So I want to do a Mini Review Monday, on the weeks that I don’t get something in the mail, because let’s face it, I’m on a book buying ban. Also I read a lot of books in one month and some of them are just okay or they don’t really get me ranting or raving, but I still want to share how I felt about them.
So this week’s mini review is about After the End by Clare MacKintosh.
I don’t make it a habit to read heavy books but this one shook me. I don’t have children so I couldn’t know what these people were going through but the first part of the book was phenomenal. The second part, not so much. It is something that I struggle with quite often. This story reminds me of Jodi Piccolt’s My Sister’s Keeper but only so far as it has to do with children and cancer and the effects on the family. One of the things that I appreciated was the doctor’s perspective. It made for a more comprehensive read, but there were parts that didn’t need to be in there. Also the sliding door thing? I didn’t like it when The Two Lila Bennetts did it and don’t like it now.
In both iterations/forks in the wood, (I hated the fact that Robert Frost’s poem is used because the poem doesn’t represent indecision, it represents taking the path that not everyone else takes and that will set you apart.) Pip is the bad guy, and even when Max does some messed up stuff, there is more empathy shown for him. The narrative in that way did not feel equal. Because of the sliding doors narrative, we don’t get a definitive ending. As much as I appreciate this contemporary novel for bringing such a heavy subject to life, I don’t think that it as executed well.
That was it. Short and sweet. Let me know if you like this format.
Reading Reckless : Rants and Raves 