Book Review: A Change in Altitude by Anita Shreve

Newlyweds Margaret and Patrick embark on a yearlong adventure living in Kenya which ends up putting strain on their marriage.

As soon as Nicole heard I was going to Kenya, she generously offered to send me this novel and I was excited to have the opportunity to read it while I was there (thanks Nicole!). It is set in the late 1970s, but there was still much familiar about the country described, especially in regards to the high level of crime, the recreational activities, and the divide between expats and Kenyans. But although everything that had to do with the setting was incredibly engaging, the story itself meandered about with a bit of tragedy here, a bit of temptation to cheat there, but no real identifiable arc.

I was puzzled why Margaret would find Patrick attractive – he seemed like a self-absorbed jerk to me most of the time. The ending made sense though, and showed how much Margaret had grown over the course of the narrative.

A CHANGE IN ALTITUDE is available in hardcover now. Find out more about it at the author's website.