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A review by allisondawn
Disappear Home by Laura Hurwitz
1.0
I received an eARC of this book from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Thanks!
While Disappear Home was a quick read, it was not because it was riveting and captivating. Unfortunately, this book was quite stale and disappointing. I liked the idea behind it well enough but the execution was just not there. Nothing really happened. Everything was just skimming the surface and the conclusion was far too rushed and tied nicely with a bow.
I was not at all invested in the characters. Besides the basic information that we were given - an abusive father and husband, a hippie commune gone wrong - I did not really find myself satisfied with this motivation. We got microscopic snapshots into the family's past but nothing substantial and able to catch my attention. The characters were flat and unremarkable. The mother, Ella, deals with depression; however, we didn't ever get a huge look into this condition. Sure, she was tired a lot and grumpy and paranoid but, at the end of the day, we were more privy to her physical illness than that in her head - disappointing.
In writing and reading, I usually enjoy the idea of "show, don't tell." This book was a whole lot of telling. Like, a whole lot. The dialogue was, at times, incredibly longwinded and unnecessary. It told us things that would have been better delivered through action and well-crafted images. The dialogue also didn't seem natural - either the statements were dripping with hippie slang like "bread" (meaning money) and, of course, tacking "man" onto the end of every sentence, or they were so precise and stilted that I couldn't imagine any of these characters saying it. We, as readers, were told that this commune was bad. Told that Adam was abusive and dangerous. Told that this and that and the other thing. Show me! The setting was also poorly drawn. Besides the references to the hippie culture and some other quick details, there was nothing grounding this story in the 1970s. Overall, the writing style was simple and, in my opinion, lacking.
As I mentioned at the start of this review, I do think the plot is an interesting one. I was really looking forward to reading this book but, instead, I'm writing this review and wrapping up my experience with it feeling disappointed.
While Disappear Home was a quick read, it was not because it was riveting and captivating. Unfortunately, this book was quite stale and disappointing. I liked the idea behind it well enough but the execution was just not there. Nothing really happened. Everything was just skimming the surface and the conclusion was far too rushed and tied nicely with a bow.
I was not at all invested in the characters. Besides the basic information that we were given - an abusive father and husband, a hippie commune gone wrong - I did not really find myself satisfied with this motivation. We got microscopic snapshots into the family's past but nothing substantial and able to catch my attention. The characters were flat and unremarkable. The mother, Ella, deals with depression; however, we didn't ever get a huge look into this condition. Sure, she was tired a lot and grumpy and paranoid but, at the end of the day, we were more privy to her physical illness than that in her head - disappointing.
In writing and reading, I usually enjoy the idea of "show, don't tell." This book was a whole lot of telling. Like, a whole lot. The dialogue was, at times, incredibly longwinded and unnecessary. It told us things that would have been better delivered through action and well-crafted images. The dialogue also didn't seem natural - either the statements were dripping with hippie slang like "bread" (meaning money) and, of course, tacking "man" onto the end of every sentence, or they were so precise and stilted that I couldn't imagine any of these characters saying it. We, as readers, were told that this commune was bad. Told that Adam was abusive and dangerous. Told that this and that and the other thing. Show me! The setting was also poorly drawn. Besides the references to the hippie culture and some other quick details, there was nothing grounding this story in the 1970s. Overall, the writing style was simple and, in my opinion, lacking.
As I mentioned at the start of this review, I do think the plot is an interesting one. I was really looking forward to reading this book but, instead, I'm writing this review and wrapping up my experience with it feeling disappointed.