Scan barcode
A review by yasmineiliana
A Bright Ray of Darkness by Ethan Hawke
3.0
Ethan Hawke released a novel after roughly two decades without one and he released a self-insert novel for straight white men. Somehow, I still enjoyed it despite myself. Nineteen, female, Mexican-American, and I have so many wonderful things I can say about it. I won’t, though, because William Harding will never read this review but if he could I would want him to know that I hate how one-sided all of the women in his life (this novel) are. The woman with the most depth is his mother and that isn’t saying much. Every female character either wants to sleep with him, he has slept with, is his mother, coddles him, or is his daughter.
Hawke writes about theatre with the precision and accuracy of someone who has experienced it, though, and this is the saving grace that convinces me that this book is better than some other reviewers give it credit for. Stylistically it is incredible, but it is lacking in substance.
I was ultimately underwhelmed with the ending and the story’s progression, but it had its redeemable moments and I really just bought the book because it was signed by an actor whose performances I have loved and enjoyed and when I got bored Hawke reeled me back in hard and fast with an unexpected character death. Read it if you’re a white guy. If you’re not but you like Ethan Hawke you’ll like it well enough. That is all.
Hawke writes about theatre with the precision and accuracy of someone who has experienced it, though, and this is the saving grace that convinces me that this book is better than some other reviewers give it credit for. Stylistically it is incredible, but it is lacking in substance.
I was ultimately underwhelmed with the ending and the story’s progression, but it had its redeemable moments and I really just bought the book because it was signed by an actor whose performances I have loved and enjoyed and when I got bored Hawke reeled me back in hard and fast with an unexpected character death. Read it if you’re a white guy. If you’re not but you like Ethan Hawke you’ll like it well enough. That is all.