A review by louiza_read2live
Winesburg, Ohio by Sherwood Anderson

2.0

This book went down for me from 4 stars to 2.5-3 stars, but this one is from the books that I leave open the option of a later reread with fresh eyes. I like that it is thought provoking and realistically portraying the lives of people who are desperately and hopelessly lonely, unloved, and entrapped in their own minds and traumas more than in the geographical location of where they live. However, once I hit half way through, the monotone writing, the consistently awful, antipathetic characters without a hint of hope tired me out to the point that I dragged through the rest. Also, the story of the pedophiliac teacher was a point for me where it started going down fast and I couldn't stomach it anymore. I think the writing style was more what it eventually ruined it for me. Too monotone and eventually I felt I was always expecting something more and I was always at the same place... At some point, I started feeling as if I, the reader, and the awful characters, we were all part of a twilight zone episode:  Realistically written stories, but none of the characters alive enough. I got too tired of the sameness, and I feel  that was the point of the author after all; therefore, maybe another day, on a second reading, I'll feel differently and it'll get back its initial four stars. For now, I move on from Winesburg, so I can feel I can breath again.