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sarahvankuiken 's review for:
What Comes After
by JoAnne Tompkins
Okay. I’m ready for this review now.
This book reminded me a lot of Plainsong by Kent Haruf with the pregnant teenage girl finding safety and solace by being pseudo-adopted by an older, simpler man. However, while I loved Plainsong, I think it had a more simplistic writing style than What Comes After. One of the things I loved about this book was the complexity in character voice. Each chapter - divided into three characters’ perspective - had a distinct voice that was compelling and vivid. Isaac’s chapters were surprisingly refreshing, painting a picture of a man that thinks honestly about his bad characteristics and battles them from surfacing. Jonah’s chapters were heartbreaking, but they were also incredibly poignant. His discussion of evil being necessary or good in itself had me SHOOK. Evangeline’s 3rd person chapter were intriguing because of the lack of agency throughout her life being reflected and eventually restored. Beyond the writing, the ideas were also complex. The use of the dogs as reflections of other characters was especially well done. My only critique would be the ending. While it was well-suited to the story, it almost felt too happy? I wasn’t completely convinced and didn’t feel the same connection to the Quaker light storyline as I did to other elements of the book. Still 100% worthwhile and well done.
This book reminded me a lot of Plainsong by Kent Haruf with the pregnant teenage girl finding safety and solace by being pseudo-adopted by an older, simpler man. However, while I loved Plainsong, I think it had a more simplistic writing style than What Comes After. One of the things I loved about this book was the complexity in character voice. Each chapter - divided into three characters’ perspective - had a distinct voice that was compelling and vivid. Isaac’s chapters were surprisingly refreshing, painting a picture of a man that thinks honestly about his bad characteristics and battles them from surfacing. Jonah’s chapters were heartbreaking, but they were also incredibly poignant. His discussion of evil being necessary or good in itself had me SHOOK. Evangeline’s 3rd person chapter were intriguing because of the lack of agency throughout her life being reflected and eventually restored. Beyond the writing, the ideas were also complex. The use of the dogs as reflections of other characters was especially well done. My only critique would be the ending. While it was well-suited to the story, it almost felt too happy? I wasn’t completely convinced and didn’t feel the same connection to the Quaker light storyline as I did to other elements of the book. Still 100% worthwhile and well done.