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A review by tcm_62
Carry Me Down by M.J. Hyland
3.0
Although the narrative moves along swiftly, this was not a comfortable book to read. The central character and narrator is John Egan, an eleven year old boy, and the story largely focuses on the family dynamics between himself, his mother, father and grandmother.
The novel is cleverly structured, with a sparse use of language which hones in on what is not said and how John rather interprets the tone of voice and non-verbal queues of those around him. The theme of what is true and not true runs throughout the novel.
As an only child, John is obviously intelligent and curious, but is essentially a loner with one inconsistent friendship with Brendan, a class mate. He becomes obsessed with the truth and believes he has the ability to detect when anyone is lying to him. This has potentially fatal consequences towards the end of the novel.
Great writing but I found John's state of mind unnerving and his complex family set up rather sad.
The novel is cleverly structured, with a sparse use of language which hones in on what is not said and how John rather interprets the tone of voice and non-verbal queues of those around him. The theme of what is true and not true runs throughout the novel.
As an only child, John is obviously intelligent and curious, but is essentially a loner with one inconsistent friendship with Brendan, a class mate. He becomes obsessed with the truth and believes he has the ability to detect when anyone is lying to him. This has potentially fatal consequences towards the end of the novel.
Great writing but I found John's state of mind unnerving and his complex family set up rather sad.