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A review by jenbsbooks
Shark Heart: A Love Story by Emily Habeck
3.75
I'm not sure how I feel about this one. Very unique, and I was enjoying it while I was listening (went with the audiobook). After it finished, I reflected on it, a bit critically, and my enjoyment dropped some. Then, I picked up the kindle copy, and ended up re-reading the whole thing, making several highlights, and appreciating it more. So I think I went from 3*, to 2* to 4* ... so 3.75 stars?
There was so much buzz, I think I was expecting more, an emotional impact (maybe I'm too hardened, if this didn't hit me). As the storyline introduced animal mutations as a, not "common" but also not as strange as one would think when reading the synopsis ... instead of being diagnosed with Cancer, you could be diagnosed with a Carcharodon carcharias mutation. Basically, you are going to turn from human, into a great white shark. And it's one of the faster mutations (some may take 20 years, but not this one). I thought there might be more of an examination of healthcare, of living/dying with a diagnosis ... even of abortion rights (when the mother's life would be in danger). More of a discussion of euthanasia, of deciding to die human rather than turning into an animal.
Mostly 3rd person/past tense ... there were some "scenes" (in fact listed as scenes, written as a play), other portions when it shifted to present tense. POV was mostly Lewis/Wren for the first part, then Part 2 shifts to Angela (Wren's mother, shifting back in time) and then Wren again. Part 3 is Lewis again (in shark form). So LOTS of jumping around ... in POV, in time, in style/presentation. A little too jumpy?
I was left with questions ... why during the Lewis/Wren Part 1, Wren's mother's situation was never really brought up (on my re-read, I could see allusions to it, but not really something I picked up on the first go round). It seems like that would have been a discussion! Poor Wren ... she actually comes off as almost too perfect. From her early like, living in a low-income home, having to take care of things, yet still doing all that, excelling at school, at life, the book even says "Could one person really be that great at everything?" about her, and I had asked myself that too. While she did struggle at work once things got hard, she apparently had made enough money that she could quit and take care of her husband full time, and had no issues buying out the meat counter. It just seems like money, time, exhaustion and having this be the second time she's had to do this ... I guess I'm just not as good a person as she is. I don't know that I could do that and stay sane.
Was Lewis's dad's name being George, and Angela's second love being named George a plan, or coincidence? I know in life, names will repeat, but that the author would purposely choose to repeat it? It confused me. I wasn't sure about why some of the storyline were included ... Wren's earlier lesbian life (just the "next time you'll be ready"?) and even the TPW (Tiny Pregnant Woman) ... The "scenes" written (were they Lewis's play?) ... the one night stand (made me wonder if Joy was Lewis's, or from that?)
No chronological chapters ... Three parts, with chapters with headings within. Just glancing over the Table of Contents, you can see how it jumps around. There are the chronological months (June, July, August Scene: The Stage Manager, September, October) and between these, more "scenes" and Wren, Age Nine; Wren Age Eighteen ... the Epilogue has 17 little "chapters" .... this whole book had a ton of "little chapters" and interesting spacing.
The narrators did a good job. It would be a little hard when the "Wren" narrator would voice Lewis talking, and it sounds SO different from Lewis talking with the "Lewis" narrator ... I would have really liked duet narration! There was one little spot where it was! The child voices (young Wren, young Joy) were very sweet and cute.
There was no proFanity - some sex, nothing super explicit, but grooming of a young girl which could be a trigger for some. Violence ... one little "the dog dies" moment.
There was so much buzz, I think I was expecting more, an emotional impact (maybe I'm too hardened, if this didn't hit me). As the storyline introduced animal mutations as a, not "common" but also not as strange as one would think when reading the synopsis ... instead of being diagnosed with Cancer, you could be diagnosed with a Carcharodon carcharias mutation. Basically, you are going to turn from human, into a great white shark. And it's one of the faster mutations (some may take 20 years, but not this one). I thought there might be more of an examination of healthcare, of living/dying with a diagnosis ... even of abortion rights (when the mother's life would be in danger). More of a discussion of euthanasia, of deciding to die human rather than turning into an animal.
Mostly 3rd person/past tense ... there were some "scenes" (in fact listed as scenes, written as a play), other portions when it shifted to present tense. POV was mostly Lewis/Wren for the first part, then Part 2 shifts to Angela (Wren's mother, shifting back in time) and then Wren again. Part 3 is Lewis again (in shark form). So LOTS of jumping around ... in POV, in time, in style/presentation. A little too jumpy?
I was left with questions ... why during the Lewis/Wren Part 1, Wren's mother's situation was never really brought up (on my re-read, I could see allusions to it, but not really something I picked up on the first go round). It seems like that would have been a discussion! Poor Wren ... she actually comes off as almost too perfect. From her early like, living in a low-income home, having to take care of things, yet still doing all that, excelling at school, at life, the book even says "Could one person really be that great at everything?" about her, and I had asked myself that too. While she did struggle at work once things got hard, she apparently had made enough money that she could quit and take care of her husband full time, and had no issues buying out the meat counter. It just seems like money, time, exhaustion and having this be the second time she's had to do this ... I guess I'm just not as good a person as she is. I don't know that I could do that and stay sane.
Was Lewis's dad's name being George, and Angela's second love being named George a plan, or coincidence? I know in life, names will repeat, but that the author would purposely choose to repeat it? It confused me. I wasn't sure about why some of the storyline were included ... Wren's earlier lesbian life (just the "next time you'll be ready"?) and even the TPW (Tiny Pregnant Woman) ... The "scenes" written (were they Lewis's play?) ... the one night stand (made me wonder if Joy was Lewis's, or from that?)
No chronological chapters ... Three parts, with chapters with headings within. Just glancing over the Table of Contents, you can see how it jumps around. There are the chronological months (June, July, August Scene: The Stage Manager, September, October) and between these, more "scenes" and Wren, Age Nine; Wren Age Eighteen ... the Epilogue has 17 little "chapters" .... this whole book had a ton of "little chapters" and interesting spacing.
The narrators did a good job. It would be a little hard when the "Wren" narrator would voice Lewis talking, and it sounds SO different from Lewis talking with the "Lewis" narrator ... I would have really liked duet narration! There was one little spot where it was! The child voices (young Wren, young Joy) were very sweet and cute.
There was no proFanity - some sex, nothing super explicit, but grooming of a young girl which could be a trigger for some. Violence ... one little "the dog dies" moment.