A review by emilieonthemove
The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt

4.0

I got lost in the first third of this book. It was mesmerizing with its unique descriptions and tragedy. Then, I got a little bored. Somehow it ended up reminding me of the Casual Vacancy by JK Rowling. Maybe it's just difficult to write about teenagers with drug problems in a way that allows the reader to truly feel compassion for them. From the middle to the last quarter of the book was a real challenge - I had to talk myself into reading it every day. Near the end, when particular behaviors are revealed to the narrator, I felt like I finally reconnected. Perhaps Tartt did this on purpose; the narrator was living in denial, self-medicating, self-destructive for a long period of time so the reader does not find out what's really been going on until external characters reflect the narrator back to himself. At almost 800 pages, revelations could have come sooner. I also felt that Tartt spent more time crafting her prose at the beginning and end of the book and that the middle was neglected. Had her interesting descriptions prevailed throughout the book, perhaps it wouldn't have ended up being such a marathon through the middle.