This book is little, like only 116 pages of big text and wide margins. The words are unjustified (rag right) which looks somewhat amateurish. I don’t know why the author would’ve chosen this, except as a stylistic choice to make the book resemble a manuscript typed on an electric typewriter from the 80’s. Oh, and it’s written in Hemingway style, which forced me to focus on every word. I read the entire thing in one sitting. When I was done, I didn’t quite know what to think.
The characters didn’t seem to be engaging with each other, only existing as separate entities in the same space. The dialogue was jarring and unnatural, the setting barely filled in, and the apocalypse is only vaguely there.
The story felt empty, like there was so much to work with and the author decided to give the reader the barest of bones. There’s an idea of an apocalypse in that a plane (with two of the characters in it) lands suddenly, and a TV (with three other characters watching) goes dark. There’s talk of what happened – no internet, phone, lights, or data – but scantly. I felt like this book was the prologue to a much larger story.
After reading I hopped over to Goodreads to see what others had to say about it, as I felt like I missed something. Boy, did I ever miss stuff.
One review rivaled the book’s length in words. I skimmed through it and realized this person had a much better understanding of the work. Perhaps if I was a literary major, or had any education past high school, I’d’ve found the same references and deeper meanings to the sentences/phrases as the reviewer. As it was, I didn’t. Instead I realized that this book is aimed toward someone who could recognize all the nuances, indulge in them, and contemplate their importance to the world at large. So, not me.
Should Be Writing 