A review by gwalt118
The Descendants by Kaui Hart Hemmings

4.0

I read this because I want to see the movie, and I almost always read the book before I see the movie (duh). My favorite thing about this book was the character development, especially with Matt and Alex. Hemmings does an excellent job of showing characters' strengths and weaknesses, as well as how they grow over the course of the novel. The juxtaposition of this growth with Joanie's death is done beautifully; it's not overstated, but the inference is certainly there. I like this book because it's real - I can definitely see this happening in real life. The characters and their situations feel like this story could be happening next door to you. It's not a happy ending, but it's a hopeful one. I don't know why someone would not enjoy this book. Now I need to see the movie. :-)