mikerickson@bookwyrm.social reviewed The Offing by Benjamin Myers
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2 stars
An experiment in stepping outside of my normal comfort zone unfortunately resulted in an unenjoyable read. I feel like I consumed a product that was designed to be sold and noticed by a big name book club oriented towards suburban moms rather than read a story that had something to say.
We have here a small story, 90% of which involves only two characters over the course of a single summer. There's really not a lot going on beyond that. Themes are hinted at once and then never mentioned again. A blank-slate teenage protagonist is influenced by an old ~free spirited~ woman and eventually becomes a more boring man. Dialogue is sparse and environments and meals are overdescribed. I was subjected to poetry against my will.
This felt like Harold and Maude without the humor, which is to say it felt like a lecture coming from the type of person …
An experiment in stepping outside of my normal comfort zone unfortunately resulted in an unenjoyable read. I feel like I consumed a product that was designed to be sold and noticed by a big name book club oriented towards suburban moms rather than read a story that had something to say.
We have here a small story, 90% of which involves only two characters over the course of a single summer. There's really not a lot going on beyond that. Themes are hinted at once and then never mentioned again. A blank-slate teenage protagonist is influenced by an old ~free spirited~ woman and eventually becomes a more boring man. Dialogue is sparse and environments and meals are overdescribed. I was subjected to poetry against my will.
This felt like Harold and Maude without the humor, which is to say it felt like a lecture coming from the type of person I have zero interest in emulating. A swing and a miss for me.