Take a photo of a barcode or cover
4.14 AVERAGE
4.14 AVERAGE
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
emotional
funny
informative
reflective
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Oh Nathan Hill, you've done it again. Taken a good story and all but smothered it in a surplus of detail and run on sentences. Once again, I'm shocked to have been able to muddle through to the finish line, which is a testament to how flowing and engaging I find his writing to be. But wow. He does not make it easy.
Jack and Elizabeth Baker meet in the 1990's as college students, both having fled to Chicago to escape difficult families and traumatizing childhoods. While striving to reinvent themselves, the pair discover each other amidst the budding underground art scene, immediately becoming beholden to the other, evoking a belief in fate and soulmates. Now, twenty years later, they're married with a young son and plans for a forever home, but the stresses and mundanity of parenthood and modern life have caught up to Jack and Elizabeth. After a disastrous foray into polygamy, suddenly they're questioning what they ever saw in each other, as it seems the person they're married to is the exact opposite of the person they thought they were.
Just like Hill's debut novel, The Nix, Wellness drew me in from the very first page. It's true, I really do love Hill's prose, and his ability to pack so much depth and meaning into absolute absurdity is truly remarkable. Wellness casts a critical eye on the health obsession of modern society, with characters taking a plethora of daily supplements to cleanse their body or others "manifesting" their problems away in a haze of gratitude and delusion. Elizabeth herself even runs a placebo clinic, essential treating patients with nothing but the power of suggestion. With all this fake-ness floating around, it's no wonder our main couple finds themselves caught up in questioning the legitimacy of their own love story. And it's not just their relationship to each other that falls into doubt. Jack and Elizabeth struggle with their careers and parenting and their pasts, paralyzed by the never ending desire to do things "right", to be 100 percent certain about every aspect of their lives. It creates an uncrossable gulf between who they are and who they want to be.
Throughout the novel, I found a lot of Hill's broader points to be quite resounding and I generally enjoyed the ride to get there. But if there is one thing Hill is determined to provide, it's a very thorough and complete background of his characters that inevitably brings the plot to a stuttering halt. At various points, we jump backward into Jack and Elizabeth's pasts where we learn why they are the way that they are -Elizabeth terrified of her son's outbursts because they remind her so vividly of her father's competitive rage. Jack desperate for love and attention after being shunned and diminished his entire life. Of course all this context did lead to a deeper appreciation and understanding of the characters, but it was also a massive amount of information that ballooned Wellness into a behemoth of a novel. And I can't help but feel that all of it wasn't necessary. Like when Elizabeth goes on her tirade about all the childhood development studies she's read, teaching the easy and innumerable ways to mess up your child for life. Or the chapter that was dedicated solely to Facebook algorithms and how it jams conspiracy theories down your throat. I know there's a point to all of it but, good lord, there has to be an easier way to lay it out that doesn't take up hundreds of pages.
Despite my frustration with the sheer length of this novel, I did find myself engrossed in Wellness, especially for a story that is so heavily character driven. I was hooked on all the deconstruction and examination of life, all the outrageous and humorous ways we seek to better ourselves. And I cared about Jack and Elizabeth, sticking through to the end with hope for reconciliation. So, yeah, Nathan Hill will definitely always write more than he needs to to get his point across. But it's usually worth it.
Jack and Elizabeth Baker meet in the 1990's as college students, both having fled to Chicago to escape difficult families and traumatizing childhoods. While striving to reinvent themselves, the pair discover each other amidst the budding underground art scene, immediately becoming beholden to the other, evoking a belief in fate and soulmates. Now, twenty years later, they're married with a young son and plans for a forever home, but the stresses and mundanity of parenthood and modern life have caught up to Jack and Elizabeth. After a disastrous foray into polygamy, suddenly they're questioning what they ever saw in each other, as it seems the person they're married to is the exact opposite of the person they thought they were.
Just like Hill's debut novel, The Nix, Wellness drew me in from the very first page. It's true, I really do love Hill's prose, and his ability to pack so much depth and meaning into absolute absurdity is truly remarkable. Wellness casts a critical eye on the health obsession of modern society, with characters taking a plethora of daily supplements to cleanse their body or others "manifesting" their problems away in a haze of gratitude and delusion. Elizabeth herself even runs a placebo clinic, essential treating patients with nothing but the power of suggestion. With all this fake-ness floating around, it's no wonder our main couple finds themselves caught up in questioning the legitimacy of their own love story. And it's not just their relationship to each other that falls into doubt. Jack and Elizabeth struggle with their careers and parenting and their pasts, paralyzed by the never ending desire to do things "right", to be 100 percent certain about every aspect of their lives. It creates an uncrossable gulf between who they are and who they want to be.
Throughout the novel, I found a lot of Hill's broader points to be quite resounding and I generally enjoyed the ride to get there. But if there is one thing Hill is determined to provide, it's a very thorough and complete background of his characters that inevitably brings the plot to a stuttering halt. At various points, we jump backward into Jack and Elizabeth's pasts where we learn why they are the way that they are -Elizabeth terrified of her son's outbursts because they remind her so vividly of her father's competitive rage. Jack desperate for love and attention after being shunned and diminished his entire life. Of course all this context did lead to a deeper appreciation and understanding of the characters, but it was also a massive amount of information that ballooned Wellness into a behemoth of a novel. And I can't help but feel that all of it wasn't necessary. Like when Elizabeth goes on her tirade about all the childhood development studies she's read, teaching the easy and innumerable ways to mess up your child for life. Or the chapter that was dedicated solely to Facebook algorithms and how it jams conspiracy theories down your throat. I know there's a point to all of it but, good lord, there has to be an easier way to lay it out that doesn't take up hundreds of pages.
Despite my frustration with the sheer length of this novel, I did find myself engrossed in Wellness, especially for a story that is so heavily character driven. I was hooked on all the deconstruction and examination of life, all the outrageous and humorous ways we seek to better ourselves. And I cared about Jack and Elizabeth, sticking through to the end with hope for reconciliation. So, yeah, Nathan Hill will definitely always write more than he needs to to get his point across. But it's usually worth it.
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I’m from Chicago, the city. I was turned off after the first page. The scene is between two apartment buildings and the GANGWAY that devides them, except the author keeps calling it an alley. Deep sigh… Next!
While it was a decent story it couldn't get more than 3 stars from me due to its length and often unnecessary back stories throught....it got really exhausting to read through. I feel this author was trying to prove how smart they are.
When you cling too hard to what you want, you miss what’s really there.
I loved everything about this book. The fabulous writing, the wonderful story, the deep and realistic and flawed characters . . . it all just works together and it's one of the best books I've ever read. I laughed out loud at times and found it all so relatable, from love and relationships to childhood trauma and coming of age, to the pursuit of becoming an evolved and authentic person . . . whatever the hell that even means. I loved The Nix but Wellness has surpassed that by far and I sure hope Nathan Hill is already working on his next novel.
I loved everything about this book. The fabulous writing, the wonderful story, the deep and realistic and flawed characters . . . it all just works together and it's one of the best books I've ever read. I laughed out loud at times and found it all so relatable, from love and relationships to childhood trauma and coming of age, to the pursuit of becoming an evolved and authentic person . . . whatever the hell that even means. I loved The Nix but Wellness has surpassed that by far and I sure hope Nathan Hill is already working on his next novel.
Very well researched with a giant bibliography to prove it. I enjoyed thinking about the limits of our obsession with wellness and social media and technology as a whole.
I loved this book so much. At first I thought the author was a little long winded but then I didn’t want it to end (and it was 600 pages). Several chapters could be stand alone short stories especially the first two and the last, and that one bit in the middle (you’ll know). I shed several tears and gasped multiple gasps. It was the kinda book that makes me think wow writing a book is crazy. Anyways, I want everyone I love to read this.