MaidMerry reviewed Mercy Among the Children by David Adams Richards
Review of 'Mercy Among the Children' on 'Goodreads'
2 stars
This was a depressing book, and I fail to see the point of all that misery, unless the message is the trite and obvious (and, unfortunately, false) one that goodness prevails in the end. It resembles a Shakespearean tragedy, in that the tragic flaws of the characters lead to much death and destruction.
Like the movie, "The Pursuit of Happyness," the poverty, misfortune, and cruelty in this novel is so overwhelming, for such a long period of time, that when the tides finally turn, it is far too little, too late.
Even the "good" characters in this book aren't particularly likeable, with the exception of Percy.
This book also has a weird narrative point-of-view. It's sort of First Person Omniscient, which contributes neither to clarity nor believability.
While I was reading this, I kept thinking, "Maybe I have to be Catholic to get it." I felt the same way about …
This was a depressing book, and I fail to see the point of all that misery, unless the message is the trite and obvious (and, unfortunately, false) one that goodness prevails in the end. It resembles a Shakespearean tragedy, in that the tragic flaws of the characters lead to much death and destruction.
Like the movie, "The Pursuit of Happyness," the poverty, misfortune, and cruelty in this novel is so overwhelming, for such a long period of time, that when the tides finally turn, it is far too little, too late.
Even the "good" characters in this book aren't particularly likeable, with the exception of Percy.
This book also has a weird narrative point-of-view. It's sort of First Person Omniscient, which contributes neither to clarity nor believability.
While I was reading this, I kept thinking, "Maybe I have to be Catholic to get it." I felt the same way about Fall on Your Knees by Ann-Marie MacDonald, and I thought of that novel a couple of times as I read this one. Interestingly, I just glanced at some of the other reviews and saw that another reader made the same comparison.
I guess I just don't get into mucking about in all that mea culpa.