“We were The Mulvaneys” by Joyce Carol Oates

The Mulvaneys were just like any ordinary American family. There were a family of six. The father Michael Mulvaney, the mother Corinne Mulvaney and the chidren who were Mike jr.,  Patrick Marrianne and Judd Mulvaney.

Joyce Carol Oates starts by introducing the Mulvaneys to us.  She makes us get to know them like friends or acquaintances. The Mulvaney story is told by the youngest of the Mulvaneys who is Judd. His narration more or less is that of an omniscient narrator.

Just like any other family they had their hopes and aspirations. The children were blessed with parents who worked hard to better their lives. The parents were also blessed with children who were good children.

They were a happy family and everything seemed to be going well for them. However, it just happened that an incident occurred that had disastrous effect on the family. The Mulvaneys were never the same again.

The novel is well written though there is very little suspense or thrill. However, the characters stand out and they are very much alive and unique. The story is tragic as well as realistic. It depicts the ups and downs of the human life. That is to say no human being or a family has it all rosy. Joyce Carol Oates is indeed a great author owing to her ability to weave a plot around such a storyline and producing such a voluminous book.