Review: The Girls

The Girls by Emma Cline
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I'm somewhere between 3 and 4 stars with this book, so since I'm in a generous mood (and since the last few books I read weren't exactly mind-blowing), I'm going to round up.

The writing in this book is good. Emma Cline is a master of details (both sensory and otherwise), being intentional and precise with what she says and doesn't say. Her words paint a vivid picture of specific characters living in a very tangible time and place . . . at least in the portions of the book that tell the story of how one young girl came to be mixed up in what I suppose is a hippie cult. The real story of the book. The only story that I cared about.

I've read a lot of books that flip between past and present, some which do it effectively, and some which don't. I fully understand Cline's decision here to couch the "real" story being told in flashback; she must do so in order to allow her narrator, Evie, to reflect on the events with insight. However, the "present" story is not compelling at all, and each time the story jumps between past and present, the reader is left to flounder for a few sentences, trying to find their footing in the chronology of whichever story is now being told. For me, these awkward moments jerked me out of the story, and it always took a few pages for Cline to pull me back under her spell.

Nevertheless, I did find the core elements of this book--a coming-of-age story; a story of confusing adolescent desire bordering on obsession; a story of loneliness; a mystery where the perpetrators are known, the act is implied, and so the true mystery is in how these things came to happen; a story of a cult--very compelling. And so, for any readers who also enjoy these elements and are willing to be patient in order to reap the rewards of good, literary writing, I would definitely recommend this book.

View all my reviews

Review: The Endurance Diet: Discover the 5 Core Habits of the World's Greatest Athletes to Look, Feel, and Perform Better

The Endurance Diet: Discover the 5 Core Habits of the World's Greatest Athletes to Look, Feel, and Perform Better by Matt Fitzgerald
My rating: 0 of 5 stars

I came across this book via a podcast (it was either Running on Om or Running for Real; I forget which one), and whatever I heard Matt Fitzgerald say in his interview clearly made me want to check out his book. Unfortunately, after reading the first chapter-and-a-half, I concluded that his ideas probably could have been fit into an essay. However, I was ready to soldier on, in case there were more meaty ideas later in the book, but then I came to a half-baked argument that was so unscientific in nature that I simply stopped reading. (Essentially, the argument claimed that the diet was what made the difference in athletic performance, entirely ignoring the multitude of other factors that could--and mostly likely did--impact performance.)

For anyone seeking firmer evidence-based guidance on diet or nutrition, this book probably is not worth your time. (Of course, I could be wrong, seeing as I didn't even read through the first hundred pages.) I would love to read a book on this same topic, however, if there is one out there that has more rigorous science backing it up--so if anyone knows of such a book, please send me your suggestion!

View all my reviews