author: sebastian faulks
completion date: 02/07/10
method: borrowed (dad)
i had a really hard time getting into this book. it didn't seem to grab me in the beginning, but i persevered. i know with a lot of mystery type novels it takes a little longer for the story to get established. my problem was that mike engleby wasn't very likeable (something that is frequently mentioned in the second half of the novel). but i felt so sorry for him. he seemed like someone who was just simply ostracized by his piers early on and this detaches him for the rest of his life.
a monster is a scary thing because you never know who created it. was it always there just lurking below the surface? or was it created through a detached upbringing? and is 'monster' the best word if it was created by society and the 'monster's piers? i could spend all day thinking about this and still not have an answer.
what i found about this book is that it has one of the most upsetting twists and i never saw it coming. i was afraid of the character (this is the infuriating thing about books with twists, is i don't want to ruin it for any future readers). mainly because he lacked remorse or sadness. he was rational and that is what made him terrifying. i felt like i was just humming along great in this novel and then all of a sudden- BOOM everything goes to shit.
part of this is because of the narration. the narrator (the title character) skips around through time, so you get bits and pieces of the stories. once i learned what happened i wanted to go back to the beginning and read the whole thing again. it was so unexpected that i feel like i must have missed some clue.
the problem with this book is i can't tell you for sure whether or not i liked it. i read it and was affected by it... but i don't know if i would describe what i went through as enjoyment
xo-ellebee
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