helpless by barbara gowdy

Book review of Helpless
By Barbara Gowdy

Helpless, by Barbara Gowdy, was a well written novel which kept the reader interested right until the final page. Gowdy used descriptive language, suspense, and flashbacks to develop the theme that unrequited love lasts longer than love that is fulfilled. Gowdy used descriptive language well.

Descriptive language was used throughout the novel multiple times. For example, on (pg. 17) it said: “Her skin was light…tawny. Her hair, a miraculous chromium yellow, was pulled into a ponytail of tiny spiral curls, like the springs in old ballpoint pens…She searched up and down the street, and for a moment her gaze lands on Ron. A murky, underwater feeling enveloped him.”
At that moment, the reader saw Ron fall in love with this girl he knew he could never have. One could see that his love for her began as soon as he saw her. Later on in the novel Ron kidnaps the girl (Rachel) and the reader could see his love only grow. Flashbacks were used in the novel as well. Flashbacks were used within the novel at various intervals. Multiple characters in the novel had flashbacks from their past. An example of one is on (pg. 190) where it said “Provided he talked like Phil and called her darling, she was happy to kiss him. In Carol’s voice she said ‘I love you so much,’ and in Phil’s voice he said he loved her, too. He wished he had the nerve to say it in his own voice.” Which was a flashback from Ron when he was 11; “Carol” was 9 year old Jenny, whom he clearly had feelings for. The reader could understand then why Ron fell in love with Rachel so fast (she reminded him of his first love). One could get a better sense of Ron’s motives and why he had such hopeless love for Rachel. Gowdy used dramatic irony as well. Dramatic irony was used a lot throughout the novel. This created suspense and kept the reader engaged. For example on (pg. 164) it said
“‘She sounded so scared’
‘Is the voice familiar?’
‘I’m not sure’
‘Do you want to hear it again?’
‘Yeah’
Celia stands and starts to move around the kitchen. Where has she heard that raspy, nerve- wracked voice before?”
The reader knew who the voice was – Nancy, Ron’s kidnapping accomplice and girlfriend – and why Celia recognized ‘the voice’. This created suspense because the reader was anticipating Nancy getting caught. Had Nancy gotten caught the whole book would have been different.

In conclusion, Helpless was a really good novel that I would definitely recommend. If you enjoy suspense filled dramas about unrequited love, Helpless is the book for you. Once one gets into the novel it is very hard to put down. Over all it was a very well written novel and kept the reader interested.

HI KENDRA