In Which We Discuss Kevin

...because We Need To Talk About Kevin.

I've recently read that book (by Lionel Shriver). About twenty pages in, one thing had already struck me.

See, the book's supposed to be about the mother of a mass murderer (the columbine kind) writing letters to her estranged husband about their son - basically, exploring how he came to turn out that way. The thing is, she doesn't write like most people. The language is too flowery. And since it's meant to be in first person, that takes away from some of the realism.

Still, it's a very interesting topic for a book. So far, though, I really prefer Jodi Picoult's Nineteen Minutes.

After the floweriness of the first couple of pages, the book does get better. Personally, I wanted to know more about what happened afterwards, than about his birth. Although his mother's feelings about how he came to be are relevant, they're just not what I wanted to hear about.

About halfway through, you get a sense of Eva (the mother) being biased, and unreliable, which was quite effective. Normally, even in first person, I tend to take characters at their word. I also liked the little twists which were hinted at, and then gradually revealed - but a lot of the time, I was waiting for the reveal, rather than enjoying the journey. So, an interesting book. Perhaps not one that I'll read again.