A review by life_full_ofbooks
We Need to Talk About Kevin by Lionel Shriver

challenging dark sad tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

I tried reading this 11 years ago and never finished it. I only picked it up again because it was the monthly pick for my book club. I have so many thoughts about this and I’m really looking forward to this month’s meeting!
Eva never wanted to be a mother, that’s just something about herself she always knew and she was perfectly fine with that. She ultimately put her wishes aside for her husband and gave birth to a baby boy. While her husband thinks Kevin is the most perfect baby, Eva knows there’s something sinister about him. For 16 years they constantly fight over Kevin with Franklin becoming more distressed that Eva only sees him in a negative way- until the day there is a school shooting at Kevin’s school and it turns out Kevin is the shooter. 
The story plays out via letters written from Eva to Franklin two years after the shooting and all are Eva recounting their relationship, marriage, and lives as parents though some letters also contain stories from just after the shooting to Eva’s present day including other school shootings and her visits with Kevin. 
I really think this book was about 150 pages too long and it felt like a rant from the author. There are so many real school shootings mentioned in the book that it stopped reading like a novel and felt more like a Who’s Who of school shootings. I researched nearly all of them and the facts included in this novel are 100% true. Because of that this became a very uncomfortable read (well, listen). I’m a big fan of discussing topics that shouldn’t be forgotten but Ms. Shriver hits us over the head with this so many times that it completely loses its shock value. By the end I was rolling my eyes thinking enough is enough and quite honestly had I been reading this I would have skipped several parts.