Pictures of You by Caroline Leavitt
This is a book that I enjoyed reading. It isn’t revolutionary in technique, it doesn’t make any great statements about modern life, it isn’t cutting edge. Instead, it is just a simple story about the intersection of four peoples’ lives after an accident that happens and leaves questions about individuals’ motives.
The technique of using a single moment of violence to unravel characters’ lives and reveal weaknesses and strengths that characters didn’t even know existed is one that works brilliantly. Leavitt has a particular knack for describing minute details–gestures, inflections of voice, eye contact–to reveal moments between people. One of the main characters’ has a penchant for photography, and photos become a way in which characters express subtle feelings and ideas to each other. Leavitt uses this photography creatively as a device in her narrative.
