Robinson’s variety of Christian faith is appealingly humane and broad-minded, but the dodgy way she often explicates it makes The Givenness of Things inspiring and infuriating in roughly equal measure.
Robinson’s heroic lamentation is magnificent. Yet for me something crucial was missing: There is no sustained discussion of America’s relationship with other nations.
Yet for all the intermittent flashes of brilliance throughout the book, The Givenness of Things exhibits little evidence of her tireless work ethic. It is, alas, an essentially lazy production. The essays are frequently ambulatory to the point of aimlessness. Ms. Robinson’s chosen topics are highly abstruse and deserve clear reasoning, but she approaches them indirectly, often not making a memorable point at all.
Robinson’s worldview is far too benevolent for her writing to ever become nagging or hectoring. And at bedrock, her work always argues in favor of human decency and human progress.
