"The Odds: A Love Story," by Stewart O'Nan

At first I thought the plot of Stewart O'Nan's (author of the wonderful "Emily, Alone," which I posted about here on 5/17/11) new novel was too contrived, and I found the main plot device almost annoying. The premise of this novel, "The Odds: A Love Story," is that Art and Marion, a married couple, are both about to divorce (fairly amicably) and about to go bankrupt, so in a desperate last hurrah, they revisit the scene of their honeymoon, Niagara Falls, with their last wad of money, planning to gamble it all at the casinos there in hopes of recouping enough to save their house. This plot device is reinforced by each chapter’s beginning with an “odds” “fact”; some of these may be real and accurate, but others are fanciful (e.g., “Odds of being served breakfast in bed on Valentine’s Day: 1 in 4). Some of these “odds” statements connect directly to the plot, others only peripherally. But once I got past these premises and stylistic devices, the story of these all too human but ultimately understandable and likable characters caught me up and kept me reading with interest and sympathy. The best thing about this short novel is its very realistic portrayal of a marriage, with all its ups and downs, hurts, happy moments, arguments, near-arguments, memories, sensitivities, sudden changes in mood and alliances, connections “for the kids” and because of history together, and more. This marriage has survived some major problems and is currently in serious trouble, yet there is much surviving affection. Art hopes against hope that the marriage can be preserved; Marion doesn’t think it can, but succumbs to some hopeful moments. A major “character” in the novel is the Niagara Falls area itself, in its unnerving mixture of grandeur and touristy tackiness. The constant presence of weddings and honeymooning couples, along with the exhilarating and depressing casinos, combine to make a disorienting backdrop for Art’s and Marion’s story. A larger background is the economic recession and the burst housing bubble, which have brought Art and Marion to this drastic point in their lives, and precipitated this trip. Their case shows how nice, ordinary people, even those such as Art who are educated in finance, could get caught up in overextending themselves on their house, and then be bewildered by their downfall. This intense (all in the period of about three days) story distills the story of a marriage and of the inside and outside forces that affect it; it does so realistically and compellingly, in O’Nan’s trademark style of close attention to the details of human lives and relationships.