Review of Loneliness in the Pocket
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Frannie Annie
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- Latest Review: Loneliness in the Pocket by Graeme Stuckings
Review of Loneliness in the Pocket
[Following is a volunteer review of "Loneliness in the Pocket" by Graeme Stuckings.]
Loneliness in the Pocket by Graeme Stuckings is about a man with ADHD and his experience with relationships both past and present. How does one with ADHD experience life differently than people who don't? The author attempts to answer this question with this book.
What I liked the most was the protagonist's personality. I found his quirks amusing and endearing. He becomes quickly smitten with women yet still tries to play it cool. He succeeds for the most part and has been in several relationships. The way his emotions are described is so vivid that I could experience how being infatuated affected him. I also liked how he was friendly yet aloof at the same time, and passionate about his job. His annoyance at life's small inconveniences such as feet on cold tile or a dog barking and waking him up in the middle of the night made him seem more human.
I was not too fond of the inconsistent verb tenses at the beginning of the book. I couldn't count these as typos because I was unsure whether it was the author's writing style or not. There were also moments where the story would refer to Pete in the 3rd person and a couple of sentences later he refers to himself in the first person. The story also includes scenes from the point of view of the woman Pete is currently dating, and all of these scenes are consistently first-person. The verb tenses and Pete's point of view became more consistent towards the end of the book. I only caught a couple of mistakes that I was certain were typos.
This story is very dialogue-heavy. I read it on a Kindle scribe, roughly the size of a sheet of printer paper. With the font set at 5, there were moments when I was reading a couple of pages of dialogue with very little to break it up.
I also had no idea where the plot was going before it got there. That combined with the heavy dialogue gives this story a slow pace, with the feeling of meadering down a path that gently curves. I think there is an audience for this type of story, but I did not feel the suspense that the author hinted at in the blurb. It also didn't help that the few conflicts that did happen were solved very quickly.
The development of the protagonist's current relationship felt rushed to me. Even though the book was meant to be short, I still found it jarring to transition from a fun date scene immediately to him thinking about how to provide and build a life for her.
Overall, I give this book 3 out of 5 stars. I enjoyed the book, but because of the pacing issues and inconsistent writing style, I would have struggled to finish it if it had been any longer. Those who enjoy short reads and slice-of-life stories may find some enjoyment in this book.
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Loneliness in the Pocket
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Loneliness in the Pocket by Graeme Stuckings is about a man with ADHD and his experience with relationships both past and present. How does one with ADHD experience life differently than people who don't? The author attempts to answer this question with this book.
What I liked the most was the protagonist's personality. I found his quirks amusing and endearing. He becomes quickly smitten with women yet still tries to play it cool. He succeeds for the most part and has been in several relationships. The way his emotions are described is so vivid that I could experience how being infatuated affected him. I also liked how he was friendly yet aloof at the same time, and passionate about his job. His annoyance at life's small inconveniences such as feet on cold tile or a dog barking and waking him up in the middle of the night made him seem more human.
I was not too fond of the inconsistent verb tenses at the beginning of the book. I couldn't count these as typos because I was unsure whether it was the author's writing style or not. There were also moments where the story would refer to Pete in the 3rd person and a couple of sentences later he refers to himself in the first person. The story also includes scenes from the point of view of the woman Pete is currently dating, and all of these scenes are consistently first-person. The verb tenses and Pete's point of view became more consistent towards the end of the book. I only caught a couple of mistakes that I was certain were typos.
This story is very dialogue-heavy. I read it on a Kindle scribe, roughly the size of a sheet of printer paper. With the font set at 5, there were moments when I was reading a couple of pages of dialogue with very little to break it up.
I also had no idea where the plot was going before it got there. That combined with the heavy dialogue gives this story a slow pace, with the feeling of meadering down a path that gently curves. I think there is an audience for this type of story, but I did not feel the suspense that the author hinted at in the blurb. It also didn't help that the few conflicts that did happen were solved very quickly.
The development of the protagonist's current relationship felt rushed to me. Even though the book was meant to be short, I still found it jarring to transition from a fun date scene immediately to him thinking about how to provide and build a life for her.
Overall, I give this book 3 out of 5 stars. I enjoyed the book, but because of the pacing issues and inconsistent writing style, I would have struggled to finish it if it had been any longer. Those who enjoy short reads and slice-of-life stories may find some enjoyment in this book.
******
Loneliness in the Pocket
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Latest Review: Loneliness in the Pocket by Graeme Stuckings
