A review by bluenicorn
The Story of Arthur Truluv, by Elizabeth Berg
2.0
This was recommended by a very lovely lady, who said it was a book full of kind people being kind. And... I guess that is true- the characters are all pretty nice to each other. Also of note- the whole group really enjoyed this book. That's... probably a sign that they needed something "nice." And that's... like, about all that happens- some nice people are nice to each other.
Oh, and a woman gets pregnant in a manner that is impossible. I know that I sometimes get bogged down in the details, but this was, like, the sort of stuff that people who never had sex ed classes believe, and I find that kind of troubling. (Stop reading now if you are uncomfortable with sexual terms.) Seriously- she states that they never had intercourse, because they were waiting until she turned 18. When she tells him that she is pregnant, he says that it's impossible, and she states "...remember that time you came on me...?" Like, I thought the storyline was going to be one of her being convinced she was pregnant when she wasn't- but it kept going, and I thought, wait... are we really supposed to believe this? And we were! Whaaa? Like, the author is old enough to know better- this is not how babies are made.
Aside from that part that I know isn't essential to the story, but just bothers me ALOT, the story just felt kind of schmaltzy and capitalizing on the last thousand or so "old man befriends other people and finds out there's still more to life at the end" sort of stories that have come out in the last few years. For a book group with seniors, though, I highly recommend- they loved it.
Oh, and a woman gets pregnant in a manner that is impossible. I know that I sometimes get bogged down in the details, but this was, like, the sort of stuff that people who never had sex ed classes believe, and I find that kind of troubling. (Stop reading now if you are uncomfortable with sexual terms.) Seriously- she states that they never had intercourse, because they were waiting until she turned 18. When she tells him that she is pregnant, he says that it's impossible, and she states "...remember that time you came on me...?" Like, I thought the storyline was going to be one of her being convinced she was pregnant when she wasn't- but it kept going, and I thought, wait... are we really supposed to believe this? And we were! Whaaa? Like, the author is old enough to know better- this is not how babies are made.
Aside from that part that I know isn't essential to the story, but just bothers me ALOT, the story just felt kind of schmaltzy and capitalizing on the last thousand or so "old man befriends other people and finds out there's still more to life at the end" sort of stories that have come out in the last few years. For a book group with seniors, though, I highly recommend- they loved it.