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Finished The Goldfinch last night.  I picked up this book at the library book sale after seeing it everywhere.  I The Goldfinch starts out strong.  It hooked me in right with a strong start.  I loved the opening narrative and the action right up through  Theo’s life with Andy’s family on Park Avenue.  The book took a nose dive for me when Theo goes to Vegas.  I guess there is a reason why “what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas, because no one else would possible care.  The meandering story of Theo in Vegas goes on for way too many pages, all of which could probably been whittled down to under ten pages.  After Theo leaves Vegas, the plot picks up again but never regains the strength of narrative that the book began with.

Overall, I enjoyed a great deal of it, particular the scenes with Theo and the painting, but not the book in its entirety.  There is no doubt that Ms. Tartt is extremely intelligent, well read and can write beautifully but this particular book doesn’t work as well as The Secret History.