I know I am about the last person on the planet to read We Need to Talk About Kevin, but WOW. There isn't much I can say about my reactions and thoughts without giving so spoilers, so....SPOILER ALERT!! READ ON AT YOUR OWN RISK!!!
This book kept me up last night. I mean, what would YOU do if you were raising a sociopath? I know a mother's love is supposed to be unconditional, but what if your child maliciously harmed another one of your children. Or even murdered your other child. Could you still unconditionally love your child if they murdered your husband?
It is two years after her sixteen year old son, Kevin went on a murderous rampage, and Eva is still struggling to come to grips with Kevin's actions. In letters to her husband, she reflects on Kevin's life. She examines his actions over the years and her reactions. Eva had her suspicions about Kevin for a very long time. And now, after her world has been rocked, all she wants to know is why.
Lionel Shriver had written a phenomenal book. We all read Jodi Picoult's Nineteen Minutes, but it comes nowhere near the caliber of work that Lionel Shriver has presented us with. As a reader, we only know what Eva writes to her husband, but as the letters continue, you can start to put it all together. Call me naive, but the end just shocked me, I did not see it coming. I mean we knew that Kevin was guilty of his school rampage, but the rest... It kept me awake last night.
We Need To Talk About Kevin is a deeply disturbing novel. It is not graphic, per se, but the images that Kevin's story conjure up can be worse than any Stephen King novel. The writing is skilled and the story is a masterpiece. It is a phenomenal read, but be prepared for the gut wrenching topic matter, it will keep you up at night.
This sounds like my kinda book... glad you reviewed it here!
So, that's what that book is about! I've seen it on the bargain tables before, and picked it up, but never really read what it was about. Sounds interesting!
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