I'm not going to lie: I found reading this book to be very painful. It wasn't written in a way that allowed me any emotional investment in the characters and, consequently, their outcome. Moreover, I'm not even sure of the narrative purpose or closing circumstance of any of the characters on the periphery. At best, it's written like a 235 page National Geographic article - but, most unforgivably, poorly edited. This is something I fail to understand when (1) someone considered the author to have enough merit to be published, (2) presumably the book had an (overpaid) editor, and (3) I was considering making it available as a reading option to high school students (who should be positively influenced to write by what they read, as opposed to inevitably catching mistakes for the author). I feel like cracking out a red pen, noting page-by-page edits, and mailing it back to the publisher. Alas.
So... Why did I continue reading?
(1) My dad says I'm not a quitter.
(2) I need to know if my first impressions are justified, because I give everything (and everyone) more than enough chance to prove itself.
(3) I'm in Thailand, the Wi-Fi is spotty, and I can't leave this centre in the evening.
As a "novel" that boasts a bird-watching quest at its centre that is fueled by environmental conservation against hydrofracking, I was considering this text for the assignment option outlined in my previous post. Does it fit the bill for a hero's quest through an environmental lens? Sure. Does it pass the test as something I would want my students to read? Can't say it does. At most, I'd leave it as an option with all my uncensored warnings as penned above.
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