“Landline” by Rainbow Rowell – A Redemption from the Past

Landline by Rainbow Rowell tells the story of Georgie McCool and her dissolving marriage, one that seems to be falling apart like a house of cards, regardless of what she, her husband Neal, or the children want.

Right around Christmas time, after having planned a trip to Omaha for the Holidays, Georgie gets the opportunity of a lifetime; writing the script for several episodes for a new hit television show, which would require her to stay put for the vacation.

Contrary to her expectations, Neal decides to pack the things, take the kids, and head on out without her. Not knowing which direction exactly this whole marriage is taking, and whether or not it can still be considered as actually current, Georgie makes a startling discovery, one that will allow her to muddle the concepts of time and space and perhaps save the relationship before it ever really started to crumble... or maybe ensure that it never happens in the first place.

Time travel and romance are two subjects that have always been intricately-linked to each other. When things fall apart and we are left with the memories of what was and what was supposed to be, it is all too tempting to fall deep into the desire to go back to the beginning, to start anew, to make things work, to avoid the mistakes.

Of course, we don't really have any way of doing that in the real world, and even if we did, the debate would arise as to whether or not something like that would be for the best. In this novel though, the character doesn't exactly go through such a debate: Georgie throws herself head-first and as deep as she possibly can, doing all that is in her power to “fix” Neal, to make him into a happy man.

Landline is written in a rather light and somewhat humorous manner, trying to make this whole thing feel like a lighthearted tale about lost love and redemption, rather than a realistic exploration of human drives and desires. In the end, I believe that whether or not you enjoy this novel is determined by the specific approach you take to it.

If you are expecting some sort of morality tale, or a thought-provoking message that dissipates the nebulous clouds of questions surrounding the ideas of love, happiness and sacrifice, then I am sorry to say you are going to be a bit disappointed.

In my perspective, the ending sent a very one-sided, simplistic and perhaps even childish message: if you are willing to sacrifice all and persevere, you can make anyone happy and go as far as changing the nature of a person.

In other words, what really matters in Landline is the tale itself, the journey which eventually leads us to the destination.

Reading about Georgie's running feelings and her scrambling attempts at putting some kind of order in her life is certainly interesting, not to mention that this feeling of going back in time and reshaping things with the knowledge granted by hindsight certainly serves to fulfill a deep, inner and perhaps impossible fantasy many, if not most of us have.

All things considered, Landline is not a milestone in literature, and it certainly won't really cater to the readers out there who want real depth out of their novels. Nevertheless, if you are prepared to simply abandon yourself to the process of the storytelling and take things slowly while suspending your disbelief, then you are probably going to find some sort of enjoyment from this.

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Rainbow Rowell Personal site Rainbow Rowell is an American author hailing from Nebraska who made her debut in 2011 with a contemporary romantic comedy, Attachments. In 2013 she published two additional novels, Eleanor & Park and Fangirl, both of which received accolades from The New York Times, being classified amongst the best young adult fiction novels released during that year.