"Poor Katherine is jealous of Frances, and jealousy is one of the most devastating emotions I know of. I judge so by the results, I mean. I have almost never been jealous of anybody, myself."
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Reason Out of Tune and Harsh by Anne Harris Lulu
book review by Corinna Underwood
This is the story of Jane Stafford, tortured from an early age by the incongruously overprotective and neglectful moods of an artistic mother Emmy. When Jane learns about her father's suicide, which she had previously believed to be an accident, she realizes how much she despises her mother. This moment marks the onset of their alienation, and suddenly Jane's childhood has reached an end. As Jane grows into a young woman and focuses on her continued education, she and her mother become increasingly hostile to each other, and it becomes apparent that Emmy's anger stems from jealously of her daughter. She continually tries to put a spoke in the wheel of all Jane's plans from her wedding to Mac to her subsequent career, undermining Jane's confidence with judgmental letters. Caught up with her career, floundering marriages, and two brief affairs, Jane does not notice her mother's growing delusional state until it becomes more protracted. Nevertheless, she continues to be influenced by her mother even after she has faded away.
The novel is written as a series of events interspersed with letters between Jane, her mother, and other friends and family members. Harris' book is an acceptable account of the complexities and pains of a mother-daughter relationship and how difficult it can become even at a distance, but it is just that, an account. Though the settings range from India to California, they lack detail and character. Overall this rather dry story may have been brought to life by more colorful anecdotes and livelier descriptions.