Land Mammals and Sea Creatures

As someone who suffers from PTSD it is nice to read about other people’s experiences with it. I enjoyed reading Julie’s journey. Stunning work about life and death.

"Everyone Is Already Forgotten"

What with the PTSD, the difficult characters, the magical realism, and that big rotting blue whale - it takes a little while for this book to make its intentions known and for the reader to open up to it. But then it becomes a fascinating ride.

Marty, a wounded Gulf War vet with PTSD, is depressed and intermittently suicidal in a vague, understated, but imminent and inexorable fashion. His daughter comes home to stay with him so that he can stare silently at her, or tell her old stories from his distant past. A mystery woman appears; she has some past history with Marty that it disclosed fairly early on. Everything goes downhill to a not entirely unexpected, but surprisingly liberating, conclusion.

Here's the thing - you can read this on a lot of different levels and purely as your own inclinations dictate. It's loaded with symbolism and it rides a wild wave of magical realism, but you can buy into as much or as little of that as you want. You can take the plot to heart and become invested in the characters' fates, or you can stay above the fray and enjoy and admire this purely as an example of writerly craftsmanship. You can enjoy all of the little bits and pieces of dialogue and throwaway observations and humor, or you can look for the big message behind it all. As I say, reader's choice.

Bottom line - I saw a blurb somewhere describing the author's "sharp humor and emotional honesty", and that's exactly what you get from this book. It is brutally funny in a dark but authentic way. It is also perceptive, sometimes penetrating, always honest, and not manipulative. It's not a Lifetime Movie and it's not dreary kitchen sink drama. There are moments of great insight and some marvelous set pieces. And, after you've forgotten the details or the gist of some of the best lines, there are aspects of the book that will pop into your head long after you've finished it. I can't ask for much more than that.

(Please note that I received a free advance ecopy of this book without a review requirement, or any influence regarding review content should I choose to post a review. Apart from that I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book.)

A story of love, grief, animals, lone adventures, and strange friendships. This story tells the tale of PTSD suffering Marty, his recently returned daughter Julie, and the strange celebrity impersonator who turn up in a small town in BC.

I am not too sure what to think about this book. While I enjoyed many of the philosophical and moral debates about animals, humanity, and suicide that are scattered throughout the story I just couldn't connect to any of the characters. I liked them enough that I kept reading and wanted to know what would happen to them, but I didn't find myself drawn to any of them emotionally.