuing to love and hope for the best . . . even when everything crumbles into dust. I think anyone will be inspired by the example of Maggie to do the right thing.

As you probably know, this book won a Pulitzer Prize which it certainly deserved. Seldom has a book created such a new an ennobling expression of human potential in the context of our all-too-human tendency to err.

Many will find Maggie's klutziness to be overdone . . . and possibly annoying. I, too, found it a little overdone, but enjoyed the book nevertheless. Ms. Tyler doesn't want us to miss the point that we should make the most of our talents . . . however modest or great they are.

Nice job, Ms. Tyler!