Thomas Litchford answers “I liked this one, but not as much as...”

Patrick Oster asked this question about Sweet Tooth:

I liked this one, but not as much as Amsterdam or Atonement. Anyone feel differently? FWIW, though, I am still thinking about the twist ending, so maybe I should think about 4 stars instead of 3.

Thomas Litchford I had a few problems with the main character, but by the end everything made sense! I put it back on the shelf and kept thinking about it. Different M…moreI had a few problems with the main character, but by the end everything made sense! I put it back on the shelf and kept thinking about it. Different McEwan's other work, but good. It's closest in feel to 'Saturday' because of the emphasis on structure.

*****SPOILERS AHEAD*******

TBH, I felt like Serena was behaving too much like a male fantasy. She's a beautiful woman who wants to sleep with every man she encounters: older men, awkward men, brilliant writers. She reads but needs to be educated in the good stuff. She's gifted at mathematics but doesn't get the really difficult concepts at the university level.

And then we finally see why that is: she's a fictional version of the 'real' Serena (whatever that means in a metafiction like this) written by a young male writer. She behaves like an oversexed 23-year-old man because she's created by one. Now, it may not totally dissipate the weird sense of something just being 'off' in the novel, but you understand where that feeling comes from.

Loved it!(less)

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