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A review by nglofile
Ginny Moon by Benjamin Ludwig
4.0
It's been a while since a book has yanked my emotions around quite like Ginny Moon. I was charmed. I was annoyed. Saddened. Exasperated. Angry. Captivated. Hopeful. Really, really angry. Mollified. Unsettled.
What to do with a book like this? Give it all sorts of credit, and think about it for days.
Though the writing occasionally veers into the manipulative and unpolished, there is no arguing that Ginny is given a distinct voice. Admittedly, it can also be a bit trying not to be able to step out of her intransigence, but we as readers desperately want Ginny to be OK and that perseverance is (mostly) rewarded. Hearing the story in Ginny's authentic POV – and whether people listen – both swells and cracks our hearts, and that is an experience worth having.
Patrice is an angel and a lovely presence both for Ginny and for us. On the other hand, Maura
The ending is...complicated.
I'd previously posted a bit of a rant about the Booklist review that gave away too much. It isn't an end-of-book spoiler, but it does change the frame of the reader for many early chapters. I stand behind my shaming of them.
audiobook note: Em Eldridge is a marvelous match for this work. Her ability to maintain a girlish voice while representing the overly literal and unintentionally funny Ginny is a strength of this production. Early in the book I'd considered switching to print because her lifelike portrayal was adding to the emotional weight I wasn't certain I could bear. Then it occurred to me: that's as it should be. Ginny's story should be a careful balance of determination, small pleasures, isolation, quirk, and tenacity, and it takes skill to voice all those aspects in a way that endears Ginny as a real girl.
What to do with a book like this? Give it all sorts of credit, and think about it for days.
Though the writing occasionally veers into the manipulative and unpolished, there is no arguing that Ginny is given a distinct voice. Admittedly, it can also be a bit trying not to be able to step out of her intransigence, but we as readers desperately want Ginny to be OK and that perseverance is (mostly) rewarded. Hearing the story in Ginny's authentic POV – and whether people listen – both swells and cracks our hearts, and that is an experience worth having.
Patrice is an angel and a lovely presence both for Ginny and for us. On the other hand, Maura
Spoiler
was the absolute worst. I just couldn't with her. Yes, she's a new mother and has some reason for her paranoia, but her actions make no sense. There were many possible ways to gently address and grow the Ginny-Wendy dynamic without causing harm. Her freakouts and desire to eject Ginny when she'd previously made a "forever" commitment were indefensible. Some may take issue with the fact I complain about Maura over Gloria, but Gloria is a train wreck I can understand. Somehow we're supposed to make allowances for Maura, but they are too extreme.The ending is...complicated.
I'd previously posted a bit of a rant about the Booklist review that gave away too much. It isn't an end-of-book spoiler, but it does change the frame of the reader for many early chapters. I stand behind my shaming of them.
audiobook note: Em Eldridge is a marvelous match for this work. Her ability to maintain a girlish voice while representing the overly literal and unintentionally funny Ginny is a strength of this production. Early in the book I'd considered switching to print because her lifelike portrayal was adding to the emotional weight I wasn't certain I could bear. Then it occurred to me: that's as it should be. Ginny's story should be a careful balance of determination, small pleasures, isolation, quirk, and tenacity, and it takes skill to voice all those aspects in a way that endears Ginny as a real girl.