The Memory Book
Before diving into this review, shout out to Net Galley for giving me an advanced copy. (Woot! Woot!)And now we dive.
This is such a hard topic to talk about. The mind is a crazy thing that we have yet to fully understand (and maybe we never will). I was interested in reading this one because I have personal experience with Alzheimer Disease, while it's not early on-set. My grandma has it, and it's definitely hard to be around sometimes. Sometimes I'm a different person that she knows (her sister), sometimes I'm just a young girl, and sometimes I'm her granddaughter. So, when I read the synopsis I was ready to jump on in.
The first thing that really grabbed my attention, or didn't, was how light it was written. Coleman talks about someone's life and memories deteriorating and I felt nothing. It wasn't dark. It wasn't super emotional. It just was words that I read. I think if it was told more from Claire's perspective and not given so much reprieve from her thoughts and her mental travels, that it would have been more compelling.
That being said, I didn't think the book was horrible. It was a light read I could unwind with right before bed. It wasn't a dark, scary book that would keep me up at night. It wasn't a book where I needed to be on-point to understand the interweaving themes and symbolism. A great combination to just clear my head, relax, and drift off to dream land.
I could see where Coleman was going with her ethos, but I just didn't feel anything. I didn't cry, smile, or laugh. I could tell places when she wanted me to feel those things, but that's about it. I think I would have liked it more if it was darker, if it pushed the boundaries a bit more than it did. Coleman may have played it safe with this one.
I really liked the whole idea that Coleman had writing about something so personal. I didn't read about Coleman after the book. (I kind of just wanted to be done with this one.) But I did see that she had personal experience with Alzheimer Disease as well, which makes this book a tiny bit more touching. Just a bit.
My rating and why: I gave this book three stars! I read it, but it wasn't really for me. I could see the appeal for others. Maybe I just wasn't in the mood for it, or maybe this just isn't my genre. I'm not sure. Meh.
