Revolutionary Road is a rubber-necking novel, the kind of piece that makes no attempt to hide that unhappiness is a key component of the 350-odd pages of material, but proves too engrossing to put away. It’s similiar to Thomas Hardy’s Jude the Obscure in that respect: things are bad and are only going to get worse, so let’s watch the main characters endure as much as they possibly can and see when they snap! What fun!

That said, Jude remains one of my all-time favorite books, so I’m clearly Richard Yates’ dream reader. As is Kate Winslet, actually, who not only stars in the film adaptation of Revolutionary Road, but also starred as Sue in the film adaptation of Jude. I knew there was a reason I liked that woman.

I picked this up at the bookstore around 1 p.m. on New Year’s Day and completed the work about 12 hours later (with pauses for relaxation, shopping and running a couple of miles at the gym). Great read, albeit not one I’d necessarily recommend if depression has been plaguing you. I’m interested in seeing if my take on the material changes later in life, when I am married; as of now, it’s almost a rather terrifying cautionary tale for this single gal.

Pullquote of the novel: “The whole point of crying was to quit before you cornied up. The whole point of grief itself was to cut it out while it was still honest, while it still meant something.”