banjax451's review against another edition
5.0
Ignore the comparison to Tropper and Quick. This is an amazing first novel.
Now, I have to confess...I was predisposed give it a favorable review. McAllister is the co-host of one of my favorite podcasts, which I have been listening to since Episode 1. His co-host on Book Fight! is a high school friend of my wife (part of why I've been listening since ep 1 - I get to hear side tales of Mike from my wife all the time). This is also the kind of literary fiction I am generally drawn to. Not overly pretentious or experimental - just well crafted prose with interesting characters and a story to tell.
My wife bought a copy of the book for me for my birthday. And when I finished it, I said to her..."I cannot say how happy I am that you got me this book." Which is saying something, considering the subject matter. No, what thrilled me was that McAllister's novel is fantastic. Well written, moving, sad, funny...all that. This is the kind of book I love reading - and it just so happens to be by someone I "know" (if only on podcast and through my wife's HS friend). It thrilled me that it wasn't just a mediocre book - it's a wonderful book.
The jacket summary compares it to Jonathan Tropper and Matthew Quick. Which is odd since I don't think it's necessarily much like either. I'd read Quick long before Book Fight launched, and I'm aware of McAllister's "feud" with him (it's one of the more consistently hilarious things about the podcast). Matthew Quick WISHES his prose was this good. And while I like Jonathan Tropper quite a bit, this novel is not nearly as intentionally funny as those. It's far more melancholy and sad - certainly more painful (if I didn't know better, I'd think McAllister had lost his wife - the grief is that intense). In many ways, more moving. And certainly more realistic - McAllister doesn't wrap everything up in a neat bow. This is not a novel about pithy lessons learned or the power of football to overcome everything. This is a very real novel about how grief can consume you if you let it. About how hard (and how necessary) "letting go" can be. Mixed in with McAllister's wonderfully wry observations on the modern age - and on a certain kind of person. The characters are well developed, the interlude chapters are fantastic and the prose is often stunningly beautiful.
I was predisposed to like this novel. I loved it instead. And I would have loved it even if I didn't listen to Book Fight! or anything like that. No...this is just a fantastic first novel. I very much look forward to reading more from him.
Now, I have to confess...I was predisposed give it a favorable review. McAllister is the co-host of one of my favorite podcasts, which I have been listening to since Episode 1. His co-host on Book Fight! is a high school friend of my wife (part of why I've been listening since ep 1 - I get to hear side tales of Mike from my wife all the time). This is also the kind of literary fiction I am generally drawn to. Not overly pretentious or experimental - just well crafted prose with interesting characters and a story to tell.
My wife bought a copy of the book for me for my birthday. And when I finished it, I said to her..."I cannot say how happy I am that you got me this book." Which is saying something, considering the subject matter. No, what thrilled me was that McAllister's novel is fantastic. Well written, moving, sad, funny...all that. This is the kind of book I love reading - and it just so happens to be by someone I "know" (if only on podcast and through my wife's HS friend). It thrilled me that it wasn't just a mediocre book - it's a wonderful book.
The jacket summary compares it to Jonathan Tropper and Matthew Quick. Which is odd since I don't think it's necessarily much like either. I'd read Quick long before Book Fight launched, and I'm aware of McAllister's "feud" with him (it's one of the more consistently hilarious things about the podcast). Matthew Quick WISHES his prose was this good. And while I like Jonathan Tropper quite a bit, this novel is not nearly as intentionally funny as those. It's far more melancholy and sad - certainly more painful (if I didn't know better, I'd think McAllister had lost his wife - the grief is that intense). In many ways, more moving. And certainly more realistic - McAllister doesn't wrap everything up in a neat bow. This is not a novel about pithy lessons learned or the power of football to overcome everything. This is a very real novel about how grief can consume you if you let it. About how hard (and how necessary) "letting go" can be. Mixed in with McAllister's wonderfully wry observations on the modern age - and on a certain kind of person. The characters are well developed, the interlude chapters are fantastic and the prose is often stunningly beautiful.
I was predisposed to like this novel. I loved it instead. And I would have loved it even if I didn't listen to Book Fight! or anything like that. No...this is just a fantastic first novel. I very much look forward to reading more from him.
southernbellebooks's review against another edition
1.0
This is arguably one of my least favorite books I've ever read. It's just not my kind of book with hardly any dialogue which I prefer and I felt like I got bored almost immediately.
enjoyperiod's review against another edition
5.0
A lovely piece of writing. I picked this book up at the library and ended up buying it I loved it so much. It's a fast, engaging read but is so beautifully painful- one of those stories I couldn't stop thinking about for days afterward.
especiallybooks's review against another edition
4.0
This book was an intense and interesting look at grief and what it does to a person. Very sad, but very heartfelt and moving at the same time.
syren96's review against another edition
4.0
ARC provided by Algonquin Books and NetGalley
I didn't expect a book about a young man who has unexpectedly lost his wife to make me laugh as much as this did. While there are definitely moments where you are just aching for his loss, there are humorous encounters and revelations along his grief-driven road trip.
There were definitely some parts of the story left unfinished but for the most part it felt natural to not have everything tied off with a neat little bow.
I didn't expect a book about a young man who has unexpectedly lost his wife to make me laugh as much as this did. While there are definitely moments where you are just aching for his loss, there are humorous encounters and revelations along his grief-driven road trip.
There were definitely some parts of the story left unfinished but for the most part it felt natural to not have everything tied off with a neat little bow.
jilljaracz's review against another edition
3.0
Interesting mix of 2nd and 3rd person. Story tugged at my heart.
justinereinosa's review against another edition
2.0
Was there a real story here? Because I think I missed it.
Hunter wasn't very likeable from the very beginning. He always seemed to find something wrong with everything. And not just after his wife's death. He seemed unhappy with everything even before. Maybe I read him wrong, but he was a constant critique.
The story lay flat through most of the book. There was no climactic event expect for when he finally released his wife's ashes, and even then, the scene that was painted seemed all too generic.
There were several points where I wanted to just stop reading, but I persevered and finished, constantly thinking at some point SOMETHING had to happen. I give it two stars for the last few lines of the book that were slightly moving and the very beginning of the book that drew me in at first. Other than that the book was a dud.
I cry so easily, yet I found it very hard to be sympathetic for this widower.
Hunter wasn't very likeable from the very beginning. He always seemed to find something wrong with everything. And not just after his wife's death. He seemed unhappy with everything even before. Maybe I read him wrong, but he was a constant critique.
The story lay flat through most of the book. There was no climactic event expect for when he finally released his wife's ashes, and even then, the scene that was painted seemed all too generic.
There were several points where I wanted to just stop reading, but I persevered and finished, constantly thinking at some point SOMETHING had to happen. I give it two stars for the last few lines of the book that were slightly moving and the very beginning of the book that drew me in at first. Other than that the book was a dud.
I cry so easily, yet I found it very hard to be sympathetic for this widower.
wathykite's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
maddaboutit's review against another edition
3.0
The Young Widower’s Handbook is sweet, and simple. It’s fast-paced and features stories of finding joy in little memories and regretting how mundane things level out of be. It tell us the story we already know about grief. And it’s honest, and you’re glad that the author doesn’t push some manufactured “new” revaluation of grief onto you.
Also, nothing happens. Hunter spends the first 3 quarters of the book burning bridges, and then makes tiny acts to begin to rebuild them. There will be nothing upsetting, disquieting, or even surprising. We are left with a picture that he will eventually be okay. In short, this book will go exactly how you expect. And you will finish it and say “that was nice.” This book didn’t necessarily need to be more, just that I felt it claimed to be and never followed up somehow?
Also, nothing happens. Hunter spends the first 3 quarters of the book burning bridges, and then makes tiny acts to begin to rebuild them. There will be nothing upsetting, disquieting, or even surprising. We are left with a picture that he will eventually be okay. In short, this book will go exactly how you expect. And you will finish it and say “that was nice.” This book didn’t necessarily need to be more, just that I felt it claimed to be and never followed up somehow?