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A review by saritaroth
A Long Way Down by Nick Hornby
2.0
I would like to say that this is another book of Nick Hornby's that feels a bit self-indulgent and as if all the characters within the book have no redeemable characteristics. Can he ever write just one sympathetic character . . . ever?
To summarize, the book mostly takes place in London and centers around four main characters: Martin, an aging minor TV celebrity who was sent to prison for a dalliance with a fifteen-year-old girl; Maureen, a middle-aged woman who is trying to escape her stress-filled life of having to care for her disabled son, Matty; Jess, an eighteen-year-old girl who is still mourning the loss of her older sister, Jen, who ran away and/or committed suicide, and who is feeling rather disillusioned by the relationship with her parents; and J.J., a young American failed musician whose band broke up and whose girlfriend dumped him. All four characters end up going onto the roof of a building called Toppers House in order to jump off. They are all suicidal at the beginning and, frankly, for most of the book, for reasons mentioned earlier; Jess' actions seem more impulsive as if she didn't put as much thought into it as the other characters. After they introduce themselves and talk for a bit, they decide to make a pact that they will all defer the act of suicide until a later agreed-upon date. These mutual suicidal thoughts and the general twists of life or fate or whatever you want to call it end up bringing them together.
I would like to add that I did not really like this book; I felt that About A Boy was more humorous and quirky and kept my interest. This book was not only boring in parts, but I came away with an overwhelming feeling that the author was just glorifying suicide and using this terrible and horrifying act as a humorous outlet. Suicide is not something to make light of. Furthermore, I felt that the characters did not really learn anything throughout the book. They remained the same selfish, ego-driven characters they were at the beginning of the book. Maureen was the only character who truly thought of anyone but herself; she also had her son, Matty, to think of. One could argue, however, that she was not thinking of him when she decided to end her life, although she did make sure that he had a facility to go to and nurses to take care of him in the event of her death.
This book was also made into a movie starring Pierce Brosnan and Toni Collette (Toni Collette also starred in About A Boy). I watched the movie and enjoyed it much more than I did the book, which is surprising considering that I usually enjoy the books more. In the movie, however, the characters seemed to get along more and seemed to end up better friends than in the book. In the book, I just didn't get the feeling that the characters liked each other much. In the book, I felt that they were just stuck with each other due to unforeseen circumstances. In the movie, however, they really seemed to like each other, at least by the end. Two of the characters even got together at the end of the movie, an ending that was not in the book. Also, in the movie, the characters were more sympathetic, especially Jess. My heart broke for her and the circumstances in which she found herself. Chock it up to the really stellar acting of Imogen Poots (Jess). So, although I would recommend the movie, I do not think it is worth anyone's time to read the book. As my mother would say, a real slog fest!
To summarize, the book mostly takes place in London and centers around four main characters: Martin, an aging minor TV celebrity who was sent to prison for a dalliance with a fifteen-year-old girl; Maureen, a middle-aged woman who is trying to escape her stress-filled life of having to care for her disabled son, Matty; Jess, an eighteen-year-old girl who is still mourning the loss of her older sister, Jen, who ran away and/or committed suicide, and who is feeling rather disillusioned by the relationship with her parents; and J.J., a young American failed musician whose band broke up and whose girlfriend dumped him. All four characters end up going onto the roof of a building called Toppers House in order to jump off. They are all suicidal at the beginning and, frankly, for most of the book, for reasons mentioned earlier; Jess' actions seem more impulsive as if she didn't put as much thought into it as the other characters. After they introduce themselves and talk for a bit, they decide to make a pact that they will all defer the act of suicide until a later agreed-upon date. These mutual suicidal thoughts and the general twists of life or fate or whatever you want to call it end up bringing them together.
I would like to add that I did not really like this book; I felt that About A Boy was more humorous and quirky and kept my interest. This book was not only boring in parts, but I came away with an overwhelming feeling that the author was just glorifying suicide and using this terrible and horrifying act as a humorous outlet. Suicide is not something to make light of. Furthermore, I felt that the characters did not really learn anything throughout the book. They remained the same selfish, ego-driven characters they were at the beginning of the book. Maureen was the only character who truly thought of anyone but herself; she also had her son, Matty, to think of. One could argue, however, that she was not thinking of him when she decided to end her life, although she did make sure that he had a facility to go to and nurses to take care of him in the event of her death.
This book was also made into a movie starring Pierce Brosnan and Toni Collette (Toni Collette also starred in About A Boy). I watched the movie and enjoyed it much more than I did the book, which is surprising considering that I usually enjoy the books more. In the movie, however, the characters seemed to get along more and seemed to end up better friends than in the book. In the book, I just didn't get the feeling that the characters liked each other much. In the book, I felt that they were just stuck with each other due to unforeseen circumstances. In the movie, however, they really seemed to like each other, at least by the end. Two of the characters even got together at the end of the movie, an ending that was not in the book. Also, in the movie, the characters were more sympathetic, especially Jess. My heart broke for her and the circumstances in which she found herself. Chock it up to the really stellar acting of Imogen Poots (Jess). So, although I would recommend the movie, I do not think it is worth anyone's time to read the book. As my mother would say, a real slog fest!