A review by lindsaysmeldrum
Daughter by Claudia Dey
4.0
3.5
Dey takes her readers on a vulnerable exploration of a complicated father-daughter relationship.
Mona's father Paul has never been able to give her what she needs. Distracted by his once successful playwriting and his many women, he forces her to grapple with navigating a relationship with someone you otherwise wouldn't give your time to. It was a very intimate look at the long term effects of being forced to be your parent's confidant as they muddle their way through their life.
I have mixed feelings about this book. I appreciate the uniqueness of this story, while giving light to what is likely the experience of more people than we know. I could relate to having to be your parent's confidant as they navigate their relationship struggles. However, I was never sucked into this story. I took many days to get through, despite the fact that it is under 200 pages. I found it to be one long stream of consciousness without a breath, often getting bogged down in recounting emails sent from one person via another. I often found myself losing my place, and having to go back and re-read it.
Overall, I think is book is worthy of reading, especially if you have struggled with complicated parent-child relationships and can find a part of your story in Mona's.
Thank you to Farrar, Straus and Giroux, NetGalley, and Claudia Dey for this ARC.
Dey takes her readers on a vulnerable exploration of a complicated father-daughter relationship.
Mona's father Paul has never been able to give her what she needs. Distracted by his once successful playwriting and his many women, he forces her to grapple with navigating a relationship with someone you otherwise wouldn't give your time to. It was a very intimate look at the long term effects of being forced to be your parent's confidant as they muddle their way through their life.
I have mixed feelings about this book. I appreciate the uniqueness of this story, while giving light to what is likely the experience of more people than we know. I could relate to having to be your parent's confidant as they navigate their relationship struggles. However, I was never sucked into this story. I took many days to get through, despite the fact that it is under 200 pages. I found it to be one long stream of consciousness without a breath, often getting bogged down in recounting emails sent from one person via another. I often found myself losing my place, and having to go back and re-read it.
Overall, I think is book is worthy of reading, especially if you have struggled with complicated parent-child relationships and can find a part of your story in Mona's.
Thank you to Farrar, Straus and Giroux, NetGalley, and Claudia Dey for this ARC.