A review by mulders
Memorial by Bryan Washington

reflective slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

“That loving a person means letting them change when they need to. And letting them go when they need to. And that doesn’t make them any less of a home. Just maybe not one for you. Or only for a season or two. But that doesn’t diminish the love. It just changes forms.”

reading memorial i kept forgetting i was reading a novel and not a memoir. there is nothing formulaic about it. it just flows, like life does. a character will do something or say something and i'll wonder what in their past could have led to it, knowing i will probably never learn, and only then will i remember that their past is not real because they haven't lived before they did on this page. it makes for an interesting read, however, this lack of insight and this unfamiliarity actually created a distance between me and the characters and i didn't feel as connected or as invested in their choices and their outcomes. i felt like i will never understand them completely- true for humans, but feels incomplete in a novel. while it was mostly an enjoyable read, it felt longer than it should have, and ultimately this is not a story i think will stick with me for a long time.
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