The Book of Essie by Meghan MacLean Weir
Publication Date: June 12th, 2018
Publisher: Knopf Publishing Group
Genre: Adult Contemporary
Source: Library
Summary
Esther Ann Hicks--Essie--is the youngest child on Six for Hicks, a reality television phenomenon. She's grown up in the spotlight, both idolized and despised for her family's fire-and-brimstone brand of faith. When Essie's mother, Celia, discovers that Essie is pregnant, she arranges an emergency meeting with the show's producers: Do they sneak Essie out of the country for an abortion? Do they pass the child off as Celia's? Or do they try to arrange a marriage--and a ratings-blockbuster wedding? Meanwhile, Essie is quietly pairing herself up with Roarke Richards, a senior at her school with a secret of his own to protect. As the newly formed couple attempt to sell their fabricated love story to the media--through exclusive interviews with an infamously conservative reporter named Liberty Bell--Essie finds she has questions of her own: What was the real reason for her older sister leaving home? Who can she trust with the truth about her family? And how much is she willing to sacrifice to win her own freedom?
(Courtesy of Goodreads)
My Review
I picked up The Book of Essie because of all the hype it's been receiving in the book review community. It seemed like an interesting read -- a story about a teenage girl, but written for a more adult audience. Even from the synopsis, I knew it was going to be a book dealing with some tough topics. Like everyone else, I immediately thought about that TV show about the religious family with all the kids (you know which one I'm talking about) and was expecting something vaguely superficial but got so much more.
I was genuinely surprised by how in depth this book went. I think the fact that we got multiple POVs helped make the story more three-dimensional. If I'm being honest, Essie's POV was probably my least favorite. Her voice felt somewhat juvenile and I felt like we the plot moved forward the least when we got the story from her point of view. At points it felt like there was somewhat of a disconnect between her point of view and her actions throughout the story. I do think that she, and the other POV characters, Liberty and Roarke, were well developed and that their voices were very unique, which can be difficult to achieve in multiple POV stories.
The one thing I wasn't a fan of was the ending. Without getting into spoilers, I felt like that the ending was too perfect. Everything wrapped-up so nicely that it just didn't feel real. The response to Essie's actions were glossed over and the last chapter itself just felt too preachy for my liking. It just didn't feel realistic. That was especially hard to swallow when the rest of the book dealt with such gritty topics.
Otherwise, I really loved the book as a whole. It went places I wasn't expecting but thought were really important. I was expecting a one issue book but got a book that touched on a variety of different issues that face our society today. Even though I don't think a majority of us can relate to living in the spotlight our whole life in a very controlled household, I still think that we can relate to the heart of the conflicts that Essie and the other main characters go through throughout the story.
I was genuinely surprised by how in depth this book went. I think the fact that we got multiple POVs helped make the story more three-dimensional. If I'm being honest, Essie's POV was probably my least favorite. Her voice felt somewhat juvenile and I felt like we the plot moved forward the least when we got the story from her point of view. At points it felt like there was somewhat of a disconnect between her point of view and her actions throughout the story. I do think that she, and the other POV characters, Liberty and Roarke, were well developed and that their voices were very unique, which can be difficult to achieve in multiple POV stories.
The one thing I wasn't a fan of was the ending. Without getting into spoilers, I felt like that the ending was too perfect. Everything wrapped-up so nicely that it just didn't feel real. The response to Essie's actions were glossed over and the last chapter itself just felt too preachy for my liking. It just didn't feel realistic. That was especially hard to swallow when the rest of the book dealt with such gritty topics.
Otherwise, I really loved the book as a whole. It went places I wasn't expecting but thought were really important. I was expecting a one issue book but got a book that touched on a variety of different issues that face our society today. Even though I don't think a majority of us can relate to living in the spotlight our whole life in a very controlled household, I still think that we can relate to the heart of the conflicts that Essie and the other main characters go through throughout the story.
Happy reading!
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