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A review by adventurouspotato
Son of a Trickster by Eden Robinson
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.75
Note that I read this for a book club so I probably wouldn't have picked it up and/or finished it otherwise. I'm likely not the target audience and this isn't my usual genre.
I don't love coming of age stories generally, so I was a bit weary about that element. However, I was looking forward to experiencing the unique setting and mythology of British Columbia. Unfortunately, I got almost none of that from this book. Almost nothing supernatural happens until the last quarter of the book, and even then it is mostly just one scene, and then not really expanded on since the MC is not interested in learning about it at that point.
So what is this book about then? The main character, Jared, is the only character who isn't shitty except maybe Crashpad, Sarah (who is a total Manic Pixie Dream Girl), and the Jakses. This book is a series of (usually shitty) things which happen to the main character without enough time to dwell on any specific thing. There seems to be no real character arc or themes, it's just his life and he kind of just passively lives it. Many times he blacks out and time skips ahead and he's suddenly in a new situation without any context. This can sometimes be confusing timeline-wise.
It's realistic to show the chaos of life in this way I suppose but doesn't make for a compelling story. I wanted to see him realize that his mom was neglectful and abusive, or that he shouldn't be expected to take care of his dad's finances. He does set boundaries with his step-sister, but he does that from the start so nothing changes. There is not really any growth since in the end he still lives with his mom like nothing happened and gives his dad a bunch of money. I thought also he could have have an arc where he became more politically aware or interested in his culture through Sarah. I at least expected some sort of plotline where he discovers that magic is real and learns how to use it, or has to adjust to this new knowledge. There is just the barest glimmer of this at the very end, and he seems to be pretty apathetic about it.
I thought the ending was insanely rushed because all of a sudden Jared DOES have growth but it's all off page and the consequences are only shown in the very last (short) chapter. You don't see WHY he wants to change, he was justbrought to an AA meeting once and then that was enough for him to fully embrace sobriety despite the social consequences ?? He never showed one single indication of wanting to stop drinking or doing drugs before this and then he just easily quits... and then the book is suddenly over.
If the character arc was good, maybe I could forgive some of the stranger choices in this book. But there are also so many small details that were painful to read. Why did his stepsister have tokiss him ? Was that necessary? Or that other random girl with blue hair who appeared for literally one conversation where she suddenly started having sex with him? Also this kid was knocked out COLD and ROBBED one time while trying to make his damn cookies that no one can shut up about, and do we ever find out who did that? These things just happen and then suddenly in the next chapter Jared is somewhere else and you have no idea how it affected him at all.
In general I think "coming of age" is not something I generally enjoy because they are often like this. The main character has a shitty family situation, does a bunch of drugs, has awkward sex, and then a mandatory breakup at the end. The character, ideally, learns something from these experiences and asserts themself as an individual. This internal journey should be the focus, but often I find that the external events are all that are really captured. It's not enough to just present a character's suffering, there needs to be some internal thread which keeps the story together. The closest we get in this book is the constantly repeated refrain "The world is hard. You need to be harder." which Jared never seems to actually reflect on or question. It's just thrown in at tense moments verbatim... Seems like not the best message either??
Anyways I'm sure the sequel has more magical realism stuff but I don't think I can continue with this series. I cannot willingly inhabit the headspace of an axe body spray wearing teen boy in 2012. I can't take another awkward sex scene, extreme use of fake-sounding texting slang, or description of Sarah wearing Princess Leia cosplay every day for no reason. I just don't get it man!!
I don't love coming of age stories generally, so I was a bit weary about that element. However, I was looking forward to experiencing the unique setting and mythology of British Columbia. Unfortunately, I got almost none of that from this book. Almost nothing supernatural happens until the last quarter of the book, and even then it is mostly just one scene, and then not really expanded on since the MC is not interested in learning about it at that point.
So what is this book about then? The main character, Jared, is the only character who isn't shitty except maybe Crashpad, Sarah (who is a total Manic Pixie Dream Girl), and the Jakses. This book is a series of (usually shitty) things which happen to the main character without enough time to dwell on any specific thing. There seems to be no real character arc or themes, it's just his life and he kind of just passively lives it. Many times he blacks out and time skips ahead and he's suddenly in a new situation without any context. This can sometimes be confusing timeline-wise.
It's realistic to show the chaos of life in this way I suppose but doesn't make for a compelling story. I wanted to see him realize that his mom was neglectful and abusive, or that he shouldn't be expected to take care of his dad's finances. He does set boundaries with his step-sister, but he does that from the start so nothing changes. There is not really any growth since in the end he still lives with his mom like nothing happened and gives his dad a bunch of money. I thought also he could have have an arc where he became more politically aware or interested in his culture through Sarah. I at least expected some sort of plotline where he discovers that magic is real and learns how to use it, or has to adjust to this new knowledge. There is just the barest glimmer of this at the very end, and he seems to be pretty apathetic about it.
I thought the ending was insanely rushed because all of a sudden Jared DOES have growth but it's all off page and the consequences are only shown in the very last (short) chapter. You don't see WHY he wants to change, he was just
If the character arc was good, maybe I could forgive some of the stranger choices in this book. But there are also so many small details that were painful to read. Why did his stepsister have to
In general I think "coming of age" is not something I generally enjoy because they are often like this. The main character has a shitty family situation, does a bunch of drugs, has awkward sex, and then a mandatory breakup at the end. The character, ideally, learns something from these experiences and asserts themself as an individual. This internal journey should be the focus, but often I find that the external events are all that are really captured. It's not enough to just present a character's suffering, there needs to be some internal thread which keeps the story together. The closest we get in this book is the constantly repeated refrain "The world is hard. You need to be harder." which Jared never seems to actually reflect on or question. It's just thrown in at tense moments verbatim... Seems like not the best message either??
Anyways I'm sure the sequel has more magical realism stuff but I don't think I can continue with this series. I cannot willingly inhabit the headspace of an axe body spray wearing teen boy in 2012. I can't take another awkward sex scene, extreme use of fake-sounding texting slang, or description of Sarah wearing Princess Leia cosplay every day for no reason. I just don't get it man!!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Drug abuse, and Alcohol
Moderate: Animal death, Child abuse, Self harm, and Blood
Minor: Domestic abuse, Incest, Physical abuse, and Colonisation