3.96 AVERAGE


Ok, so I read this one out of all the great reviews and recommendations. I ... liked it? I just don't know what to think about it, I feel like this is the first "contemporary" fiction book I've ever read, but I'm sure that's not true, but still feel like it. I enjoyed the male perspective of it, found that to be the main reason I kept coming back to the book, but I just felt like I was being pulled from all these different directions, with Mimi's story and then the Dad, and then the marriage and then... I don't know if that wowed or annoyed me.

I guess looking at the three-star rating, I think it did annoy me enough to not fully enjoy the story. There're some parts of the book that I absolutely loved, especially those that talked about the Cathedral, those were my favorites, but the book as a whole wasna.

dnf 45% :)

4.5

Dear Sarah Moss I absolutely loved your book. I love how intricate and complex your characters where portrayed and how natural and subtle it was done. I haven't read about such realistic characters in a long time and especially ones that made me hopeful about humanity. I would also like to thank you for representing a stay at home dad who doesn't conform to the gender norm society has set upon him and a fifteen years old girl who is a feminist and has better things to do (like reading Simone de Beauvoir and Edward Said) than being involved in a love triangle while also telling the story of a family and who has to deal with the fact that humans are mortal and that death is unpredictable and inexorable.

Now if you could please write this same story or even better, the sequel to this book through the perspective of Miriam I would be forever grateful and elated.

The main story was at times interesting, however there seemed a lot of divergent topics and overall the book didn't seem to go anywhere.

'The Tidal Zone' by Sarah Moss is both astonishingly rich and accessibly written. The character of Miriam is modern and opinionated and righteous and rebellious; while her father Adam’s narrative voice is impeccable and complex. This book cries and it shouts; it comforts and it seethes. I loved it.

Read my full review on my blog:

http://www.50ayear.com/2016/12/02/63-the-tidal-zone-by-sarah-moss/

Dull, middle-class bloke moans about how trapped he is by his comfortable life, but takes great pains to keep telling us he recognises his privilege, because middle-class guilt is about as tedious as it gets.

He's a stay-at-home-dad and his wife is a workaholic, "absentee" (by his standards) parent. At first this flip on traditional gender roles was interesting, but overall it added nothing that hasn't already been said hundreds of times before about housewives and absent fathers. He resents his wife, but knows he's reliant on her wealth. He takes the moral high ground by telling himself he loves the kids better. He spoils them - not with Nutella, God forbid (they get fed enough junk in their comprehensive school dinners, thank you) - but by doing every damn thing for them and holding them accountable for nothing; by bribing them with "treats" to do anything that causes them a minor inconvenience. The 15 year old is an absolute cliché of teenage "rebellion" and the 8 year old is both precocious and childish in a way that is neither cute nor endearing. The grandad texted "pork" instead of "park" because he is from The Past, bless him and God, I can't take any more of this stupid, dull, performatively "woke" family.

Don't get me wrong, I don't think being of a particular class inherently makes you any sort of person. You are who you are. But here, the parents have declined Grandad's offer to send the kids to private school because they want to reject ~privilege~. And yet at the same time Dad's moaning about the schools they go to, the crap food they're given, as though he couldn't solve these issues with one phone call. Let me tell you, skint parents don't chose shittier lives for their kids because they're weighing up the moral implications. There are plenty who would cook hot dinners and send their children to private schools in a heartbeat if only they had the means.

I digress...

In addition to the aggravating characters, the narrative itself jumps between main plot and sub-plot in such a disjointed way. Maybe it's all knitted together in the end, but this back and forth slows things down to a snail's pace. There's no urgency in this novel - no reason to keep reading - when every chapter can be summed up with "what if she stops breathing again?". Yes, I wanted to scream, what happens then? Please, tell me! Please, God, let something interesting happen in this drudge of a story!

4.5 stars

Really enjoyed this. Looking forward to reading more by this author as I've been meaning to for a while now.

A profound, witty and beautiful take on the current social issues of our time and the uncertainty of life and death.
Absolute perfection.

2.5 stars. My second Sarah Moss and probably my last for the moment. I’m afraid to say that this author isn’t for me — although in both The Tidal Zone and Ghost Wall the writing has, on the whole, been extremely good, I’ve found them both pretty dull. I’ve mostly found that Moss is perceptive about British society and she very deftly goes into the cultural and economic divides that disadvantage us. But it’s all just a bit middle class for me, and that annoying kind of middle class that is self-deprecating and “oh what is to be done? I’ll mull it over while I enjoy some vintage wine on my holidays in the Italian mountains.” That’s all well and good because of course, everything is relative, but I have to say that I don’t find it very interesting reading.
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The Tidal Zone begins with 15 year old Mimi collapsing in school, as part of her as yet undiagnosed medical issue. She spends 12 days in hospital, and during her stay and for some weeks after, we follow her precariously employed academic father and his worries about her health. He is married to Emma, the breadwinner in their family, who is very busy being a GP in an underfunded practice. They also have another daughter who is 8 and who I can’t remember the name of as I type this even though I finished it 2 hours ago which says enough. Intercepted with the story of their family life is the history of the father’s American and Jewish dad and his travels, and the academic work that he is researching on the Arts and Crafts movement in cathedrals. I *think* what Moss was getting at with these individual threads was the shared history of labour that unites us but I’m not too sure and don’t care enough to think about it too much.
emotional reflective tense slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes