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A review by jrayereads
Ripe by Sarah Rose Etter
2.5
Rating: 2.5
Format: Physical book
Genre: Literary fiction
I am so glad that I didn’t read this book when I initially bought it in 2023, when I was working at a job I hated and that made my life much more stressful and miserable than it needed to be. Even now, at a job that is better for my mental health in every way, this book was bleak. Cassie’s existential dread was all too relatable. Her disdain for corporate life that uneasily coexists with the pervasive desire to perform well at her job for validation and security. . . ouch.
I enjoyed Sarah Rose Etter’s writing. Ripe is short and well-paced, pretty easy to read in a day or two. Its readability is a big strength. Despite this, I feel like I just kept waiting for something bigger or more impactful to happen. I’m not sure how I feel about some of the unique structural elements that were included. The story is broken up by dictionary definitions and short discussions of those definitions and how they tie to her life and snapshots from her childhood. Sometimes this felt kind of gimmicky or repetitive but other times I liked it as a way to bridge the underlying themes of the book to other elements (like the recurring black hole discussion).
But what are the themes of this book? It’s attempting to touch on a few different things, but I’m not sure that it covered many of them very well. Hustle culture, late-stage capitalism, the impacts of technology and social media, loneliness and isolation, motherhood and monogamy. Cassie feels alone and distant from others but views the majority of the people she interacts with as “Believers”, assuming that they have a genuine, deep passion and adoration for their job and productivity culture that has turned them into lifeless husks. The entire time I wanted to shake her shoulders and say, “Don’t you think they might be faking it, just like you are? Are you so self absorbed to believe you are the only one at your job who isn’t happy???” I don’t have a lot of patience for characters who seem to genuinely believe that they are the only ones who possess depth or importance or personality. Maybe the intention of the narrative was to satirize Cassie in this way, but I don’t think so.
I ultimately feel conflicted on this one. I liked the writing, the unique structure, and the overall goals of the book, but I’m not sure it worked for me in its execution. I certainly related to Cassie in many instances and understood the tedium of corporate life that the book is criticizing, but I found the characterization so lacking that I didn’t feel invested in Cassie or her relationships. The commentary just didn’t have enough nuance or development in order to convince me this book was as deep as it seems to believe it is.
Format: Physical book
Genre: Literary fiction
I am so glad that I didn’t read this book when I initially bought it in 2023, when I was working at a job I hated and that made my life much more stressful and miserable than it needed to be. Even now, at a job that is better for my mental health in every way, this book was bleak. Cassie’s existential dread was all too relatable. Her disdain for corporate life that uneasily coexists with the pervasive desire to perform well at her job for validation and security. . . ouch.
I enjoyed Sarah Rose Etter’s writing. Ripe is short and well-paced, pretty easy to read in a day or two. Its readability is a big strength. Despite this, I feel like I just kept waiting for something bigger or more impactful to happen. I’m not sure how I feel about some of the unique structural elements that were included. The story is broken up by dictionary definitions and short discussions of those definitions and how they tie to her life and snapshots from her childhood. Sometimes this felt kind of gimmicky or repetitive but other times I liked it as a way to bridge the underlying themes of the book to other elements (like the recurring black hole discussion).
But what are the themes of this book? It’s attempting to touch on a few different things, but I’m not sure that it covered many of them very well. Hustle culture, late-stage capitalism, the impacts of technology and social media, loneliness and isolation, motherhood and monogamy. Cassie feels alone and distant from others but views the majority of the people she interacts with as “Believers”, assuming that they have a genuine, deep passion and adoration for their job and productivity culture that has turned them into lifeless husks. The entire time I wanted to shake her shoulders and say, “Don’t you think they might be faking it, just like you are? Are you so self absorbed to believe you are the only one at your job who isn’t happy???” I don’t have a lot of patience for characters who seem to genuinely believe that they are the only ones who possess depth or importance or personality. Maybe the intention of the narrative was to satirize Cassie in this way, but I don’t think so.
I ultimately feel conflicted on this one. I liked the writing, the unique structure, and the overall goals of the book, but I’m not sure it worked for me in its execution. I certainly related to Cassie in many instances and understood the tedium of corporate life that the book is criticizing, but I found the characterization so lacking that I didn’t feel invested in Cassie or her relationships. The commentary just didn’t have enough nuance or development in order to convince me this book was as deep as it seems to believe it is.