So the jist of the book: Amy's dad had recently died and she has been having quite a rough time. To top it all off, her mother decides that it's time for them to move across the country. Amy is supposed to drive their car from California to Connecticut. But since her father's accident, Amy doesn't really drive anymore. So her mother arranges for Roger, an old childhood friend of Amy's, to drive her there and she plans out the whole trip to them. But it turns out that that trip is kind of boring, so Amy and Roger decide to take the more "scenic" route and end up taking quite a detour.
I really thought this book was great. It felt authentic and real. Amy's voice and narration were quite consistent throughout the book. Her and Roger's relationship seemed quite genuine. At first they were quite awkward around each other, and they didn't know what to talk about, but as the trip went on. they got used to each other and were kind of able to read each other's body language, even though they didn't necessarily talk too much. It was gradual, and so it felt real and honest.
They were both quite likable characters and I thought the whole character building, like learning about them, was really nicely written.
Now, what sets this book apart, for me at least, is that there are pictures and receipts and doodles all over this book. Amy's mother gets her a sort of travel scrapbook, so we have excerpts from in the book. This added so much to the story. I've always loved roadtrips, even just the idea of them excites me. So seeing pictures from their stops, or receipts from diners really made me get into the story and be there. There were also playlists that they made for the trip, and each one was named differently, according to what they were experiencing at that moment. And the music was actually good and when you listen to it, you kind of get the mood of each one which then correlates to the specific part of the book. And to me that was amazing and it was what ultimately made me love this book.
I also felt like Amy and Roger's relationship wasn't blown out of proportions. It started out awkwardly and slowly they got used to each other and became friends. And even though they liked each other, like romantically, it wasn't made to be this huge epic love story. It felt possible and real, not like they were instant lovers. I really liked the way it ended. They kind of said "Okay, yes, we like each other, we like how things are, but we don't necessarily know where we're headed". And that was great because that's how it is in life. You meet someone and you like them and you see where it's going in time. And also, we got a receipt from a diner which is dated to after the ending, so we know that they end up together. So I really appreciated not having that huge, epic love story after just five days they spent together.
All in all, this is the perfect feel good book. It's a sparkly, fluffy, warm and fuzzy read. But it's not just that. It made me really want to go on a roadtrip. I gave this book 5/5 stars on Goodreads and if you're looking for a quick read that's gonna make you feel good, this book is perfect for it.
*There's a playlist I found on 8tracks which has some of the songs from the book, and it's really good so I thought I'd put it in:
http://8tracks.com/padfootandprongs/amy-roger-s-epic-detour-1
No comments:
Post a Comment