Shadow Tag

Shadow Tag is the portrait of an all-consuming, tumultuous marriage.  When Irene America discovers that her husband Gil is reading her hidden diary, she begins leaving intentionally provoking asides in her entries with the aim of driving him mad with jealousy and regret.  Meanwhile, she starts a new, better-hidden diary to tell the truth about her life.  Irene's entries in these two different diaries are interspersed throughout the third-person narration and serve as a framework for the cruel games in which Irene and Gil are constantly engaging.

Quote:
"They reverted to one of their endless arguments, first about the noodles, then about kitsch.  This was not fighting, but the sort of argument that could go on for years and years, where each found bits of evidence to prove their point and dropped it into the next go-round a month, two or three months, on.  They were back in old territory.  They argued sometimes for comfort."

Author:
Louise Erdrich has written books for children, poetry, non-fiction, and thirteen novels, including The Round House and Shadow Tag.  She lives in Minnesota and owns an independent bookstore, Birchbark Books.

Published:  2010
Length:  242 pages
Set in:  Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States

 

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