Dept. Of Speculation by Jenny Offill

 

In this short novel, Offill uses short paragraphs to illustrate a marriage, the arrival of a baby, an affair and then the decision to try to work things out in the marriage.  The title comes from the love letters they would write each other, speculating on their future and what it would hold.  They each had a stack of these.  With the arrival of a daughter, they learn that there is another kind of love they could not imagine before she came to them.  But the strain of caring for a dependant child while working can often lead to marriage partners not spending enough time with and for each other.

This book was named one of the ten best books of 2014 by the New York Times Review.  Her work has received other awards such as being selected as a New York Times Notable Book and listed for the Women's Fiction Award.  She was raised by two academic parents and attended UNC for her undergraduate degree.  She works as a professor or visiting professor in various universities.  It is amazing to see how she can build entire lives with short statements that accumulate and build a picture.  This book is recommended for readers of literary fiction.