March Book Review
This month I did something that I have never done before: I intentionally abandoned a book. Historically, my need to finish every book I start has bordered on compulsion. When I picked up The Last of the Mohicans as a teen and quickly grew exasperated with Natty Bumppo’s supercilious monologuing, I still only took a year off before coming back and reading the rest. I am a fast reader and willing to give authors a solid chance to get around to the interesting parts, so up to this point I’ve just powered through, although sometimes simply on the impetus of wanting to have as much data as possible for my one star review.
But this one. This one finally made me say, “This isn’t worth it.” I made it a chapter and a half in before concluding that the main character (from whose first-person point of view the story was being told) was a self-righteous asshole with no signs of having a redemption arc, that the plot was not one I cared about, and that I could have possibly persevered through one of those two things (but probably not both) had they not been thickly painted over with a landlord’s special of editorializing and acerbic social commentary.
I don’t demand that the protagonist always be someone I like, or even someone generally likable. Unreliable narrators and morally grey (or fully morals-absent) protagonists can make for an interesting tale. I will extend a lot of grace for plotting and pacing if it’s a debut author, or their first book in a new-to-them genre. And I believe that fiction is a wonderful medium for exploring and exposing societal issues, although not at the expense of the story itself.
But that was my ultimate deciding factor. Neil Gaiman defines a story as “anything fictional that keeps you turning the pages and doesn’t leave you feeling cheated at the end,” and by that definition, this was not a story. I spent more time reading deeply validating one and two star GoodReads reviews than I spent reading the book itself.
I’d like to say I learned some grand lesson about the value of my time, or not choosing books by their covers, or the importance of reading a few reviews before starting a book, but I promptly spent an exasperated afternoon yelling advice (all of which was ignored) at the protagonist of another book, so it appears to have been a one-off. Ah, well.
Heretic by Jeanna Kadlec, nonfiction. A memoir on leaving evangelicalism and embracing queerness, and finding oneself.
The Lending Library by Aliza Fogelson, fiction. Dodie Fairisle’s life is filling up, between her job as a teacher, opening a library out of her sunroom while the local public library is closed for renovations, and playing with her friend’s new baby—but she can’t see past what she feels she’s missing.
America the Beautiful? by Blythe Roberson, nonfiction. Travelogue of a woman visiting various US national parks (selected in order to expand her Junior Ranger Badge collection) over a long summer.
Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng, fiction. Book club read. A house in a perfectly planned neighborhood is burning, and the family who lived there are outside watching. How have the previous months led to this moment?
Return to Nature: the New Science of How Natural Landscapes Restore Us by Emma Lowe, nonfiction. A thoughtful look at different biomes (oceans, deserts, even cities) and the unique benefits and lessons they impart.
The Mystery Writer by Sulari Gentill, fiction. Theo Benton drops out of law school and goes to stay with her brother, to pursue her dream of becoming a writer. But the author friend she writes with in a cafe is not who he appears to be, and soon she and everyone she cares for are entangled in conspiracy. (If you want to read this, DO NOT READ THE BACK COVER SUMMARY it has multiple spoilers)
In Search of Perfumes by Dominique Roques, nonfiction. A sourcer details the origins (geographical and historical) of key plants used in making perfume, reviewing stories and encounters from decades in the industry.
The Fury by Alex Michaelides, fiction. Pull up a metaphorical bar stool while Elliot tells you a story about seven people on an island, and how one was murdered.
Total books read: 28
Fiction: 14
Nonfiction: 14