Review: A story in need of a lifejacket
Rating: 1 out of 5
Date: 03 26, 2014
OK, so the protagonist's a total stiletto-heeled bimbo, and a real fish too--perhaps because her feet always hurt. She's also an excessive material girl--it's all about all surface appearances. She's a shallow wading pool, with no deep end, or endearing flaw like big-bottomed, big-hearted Brigit Jones.I find it hard to believe that the protagonist, Beverley Wilkins, is head of an English Department. Really? And how does the protagonist find so much time to dash down all her inane thoughts--and teach at the same time? I can't fathom that the author, Beverley Watts, spent eight years teaching English as a Foreign Language, yet she doesn't seem to have a grasp on basic grammar and punctuation.I was lost at sea. The author's writing style resembled flotsam and jetsam. It's far too much work for the reader to piece together fragmented sentences punctuated with excessive parenthetical (bracketed) journal entries--entered in military time--while narrated in present tense. I'd rather read Finnegan's Wake again. Backwards. Aloud.And what's with the excessive punctuation marks--doesn't the author know the writer's adage? One exclamation mark per 50,000 words? Don't even get me started on the uselessness of the word "very" planted in the title. I'm being told how to feel? I think not.I don't doubt the author's sincerity, it's clear she's worked hard on this manuscript, but she's a fledgeling writer in need of more exposure to good writing. Quasi-memoir is a tough genre to write, and sometimes changing the protagonist's name (barely), isn't enough to distance oneself from the mechanics of writing. A rewrite is in order. Writing should be transparent and not interfere with the storyline.Sadly, if I attempt to finish this book, I'll need to take up drinking fish on the rocks just to recover. I'm woman overboard on this one. In the drink, and apparently in need of a stiff one. Not my cuppa. So sorry. I'm deleting it half-read and sending it down the drain to the briny depths of Davy Jones' locker. Bon voyage!One starfish review.