Review: Atmospheric and beautiful book that makes you think.
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 12 1, 2013
Note: I received a free copy of Memes of Loss and Devotion in exchange for an honest review.Publishing a short story anthology as a debut novel is a courageous decision. Somehow, reading a collection of short stories feels as though it requires additional effort from me, the reader. I’m in each one for a shorter amount of time, but because there are more stories, it feels like the book wants more from me. Yet in this book, every story is as strong as the next and none were included “just because.”What I loved most is the voice. The title, Memes of Loss and Devotion, evokes a feeling that carries throughout. Each story is told in a breathy, haunting way. Each story made me feel. Each story made me consider something I had never considered before.I had an issue with the grammar, which seems to deteriorate as the book progresses. Most of the time, the syntax issues didn’t bother me as much as usual--which is saying something for Mr. White’s storytelling ability, since I’m such a stickler for details--however, I got lost sometimes. Some of that was wacky dialogue tags, and some of it was the way the story was written. At times it got too ephemeral for me, and I wasn’t sure who we were focused on or what was going on.I had a love-hate relationship with the way the stories ended. Almost every one finished too soon. I wanted more: More explanation, more story, more grounding. Yet every story ended at the right place for what Mr. White wants the reader to experience. He doesn’t give answers. He gives only questions.If you enjoy the moral and spiritual implications of science fiction, I would recommend this book. If it had been professionally edited, I would likely have given it a 4 or even a 4.5, but I found the errors too distracting to fully get behind the book. As it stands, I gave it a 3.5.Each story gives you something to chew on long after you close the pages. I’m still sitting on the hill with that little girl and the elder alien, considering what it must be like for a primitive race whose wildest imaginings were made laughable by the arrival of space farers. And that’s exactly what good science fiction should do.Also posted on my blog, Magic and Mayhem Book Reviews at [...]