JanB's Reviews > The Push

I read to 50% then speed read to an unsatisfying, predictable conclusion. This book has been much hyped but for me it fell into the category of a tired trope that has been done before. Many times. The disintegration of a marriage, generational neglect and abuse, the "bad seed", weak ineffectual men, nature vs nurture.

The majority of the book is written as one long letter by Blythe to her husband, which becomes repetitive and boring. The chapters move back and forth between time periods and characters, without a heading to indicate who and when. WHY?? It's a stylistic choice that annoys me to no end. As do incomplete sentences, which this book has in abundance.

I was left disappointed, and even worse, bored to tears. I'm trying to find one thing I found interesting, but I'm coming up blank. There was nothing interesting, riveting, or illuminating. Some books I can recognize as having value but for one reason or another they aren't for me. This isn't one of those times.

Finishing it was perhaps not the best decision I’ve made this year, but oh well. Perhaps I'm being harsh but with so many glowing reviews and hype surrounding this book, my review will barely make a dent.

2 stars because I finished it. Kind of. I'm being generous.