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3.31 AVERAGE
3.31 AVERAGE
Genetic engineering is such an interesting topic with so much potential. And still the author managed to make this story anticlimactic with an abrupt and boring ending.
challenging
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
mysterious
reflective
I listened to this on audiobook.
I love Amor Towles's writing but hadn't thought of him as someone who'd make a foray into science fiction. I thought the story started stronger than it finished. Towles never dares make a foray too far into the female psyche, and his male characters in this story felt like past tropes of masculinity, as his characters often do.
So gene-splicing for the child you want is the basic concept of this piece. The most interesting parts are when Sam, our protagonist, gets to watch video that's been created to show him how the three potential choices he has for his child are likely to play out. Although Towles waves at nature/nurture as he hurtles by the scientific likelihood of gene-splicing for personality, you just have to accept it and move on.
Would you want a child of yours to be nice, but maybe so nice that they can't advocate for themselves to keep themselves moving forward? Or maybe for them to be brilliantly talented, but miserable as an artist even after finding success? Or maybe a smugly talented asshole who thinks they won't ever be held accountable but then find a way to grow after having the worst happen? I guess when we think about having children we tend to focus more on their positive childhood qualities than how those qualities might pan out in adulthood. Seeing a child grow in moments to being in their 30s and having accountability hit them was an uncomfortable realization of the fact that no matter what you do, the world will happen to your child.
I was also amused by the idea of the gene-splicing salesman that lives have second acts where flaws come home to roost and then the possibility of the third act redemption. Obviously, lives don't have plots. But maybe we think they do? And the hard thing to accept is that they really don't and we're all just living without a grand climax to our life plot coming?
All of that was interesting. The bar scenes afterward, not so much. And poor Annie never gets to even have a line in the whole story.
I love Amor Towles's writing but hadn't thought of him as someone who'd make a foray into science fiction. I thought the story started stronger than it finished. Towles never dares make a foray too far into the female psyche, and his male characters in this story felt like past tropes of masculinity, as his characters often do.
So gene-splicing for the child you want is the basic concept of this piece. The most interesting parts are when Sam, our protagonist, gets to watch video that's been created to show him how the three potential choices he has for his child are likely to play out. Although Towles waves at nature/nurture as he hurtles by the scientific likelihood of gene-splicing for personality, you just have to accept it and move on.
Would you want a child of yours to be nice, but maybe so nice that they can't advocate for themselves to keep themselves moving forward? Or maybe for them to be brilliantly talented, but miserable as an artist even after finding success? Or maybe a smugly talented asshole who thinks they won't ever be held accountable but then find a way to grow after having the worst happen? I guess when we think about having children we tend to focus more on their positive childhood qualities than how those qualities might pan out in adulthood. Seeing a child grow in moments to being in their 30s and having accountability hit them was an uncomfortable realization of the fact that no matter what you do, the world will happen to your child.
I was also amused by the idea of the gene-splicing salesman that lives have second acts where flaws come home to roost and then the possibility of the third act redemption. Obviously, lives don't have plots. But maybe we think they do? And the hard thing to accept is that they really don't and we're all just living without a grand climax to our life plot coming?
All of that was interesting. The bar scenes afterward, not so much. And poor Annie never gets to even have a line in the whole story.
challenging
dark
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Thought provoking and unique, this short story achieved what it set out to do in relatively few pages. There were so many layers to this and it could be read as commentary on multiple issues like growing up, the paths life takes us on, fate, nature vs nurture, and how much of our personalities are what our parents project on us. I really enjoyed this one, it was my first of the Forward collection, and am looking forward ;) to reading the rest. Also, I highly recommend David Harbour’s narration, he really brought it to life.
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
challenging
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Not really sure about this one. The meaning was too obscure for me to comprehend. Whether that says something about my comprehension skills or the author’s writing, I’m not sure.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infertility, Pregnancy, Alcohol
You Arrived At Your Destination by Amor Towles
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4*)
This is one of the short-stories from the Forward-Collection by Blake Crouch. I liked that story especially because of the ending. The whole story was good, but the ending was really cool. Even though normally I don’t like these kinds of endings. But I don’t want to spoil anything for you.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4*)
This is one of the short-stories from the Forward-Collection by Blake Crouch. I liked that story especially because of the ending. The whole story was good, but the ending was really cool. Even though normally I don’t like these kinds of endings. But I don’t want to spoil anything for you.