A review by serendipitysbooks
Saltwater by Jessica Andrews

emotional reflective slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

 Saltwater also features a protagonist trying to find herself, although Lucy is much younger, with the story centred on her transition from a school girl in working class Sunderland to university student in London, a transition which isn’t as straightforward or positive as she’d expected. Some of the key themes are the mother-daughter relationship, the legacy of alcoholism, disability and the impact it can have on the family as well as the individual, and class and regionality. What really stands out in this book is it’s form. It unfolds in a series of episodic vignettes which move back and forward in time with no real narrative arc. The vignettes are perfectly captured moments, demonstrating the author’s talent for showing, not telling. 
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