Our fabulous little book club's current selection is set for discussion this coming Saturday night. I just polished off the last page tonight after dinner, and I am giddy. You know that feeling after you finish a book that has exhilarated you since page one? No dry spells, no slow, laborious climbs to action or understanding? Some books leave me exhausted; this book has left me inspired, though not in the spiritual sense.
Introducing
Before I Go to Sleep
by S.J. Watson
Okay, I do not groove spoilers. I will try to keep this short and sweet.
I would recommend this book to a wide variety of audiences, with the simple caveat that it offers up some salty language, violence (though nothing we don't see in a standard PG movie) and the full spectrum of marital relations. Ahem.
Would I approve of my two beautiful teenage daughters reading this? No. But I do think they are both intelligent and sensitive enough to appreciate the story behind the scenery.
The premise is that a woman, the speaker of the book, has lost her memory and must live day to day rebuilding it (at least enough to survive and maintain hope) from what she has managed to write in a private journal. As the title suggests, her memory is wiped clean every night when she sleeps. Just take that in for a second and imagine the awful implications, the far reaching consequences of losing both your long term and your short term memory every single night.
Whew.
How could a book like this be inspirational? I'll tell you. I am freshly inspired to treasure my memories, both good and bad, and to be grateful to be an active, viable liver of my own life. Captain of my ship, if you will.
Watson builds suspense better than Stephen King, in my opinion. He must be incredibly gifted to be able to write such a complex story from such a limited perspective, and using such a repetitive format without causing the reader to get bored? Wow. And the ending is delicious...
Okay, that's it. Anything more and I'll be flirting with spoilers. Have you read this yet? I would love to hear your thoughts! Haven't read it but want to? If you're interested I'll lend it! My loaning policy is that each person must write his or her name and a quick review on one of the inside covers. Circulate as much as you want.
Books are meant to be Read a Lot!
Cherish your Memories!
xoxoxoxo
Okay, now I MUST read this! :)
ReplyDeleteDelicious! How I love books.
ReplyDeleteWow, looks good! I'll have to look it up.
ReplyDelete(Btw, saw you on goodreads, so I'll add you if that's ok)
Wow, looks gook! I'm always on the lookout for good reads, so must look it up
ReplyDelete(speaking of good reads, or goodreads, have friend requested you there if that's ok)
It sounds almost like the movie 50 first dates with Drew Barrymore. you don't give away too much of the story, but the plot line runs along the same thing. I love getting recommendations on the net, and (excepting the case of Twilight), I have never been let down by a book recommendation. However, I just have too many tings to read at the moment, so I will put this on my to-read list on goodreads and hopefully one day come back to it. Thanks.
ReplyDelete