Helpful Score: 1
Sarah Braunstein accrued a noteworthy honor in the literary world when she was selected by National Book Award finalists as one of the five best fiction writers under the age of 35. The Sweet Relief of Missing Children is her debut novel.
I thought this would be compelling book given her credentials; however, it was oddly confusing. There are numerous characters and time lines that I found difficult to keep straight. A flow chart would have been helpful in sorting out the backgrounds of the parents and children and their relationships to one another. Just when I became engaged with a character, the story line and time frame would abruptly change. The sad and violent subject matter in this book should make a reader's heart hurt, but it just didn't happen for me. That said, Sarah Braunstein's descriptive prose is good. I would read her second book given the glimpses of talent evidenced in this one.
I thought this would be compelling book given her credentials; however, it was oddly confusing. There are numerous characters and time lines that I found difficult to keep straight. A flow chart would have been helpful in sorting out the backgrounds of the parents and children and their relationships to one another. Just when I became engaged with a character, the story line and time frame would abruptly change. The sad and violent subject matter in this book should make a reader's heart hurt, but it just didn't happen for me. That said, Sarah Braunstein's descriptive prose is good. I would read her second book given the glimpses of talent evidenced in this one.
