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A review by stubbornjerk
We Are the Ants by Shaun David Hutchinson
challenging
dark
funny
hopeful
informative
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
It took me a whole month and a half to finally gather my thoughts around this book. At the time I finished reading it, I was so overwhelmed by so many things (school, my thoughts about this, my feelings about school), and then I found a copy of it at a Fully Booked store in Megamall, and it all happened so fast.
To summarize: Henry Denton's life is shitty. He's poor, his grandmother is losing her memories, his late boyfriend committed suicide, he's letting his biggest bully fuck him, he and his best friend stopped talking afterwards (though she didn't lack for trying, it's a bit of a too little too late situation), his mother is deteriorating at a rate that he can't take because she's not indulging herself years after her husband left, and his brother just got someone knocked up. It's a hard-knock life for him, and that's without mentioning the aliens.
This wasn't a light read. I wasn't expecting it to be. Lala from BooksandLala kept recommending it, and now I'm just trying to look for other Shaun David Hutchinson books, but aside from that. My thoughts.
My feelings for this book are so huge that I can't even describe it. It's not problematic, it's not trying too hard to be anything. It's just its own, and that's what I love about it. Henry's grief after his boyfriend's death isn't rushed, and the aliens aren't pushed away as something he just made up. The romance has its complications around the character struggles, and really, it's just so good.
I recommend this to anyone who can get their hands on a copy, and I recommend this to anyone who has... opinions about suicidal ideation and suicide itself. Because you will have to agree with Henry on so many points in this book, you will have to let yourself be brought along the current. As cliche as the phrase could get, this book does give you one message:
It gets better.
To summarize: Henry Denton's life is shitty. He's poor, his grandmother is losing her memories, his late boyfriend committed suicide, he's letting his biggest bully fuck him, he and his best friend stopped talking afterwards (though she didn't lack for trying, it's a bit of a too little too late situation), his mother is deteriorating at a rate that he can't take because she's not indulging herself years after her husband left, and his brother just got someone knocked up. It's a hard-knock life for him, and that's without mentioning the aliens.
This wasn't a light read. I wasn't expecting it to be. Lala from BooksandLala kept recommending it, and now I'm just trying to look for other Shaun David Hutchinson books, but aside from that. My thoughts.
My feelings for this book are so huge that I can't even describe it. It's not problematic, it's not trying too hard to be anything. It's just its own, and that's what I love about it. Henry's grief after his boyfriend's death isn't rushed, and the aliens aren't pushed away as something he just made up. The romance has its complications around the character struggles, and really, it's just so good.
I recommend this to anyone who can get their hands on a copy, and I recommend this to anyone who has... opinions about suicidal ideation and suicide itself. Because you will have to agree with Henry on so many points in this book, you will have to let yourself be brought along the current. As cliche as the phrase could get, this book does give you one message:
It gets better.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Toxic relationship