The Goldfinch

5/5 Stars

The Goldfinch is an epic coming-of-age novel that follows Theo Decker after the tragic death of his mother in a MOMA bombing. In an effort to remain connected to her, he stole a priceless painting and has kept it hidden since. He ends up staying with a wealthy family that lives on Park Avenue and his adventures lead him to several eccentric people that shape his life forever.

I really enjoyed The Goldfinch. Donna Tartt was able to depict the inner thoughts of a young boy grieving and unsure how to move forward in the world. The writing and plot was chaotic and erratic, but they depicted how the family and friends in Theo’s life interacted with him. A lot of the book was devoted to Theo’s friendship with Boris. While intriguing, I cared more about the pseudo-parent-child relationship between Theo and Hobie.

The pacing of the novel was okay and I did not lose interest, but the middle could have been shorter. There were times when I was confused on the timeline, but this didn’t matter much for the big picture. I often reminded myself that Theo was our narrator and could be unreliable. The ending felt rushed. The entire novel was setting up what Theo would do with the stolen painting, and this was resolved in a relatively small amount of pages.

Overall, it’s hard for me to explain exactly why I liked this book so much. I felt very connected to Theo and invested in his journey. Perhaps, it was being able to relate to the loss of a mother and navigating growing up with grief. I do know that once I started, I could not stop turning the pages. As a casual reader (not one critiquing if this is deserving of the Pulitzer), I loved it.