Status Updates From The Revised Fundamentals of...

The note from the author at the end was beautiful, changing the story, from a lovely glow on the topic of familial love (fathers and children) into a story with an entirely luminous, throbbing heart! I'm glad there was a hope-filled ending, but it was sorta too... quiet? I guess it was quite ordinary.... But aren't everyday people amazing?

"maybe that's what happens to crazy people, they become too honest. they can't see anything but truth anymore, and they're compelled to share it, when they ought to shut up about it."

Oh, it's a rewarding read now! It danced a dicey throwaway line (around 130 pages I was getting damn sick of "everyone is despairing and avoiding and emotionally retarded"), but now I see the allure. There are smidgeons of joy and hope and a quirky laugh here and there as our crew of three humans, damaged but determined, make their way into their individual wabi-sabi insights.

Finally. Road trip. Maybe we'll get a little more balance of light and dark now. Jesus. Lighten up, Evison. You can make a deep, meaningful story with deep, meaningful characters without dim-lighting-and-stale-beer-country-song-sorrowing me to death.

The only reason I'm still reading is because 1) the chapters are short and 2) I'm expecting this revelational road trip to commence any time now....

104 pages in and I'm still waiting to like this story.... There is just too much relentless gray sorrow, human misery, pessimism and lack of joy....

Lol: he runs like a man who is angry at the ground