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Jan 25, 2021FunnyPenny1 rated this title 2 out of 5 stars
Had high hopes for this book after I’d seen lots of praise for it. I was sorely disappointed. The first chapter was grindingly boring with detailed descriptions of the protagonist’s lab work. I’d hoped the rest of the book would be about how he came to discover real life, but no. While there are some beautiful phrases, the dialogue is stilted and mostly consists of characters blaming each other for things, asking each other to stay or go. Many pages which seemed to consist of mostly, “it's fine,” “I’m o.k.” “I get it,” and on and on. There’s an endless description of a tennis game and everyone is identified by how they smell. I know I’m not in the demographic for this book but I was bothered by Wallace’s relationship with his friend, Miller, who “isn’t into guys.” They hook up and most of the encounters seem more like assault. One short chapter, written in the first person, explains Wallace’s history of being abused but it doesn’t make up for the rest of the book.