I started this book with minimal expectations, having never heard of the book or the author, and I can now say this book wasn’t for me. Overall it was paced too slow and the book was too long for me to find it enjoyable or gripping, but it wasn’t so bad that I stopped outright (plus, it was for a book club and I tend to see book club picks through to the end).
The subject matter of this book is heavy and for me there was a personal connection. In this book, the main character is begging a mental decline from dementia. The action of the book takes place in the present-ish of 2018 as she is struggling to maintain her grip on the present, but she also jumps back to 1951 where she is desperate to remember what happened to her friend that went missing in high school. It is a sad and bleak book. Also, there is a history of dementia in my family, so I started this book with my teeth clenched and stayed that way throughout.
Suffice it to say, I found it a difficult read. Watching a person struggle with dementia + watching said person’s family struggle with their dementia + teenage girl in a small town with limited options + unsupportive mother = A real bummer. And I don’t want to spoil it, but there are two other plot points that are even bigger bummers than what I’ve already mentioned. I appreciate what the author did with the POV so that the reader could understand what this illness does both to a person experiencing it and their family members, but it was a toil for me to make it through.
All that to say, since I already said this book isn’t something I would have picked up, and it was chosen by someone else in my book club, it’s not surprising that it wasn’t my favorite, but I do think it’ll make for good book club conversation.
In somewhat related news, needing this book lead me to an amazing discovery. My library didn’t have it but I learned I could take my library card and go to an ENTIRELY DIFFERENT LIBRARY OUTSIDE OF MY OWN BRANCH and use the card and get a book. REVOLUTIONARY. I’m only mad I’ve been living here for 7 years and didn’t know. So, don’t be like me. See if the same is possible for you where you live!