Review: A Near-Perfect Novel
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 07 4, 2011
Why do we keep the friends we do even after changing drastically during our adulthood? Why do we buy and feel like we need the things we do?These are the two major questions asked and answered during Consumption by G.S. Johnston and as always, it's not the answers that are important but the way the questions are answered. I was drawn into this book immediately with the expert description and the fully-rounded characters of Sara and Martin. I've never been to Hong Kong or Sydney, but I'd imagine that Johnston's description here is as spot on as it sounds.I loved that all the characters in the book were realistically flawed. Martin cannot stop buying and lying, but he loves Sara and has a sympathetic past. Sara is kind, brash and gullible. Andy is nerdy, stubborn and caring. These character felt like real people, these places felt completely realized, and the story progressed forward to a logical conclusion.I thought the ending may have been a little heavy-handed, but I enjoyed this book so much that I let it slide immediately. This novel was fantastic and gets my highest recommendation.