ŷ������

Alright friends, here's the dealio.

When I read this book, lots of things in my personal life were a hectic. When I finished this book, things were still hectic. I'm writing this now, and things are still a little hectic, but slowly they are leveling out (so no worries.)

The thing is, because of all that hectic, I did not document my thoughts about this book the way I normally would do. I also made the fatal mistake of waiting far too long to sit down & write my review upon finishing.

Usually, if I wait too long the reviewer in me just quietly slips an I.O.U. note into the brain inbox & then goes back into hibernation until the next book is completed. She's a finicky sort.

My point is, this review will very likely will not do the book justice. If you're looking for a review that does do the book justice, I'd consider going to read my darling Celeste's review because she's basically the wordsmith we all aspire to be. But if you'd still like to read my late to the game drivel, you're absolutely welcome here!

So, anyway, about the book. It's super freakin' great.

I literally love generational tales. The way we get to experience & live through the evolution of the Trasks & the Hamiltons is a thing of pure beauty even when the going gets rough.

Every time I put the book down, I was excited for the next chance I'd get to pick it up. It was just that engaging.

One of the more standout elements of this novel is it's inclusion of two very unique minority characters - a Chinese man named Lee, and a woman named Cathy. These two are almost a complete antithesis to one another & they are both so incredibly central to every major plot point in the story, even as it spans across many years.

While both definitely became favorites of mine in their own respect, Cathy is an especially wonderful character & probably one of the most terrifying/intriguing I've ever come across in any novel. It was terribly fun to watch these characters swirl & rage around our main cast in their storms of light & darkness.

Another aspect of this book that I really enjoyed is its observance of nature vs. nurture & how the sins of the parent can be passed down to create a stain on the soul of the child. It's simultaneously a lovely reminder that we have a choice in how we react to the brokenness we may inherit.

Finally, all the Biblical parallels here were just so much fun to point out especially since I read this book with a wonderful group. The strongest recurring theme has to be the dynamic between Adam's sons, Cain & Abel. It seems as though this novel seeks to explore the "what ifs" of every possible combination there.

As far as classics are concerned, I spent a lot of time reading them in high school & I accidentally conditioned myself into thinking that all classics are super deep & super complex & require a formal essay (12 page minimum, single spaced) upon completion.

I subsequently avoided them for a couple years because I had a hard time viewing them as approachable from a casual reader's perspective. Now that I've dipped my toes back into the genre, I'm realizing that classics can fall anywhere on the approachability spectrum.

However, for readers who may be stuck in the same mindset I'm breaking out of let me just tell you this novel is super approachable! I found the writing style easy to absorb & very sincere without losing any of its beauty.

There are a couple places where I feel certain character chapters didn't add much to the overall story, and some lengthy descriptions of the Salinas Valley could've been shortened without sacrificing much in the way of atmosphere.

This is definitely a must-read for anyone in love with reading & one I will revisit in the future!

Read this with TS, Haifa, and Celeste in our mission to conquer some classics! ☺️