3 out of 4 stars
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McDowell is about the life of Hiram McDowell. Hiram is a surgeon, the top of his profession. He has angered many people along the way, and they want to see him fall from their perceived throne. Hiram is the father of three children whom he has always provided financially but not been in their lives as he should have been. His work takes him away from home and his love for mountain climbing is only second to work. He assists in a suicide and his life takes a turn for the worse, or so it seems. Hiram is sent to prison but escapes and eludes police for years. Traveling from one place to the next he’s meeting people and making friends along the way. He helps his new friends anyway he can. His plan is to eventually settle in Maine under an assumed identity.
The author shows the reader two sides of Hiram. The first one is the arrogant, self-centered, and needs nobody in his life. Hiram’s second side is humble, kind and enjoys the people he encounters.
I enjoyed the perceived change in the story. I am not sure if the author intended the reader to dislike Hiram in the beginning or if I made the assumption that he was arrogant and self-centered. The story moves slowly and as it progresses, but I questioned whether he was always kind or was that how he had changed after being alone for so long?
I didn’t like that Hiram’s children were such a total mess. Ann married with two children suffered from depression and when Sophie suggested they check on her Hiram didn’t think it was necessary for him to go with Sophie. Billy, the only son was seduced by his step-sister and got her pregnant. Hiram didn’t see the problem with that and said the baby probably wasn’t Billie’s. Sophie was in a relationship that went incredibly wrong, but she didn’t have the support of her family.
I didn’t like how it ended; I expected more. The feeling that the author changed the main character from Hiram to his daughter, Sophie disappointed me. I was left with questions about the people in Hiram’s life while he was an escapee.
My rating for McDowell is 3 out of 4 stars. The book seems to have been professionally edited as there were no noticeable errors. I didn’t think the book was good enough for a rating of 4 because of the ending but it was better than a rating of 2 because of the change in Hiram. I would recommend this book to readers of fiction, but I would not recommend this book to young readers because of the suicide.
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McDowell
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