Scan barcode
errantdreams's review
5.0
The first three-quarters of the book are depressing in the most awful way. Embarrassing things happen. People who care about Tori start looking down on her. She ends up humiliated in front of friends and strangers alike. Her job starts to go badly. To be honest, I’m not entirely sure why I didn’t put the book down. It’s incredibly well-written–actually, that’s part of what makes it so hard to read. It’s impossible not to feel the depression and malaise and embarrassment and humiliation and frustration. (Here’s where I include a content warning for depression and suicide.) If I’d known this is what the book was like, I wouldn’t have read it. I really did find the details of Chinese culture, and Ghost Month, fascinating. The family dynamics are engrossing. But I think you need to have some idea of what you’re getting yourself into if you want to read this book.
The last quarter of the book is totally engrossing, particularly as Tori starts to find out some things she didn’t know about Seymour. The events are riveting. But god, so hard to read.
If you’re up to it–if you’ve read this far and still think you might be interested–absolutely give it a read. The quality of the writing is pretty stunning. But it isn’t for everyone, and I’d hate for someone to stumble across it when they aren’t up to it. It’s a heart-shattering read, and way too intense and real in its depiction of how a life can go wrong.
Original review posted on my blog: http://www.errantdreams.com/2018/11/review-the-good-brother-e-l-chen/
The last quarter of the book is totally engrossing, particularly as Tori starts to find out some things she didn’t know about Seymour. The events are riveting. But god, so hard to read.
If you’re up to it–if you’ve read this far and still think you might be interested–absolutely give it a read. The quality of the writing is pretty stunning. But it isn’t for everyone, and I’d hate for someone to stumble across it when they aren’t up to it. It’s a heart-shattering read, and way too intense and real in its depiction of how a life can go wrong.
Original review posted on my blog: http://www.errantdreams.com/2018/11/review-the-good-brother-e-l-chen/
More...