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verbicideMy bookclub chose Tim O'Brien's In the Lake of the Woods for our next book. I wasn't thrilled because as much as I've heard great things about his other books, I rarely like war stories. And I didn't want to read about some woman lost in the woods, either. But that's the way the group voted, and I didn't want to miss meeting with them next month, so.
I really struggled with it. To the point that I couldn't read it at home. So a plan was born to go out every night, sit in a cafe, and read 50 pages. I finally finished it last night. Hated it all the way through.
This is the basic summary of the story: In the Lake of the Woods is O'Brien's portrayal of a historian or biographer's attempt at piecing together the mystery of the disappearance of Kathy Wade. Kathy's husband, John, recently lost a primary election to become Minnesota's Democratic candidate for the U.S. Senate after his involvement in the My Lai Massacre in Vietnam was revealed to the public.
I hated the structure of the book. It was divided into the story, pages of weird evidence (quotes from other trials, from literature, from interviews of the missing woman's case), and hypothetical imaginings of where the woman was. I didn't care if they found her. I didn't care what happened to John, either.
I hated the main guy (John). I didn't care for his wife (the missing woman). I hated the story itself, I didn't care about anything that was happening to them. I just felt revulsion in how they portrayed John's obsession with his wife throughout college--he totally grossed me out. HATE. And yet, looking forward to going to bookclub to hear how others liked it. One of the afternoons in a cafe, some guy told me that he loved the book. Well. Tastes they vary. People on Amazon's reviews LOVED it. But I really appreciated this particular negative review, because it totally got how I felt about it: "This novel does not have enough thematic substance or emotional resonance to carry our interest. The symbolism is heavy handed and the protagonist lacks sympathy. His parents are caricatures, as are the other supporting characters. Kathy, the missing wife, is not developed as a character enough nor is their marriage compelling enough to induce our interest in their fate as a couple or as individuals. "
So glad it's OVER. Never have to read that one again.
To get the taste of it out of my mouth, I started reading Raw Shark Texts immediately, and I'm already hooked. Very curious about the story, the character, where it's going. Going to continue my nightly cafe-reading trend. It gets me out of the house and with some exercise for a bonus. Something to look forward to all day!
I really struggled with it. To the point that I couldn't read it at home. So a plan was born to go out every night, sit in a cafe, and read 50 pages. I finally finished it last night. Hated it all the way through.
This is the basic summary of the story: In the Lake of the Woods is O'Brien's portrayal of a historian or biographer's attempt at piecing together the mystery of the disappearance of Kathy Wade. Kathy's husband, John, recently lost a primary election to become Minnesota's Democratic candidate for the U.S. Senate after his involvement in the My Lai Massacre in Vietnam was revealed to the public.
I hated the structure of the book. It was divided into the story, pages of weird evidence (quotes from other trials, from literature, from interviews of the missing woman's case), and hypothetical imaginings of where the woman was. I didn't care if they found her. I didn't care what happened to John, either.
I hated the main guy (John). I didn't care for his wife (the missing woman). I hated the story itself, I didn't care about anything that was happening to them. I just felt revulsion in how they portrayed John's obsession with his wife throughout college--he totally grossed me out. HATE. And yet, looking forward to going to bookclub to hear how others liked it. One of the afternoons in a cafe, some guy told me that he loved the book. Well. Tastes they vary. People on Amazon's reviews LOVED it. But I really appreciated this particular negative review, because it totally got how I felt about it: "This novel does not have enough thematic substance or emotional resonance to carry our interest. The symbolism is heavy handed and the protagonist lacks sympathy. His parents are caricatures, as are the other supporting characters. Kathy, the missing wife, is not developed as a character enough nor is their marriage compelling enough to induce our interest in their fate as a couple or as individuals. "
So glad it's OVER. Never have to read that one again.
To get the taste of it out of my mouth, I started reading Raw Shark Texts immediately, and I'm already hooked. Very curious about the story, the character, where it's going. Going to continue my nightly cafe-reading trend. It gets me out of the house and with some exercise for a bonus. Something to look forward to all day!
