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A review by satinedethye
Invasion of the Body Snatchers by Jack Finney
2.0
Just some of my favorite quotes from this masterpiece:
- ‘I don’t claim much experience with crying women, but in the stories I read, the man always holds the girl close and let’s her cry’ (meaning he has no emotional intelligence whatsoever)
-‘She wasn’t a big girl, exactly, but she wasn’t small, and nothing in her construction had been skimped or neglected’ (he is describing the love of his love and this is the best he can come up with)
- ‘she was not, after all, just a good pal who happened to wear skirts’ (what)
- He takes her out of her bed and puts her in his car and she says “Are you kidnapping me? […] Couldn’t you at least ask me like a gentleman?”’ (I think you meant like a NORMAL person)
- ‘You can never tell, I’ve found, how a woman will take anything’ (no wonder he can’t pull anyone)
- ‘She looked like a girl in an ad for a vacation resort’ (tell me you’re a writer in the 50s without telling me you’re a writer in the 50s)
- ‘Breakfast was a gay affair’ (just thought that was funny)
- ‘She looked fresh and alive and good looking’ (give this man some writing lessons please)
- ‘As most wives, even the wisest, do with any real conviction held by their husbands, Theodora accepted this and made it her own’ (no comment)
- ‘I talk to myself when I shave. “You handsome bastard, […] you are weak. Emotionally unstable. Basically insecure. […] You are undoubtedly a quack, and a Don Juan personality’ (idk if this is relatable or just pathetic)
- ‘Would you mind moving? […] Because I kiss left handed, if you know what I mean’ (lack or rizz showing)
- ‘I heard the little beep-beep sound’ (Byron ran so Jack Finney could run)
- ‘She lay there looking like a schoolboy’s dream’ (nicely put, Miles)
- ‘I hadn’t wanted to tell you this, but there’s a curse in my family; we Bennels are doomed to walk alone. I was in the first generations to try marriage, and you know what happened. If I try it again, I’d turn into an owl’ (drama queen, he only got one divorce)
- ‘Of all people, I, a doctor, should have had more sense’ (bit of a god-complex)
- ‘I took her face in my hands, and kissed her, but it was a gesture of comfort, like kissing a child’ (sus)
- ‘“The world,” I said softly, then cried out, “but why? Oh my god, why?”’ (I don’t know how he managed it but the dialogue sounds like bad acting)
- ‘a fragment of a wartime speech moved through my mind: We shall fight them in the fields, and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender’ (he really thought he did something here it’s just sad)
In a nutshell, this book was poorly written, the romance was cringey, the female characters were stereotypical and the male characters were the only ones who had the capacity to understand what was going on. The plot was somewhat enjoyable, though I think you will feel more tense waiting for your bread to toast than reading this novel. If you do not believe me, I recommend reading the first paragraph, where the narrator himself says you should not read this book.
- ‘I don’t claim much experience with crying women, but in the stories I read, the man always holds the girl close and let’s her cry’ (meaning he has no emotional intelligence whatsoever)
-‘She wasn’t a big girl, exactly, but she wasn’t small, and nothing in her construction had been skimped or neglected’ (he is describing the love of his love and this is the best he can come up with)
- ‘she was not, after all, just a good pal who happened to wear skirts’ (what)
- He takes her out of her bed and puts her in his car and she says “Are you kidnapping me? […] Couldn’t you at least ask me like a gentleman?”’ (I think you meant like a NORMAL person)
- ‘You can never tell, I’ve found, how a woman will take anything’ (no wonder he can’t pull anyone)
- ‘She looked like a girl in an ad for a vacation resort’ (tell me you’re a writer in the 50s without telling me you’re a writer in the 50s)
- ‘Breakfast was a gay affair’ (just thought that was funny)
- ‘She looked fresh and alive and good looking’ (give this man some writing lessons please)
- ‘As most wives, even the wisest, do with any real conviction held by their husbands, Theodora accepted this and made it her own’ (no comment)
- ‘I talk to myself when I shave. “You handsome bastard, […] you are weak. Emotionally unstable. Basically insecure. […] You are undoubtedly a quack, and a Don Juan personality’ (idk if this is relatable or just pathetic)
- ‘Would you mind moving? […] Because I kiss left handed, if you know what I mean’ (lack or rizz showing)
- ‘I heard the little beep-beep sound’ (Byron ran so Jack Finney could run)
- ‘She lay there looking like a schoolboy’s dream’ (nicely put, Miles)
- ‘I hadn’t wanted to tell you this, but there’s a curse in my family; we Bennels are doomed to walk alone. I was in the first generations to try marriage, and you know what happened. If I try it again, I’d turn into an owl’ (drama queen, he only got one divorce)
- ‘Of all people, I, a doctor, should have had more sense’ (bit of a god-complex)
- ‘I took her face in my hands, and kissed her, but it was a gesture of comfort, like kissing a child’ (sus)
- ‘“The world,” I said softly, then cried out, “but why? Oh my god, why?”’ (I don’t know how he managed it but the dialogue sounds like bad acting)
- ‘a fragment of a wartime speech moved through my mind: We shall fight them in the fields, and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender’ (he really thought he did something here it’s just sad)
In a nutshell, this book was poorly written, the romance was cringey, the female characters were stereotypical and the male characters were the only ones who had the capacity to understand what was going on. The plot was somewhat enjoyable, though I think you will feel more tense waiting for your bread to toast than reading this novel. If you do not believe me, I recommend reading the first paragraph, where the narrator himself says you should not read this book.