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jimmyjamesnickels's review against another edition
3.0
There was good and bad with this book, never more one than the other to push the scales effectively one way. On one side, it is undeniable that this is a very talented author with a wonderful ability for lyrical, poetic turns of the phrase. However, the enjoyment I derived from reading work by an writer talented enough to seem more artist than author was greatly lessened by the fact I didn't really care for the book itself. I can appreciate it for the sum of it's parts, but the whole was just not that great. It's a paradox, I suppose...I enjoyed this book, but I didn't like it.
A major problem I had was with the characters themselves, also in how the passage of time was handled. The 'voice' of each character is almost unchanging from one to the next, they're all liberal and self important sorts with an airy-fairy approach to what happens to them. This is especially egregious with the sisters, Carmen and Alice...unless specific indicators were used early on in the chapters, if their partners were named for example, the characters/voice/motivation/etc for the two sisters was so interchangeable it seemed almost pointless to have two separate characters in the first place. Frankly, the sexual orientation of the two women seemed the only major defining difference between them, other than that you could have meshed the two into one character with no big differences in the flow of the plot. Further, it was generally impossible to determine the passage of time from one chapter to the next...sometimes a chapter would begin and it flowed chronologically, other times you'd read a few pages and there'd be an offhand mention of a new president or a child would randomly be aged up five years.
Also, the book and it's characters can be laughably pretentious at times. Pompous, even. There's a heavy degree of Captain Tryhard with these characters, in the sense we're dealing with Special, Exceptionally Deep, Artistic types who are Special and Weird, who feel things more deeply and authentically than mundies. All that's missing is a kid with a video camera filming a plastic bag in the breeze, whispering "I'm not...normal." But! I am willing to believe that this is done deliberately, not necessarily in the sense of being tongue in cheek but more ...self aware, I suppose. Taking the piss on pretentious arteests. This was especially apparent to me with but again...perhaps that in and of itself is the point: Bad things happen, they happen to deep thinkers and pretentious artists, they happen to common folk, to anyone. And one way or another, life still goes plodding on and this book showcases a slice of how life does indeed go on.
I begin this review by saying I both liked and disliked the book, and then spend the whole of the review bashing it. :p A bit unbalanced, maybe? This isn't a bad book, as I said it is exceptionally well written and the author's mastery of the written word truly did draw me in at times. It's just not the book for me, I acknowledge this. It was still a good book, just not my cup of tea.
A major problem I had was with the characters themselves, also in how the passage of time was handled. The 'voice' of each character is almost unchanging from one to the next, they're all liberal and self important sorts with an airy-fairy approach to what happens to them. This is especially egregious with the sisters, Carmen and Alice...unless specific indicators were used early on in the chapters, if their partners were named for example, the characters/voice/motivation/etc for the two sisters was so interchangeable it seemed almost pointless to have two separate characters in the first place. Frankly, the sexual orientation of the two women seemed the only major defining difference between them, other than that you could have meshed the two into one character with no big differences in the flow of the plot. Further, it was generally impossible to determine the passage of time from one chapter to the next...sometimes a chapter would begin and it flowed chronologically, other times you'd read a few pages and there'd be an offhand mention of a new president or a child would randomly be aged up five years.
Also, the book and it's characters can be laughably pretentious at times. Pompous, even. There's a heavy degree of Captain Tryhard with these characters, in the sense we're dealing with Special, Exceptionally Deep, Artistic types who are Special and Weird, who feel things more deeply and authentically than mundies. All that's missing is a kid with a video camera filming a plastic bag in the breeze, whispering "I'm not...normal." But! I am willing to believe that this is done deliberately, not necessarily in the sense of being tongue in cheek but more ...self aware, I suppose. Taking the piss on pretentious arteests. This was especially apparent to me with
Spoiler
the reveal of Carmen's husband's affair. She goes to great pains to assure the reader, her husbands affair with the nineteen year old babysitter is NOT tawdry and cliched like the affairs of other middle aged men and their post adolescent babysitters because Reasons. The tawdry, embarrassing part is something that happens to Other people, lesser people.I begin this review by saying I both liked and disliked the book, and then spend the whole of the review bashing it. :p A bit unbalanced, maybe? This isn't a bad book, as I said it is exceptionally well written and the author's mastery of the written word truly did draw me in at times. It's just not the book for me, I acknowledge this. It was still a good book, just not my cup of tea.
d52s's review
1.0
This book got such great reviews - even one from the author of Room, a book I loved - but I really, really disliked it.
The premise of the book - these young adults kills a child in a car accident - is just dropped. I think the story would have unfolded regardless of this event. That was very disappointing, as a reader I naturally was looking for their growth/adaption/forgiveness etc after such a life changing event.
Second, I wondered if the author used the lesbian sex and the drug use as a shock factor, to distract from the bad writing and lack of anything real to hold your interest. I wasn't interested in reading about that, but would have loved a book that delivered on its premise.
Save your time and money on this one.
The premise of the book - these young adults kills a child in a car accident - is just dropped. I think the story would have unfolded regardless of this event. That was very disappointing, as a reader I naturally was looking for their growth/adaption/forgiveness etc after such a life changing event.
Second, I wondered if the author used the lesbian sex and the drug use as a shock factor, to distract from the bad writing and lack of anything real to hold your interest. I wasn't interested in reading about that, but would have loved a book that delivered on its premise.
Save your time and money on this one.
wrentheblurry's review
4.0
Everyone deals with tragedy in their own way. When guilt is involved, that alters things too. This story mainly takes you through the lives of three siblings, relating their connections with each other, their spouses/partners, their parents, and how the accident has affected them. Although I don't know anyone who has endured something like this, Anshaw made the story feel real for me, and relate-able. The character development is strong, and I am pleased at who ended up with whom.
There is pain along the way, plus passion, joy, loss, complacency, and success. The examples (not really metaphors, but close) the characters used to describe their feelings were thought-provoking and spot-on. Nothing was over-the-top. It's just a somewhat brief, well-told story. I would like to read another book which continues where this one left off, or one that delves even further into the characters.
My main complaint is the ending--I feel like it was supposed to mean something, but I don't know what. Maybe each reader should decide for themselves, but I just thought it was confusing and a bit out of left field.
Other than that, really good read!
There is pain along the way, plus passion, joy, loss, complacency, and success. The examples (not really metaphors, but close) the characters used to describe their feelings were thought-provoking and spot-on. Nothing was over-the-top. It's just a somewhat brief, well-told story. I would like to read another book which continues where this one left off, or one that delves even further into the characters.
My main complaint is the ending--I feel like it was supposed to mean something, but I don't know what. Maybe each reader should decide for themselves, but I just thought it was confusing and a bit out of left field.
Other than that, really good read!
jmj697mn's review
2.0
I thought I might end up liking some of the characters by the end, but I just couldn't wait until it was over. I loved how the author wove in details from each time period, including 9/11, but in the end I just didn't care about any of the characters or their lives.
lydisaurus's review against another edition
This book is mostly context, very little dialogue. As someone with aphantasia, I can’t imagine things, so context does little to nothing for me. Interesting story, wish it was written differently but not bad!! Just not for me.
owlymay's review against another edition
3.0
I widely enjoyed this book. I felt that there were unique characters that were enjoyable to watch. I also felt that Carmen was really easy to relate to, which was nice to have someone to align with. That being said, I did not really like the writing style and it was hard for me to get into initially. This was my "purse book" (for riding on the subway, waiting rooms, etc), and it honestly took me until about halfway through to have any desire to pick it up any other time. I went back and forth on it for a while. I didn't like how the accident didn't really relate to a lot of the content. I felt like a few more connections back would have made it a 4 star book.
katzreads's review against another edition
3.0
Well written, great character descriptions, just didn't grab me the way the blurb promised. Lately I've been reading a lot of "meh"--not bad enough to quit on, not good enough to cheer about. Might be time to return to reading Pulitzer winners!
ja3m3's review against another edition
3.0
After a late wedding reception in rural Wisconsin two siblings and four friends are driving back to Chicago stoned and drunk when they hit and kill a ten-year-old girl. The rest of the book focuses on how the death of the little girl impacts the direction of their lives.
The premise of this book was very promising and one cannot deny that Anshaw has an amazing gift to twist words to create immense imagery and feeling: “The social road ahead looked like a bleak highway, post-apocalyptic overblown with dust, gray and lifeless except for mutants popping up here and there.” - pretty much how I would describe the dating scene. My problem with the storyline was that the characters were unbelievable and were not likeable. I don’t expect to like all the characters in a book that would be boring, but at least give me a reason to continue reading the book. I kept asking myself as I read the book, “Who are these people. Do they really exist?” There was only one person the person who was driving the car that killed the girl that I felt had changed and I couldn’t decide if she had changed because of the girl’s death or her time in prison. The only change in the other characters was that the death just magnified how selfish and flawed they were which became very tiresome to read.
The premise of this book was very promising and one cannot deny that Anshaw has an amazing gift to twist words to create immense imagery and feeling: “The social road ahead looked like a bleak highway, post-apocalyptic overblown with dust, gray and lifeless except for mutants popping up here and there.” - pretty much how I would describe the dating scene. My problem with the storyline was that the characters were unbelievable and were not likeable. I don’t expect to like all the characters in a book that would be boring, but at least give me a reason to continue reading the book. I kept asking myself as I read the book, “Who are these people. Do they really exist?” There was only one person the person who was driving the car that killed the girl that I felt had changed and I couldn’t decide if she had changed because of the girl’s death or her time in prison. The only change in the other characters was that the death just magnified how selfish and flawed they were which became very tiresome to read.
smjohns91's review against another edition
2.0
I thought it was difficult to get into and hard to follow. The characters were bland and I didn't think it was an interesting storyline. Though the first few chapters showed potential, it was lackluster.
amycrea's review against another edition
2.0
It might have gotten 3 stars if not for the final page.