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A review by jenbsbooks
Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil by John Berendt
Did not finish book. Stopped at 20%.
I'd picked up a physical copy of the book at a thrift store (for my Little Free Library) and that shifts a book up my TBR. I didn't know much about this, the #1 National Bestseller on the cover indicated that it was popular, ratings were so/so. More than one reference to this as a "non-fiction novel" ... which is an oxymoron! A quick glance at the blurb I knew this would be a true-crime about a murder ...
He was tall ... WHO was? So, are we talking about Jim Williams? Okay ... is this an interview? Who is I? I guess I'm just used to non-fiction along the lines of [book:Columbine|5632446], [book:Into Thin Air: A Personal Account of the Mt. Everest Disaster|1898], [book:The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair That Changed America|397483] where there is some sort of introduction to who the author is, why they are writing this, what documentation there is for classify this as non-fiction, if dialog is actual recordings, etc ...
This just starts, giving random background and some random guy ... I assume he will be involved in the upcoming murder. The perpetrator? The victim? A witness? Is Mercer House the location of the murder, is that why we're getting background on it. Is this all just two people talking?
The author gives a little more info on himself in chapter 2 ... still doesn't really explain things. He decided to go to New Orleans because he saw an ad for inexpensive airfare?
I was listening to the audiobook, but I had to keep stopping to come to the kindle copy and re-read to see if I'd missed something, because I had NO idea what was going on, if there was a story? I'd re-read and, yes I remember hearing that and that ... I didn't miss anything? There's just NOTHING happening? Just random tidbits and people, but no story?
The blurb says "reads like a novel" ... I don't think so.
I suppose I could push on ... I've spent three hours listening, and at least an hour re-reading, and there's TWELVE more hours to go. Methinks not. Looking back at the reviews, it seems many people struggled. Who loved this? Why?
I'm not rating it because I didn't finish.
I'll put the physical book in the little library, see if someone else wants it. I'll return my digital copies to the library, because it does still seem quite in demand.
ProFanity x18
He was tall ... WHO was? So, are we talking about Jim Williams? Okay ... is this an interview? Who is I? I guess I'm just used to non-fiction along the lines of [book:Columbine|5632446], [book:Into Thin Air: A Personal Account of the Mt. Everest Disaster|1898], [book:The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair That Changed America|397483] where there is some sort of introduction to who the author is, why they are writing this, what documentation there is for classify this as non-fiction, if dialog is actual recordings, etc ...
This just starts, giving random background and some random guy ... I assume he will be involved in the upcoming murder. The perpetrator? The victim? A witness? Is Mercer House the location of the murder, is that why we're getting background on it. Is this all just two people talking?
The author gives a little more info on himself in chapter 2 ... still doesn't really explain things. He decided to go to New Orleans because he saw an ad for inexpensive airfare?
I was listening to the audiobook, but I had to keep stopping to come to the kindle copy and re-read to see if I'd missed something, because I had NO idea what was going on, if there was a story? I'd re-read and, yes I remember hearing that and that ... I didn't miss anything? There's just NOTHING happening? Just random tidbits and people, but no story?
The blurb says "reads like a novel" ... I don't think so.
I suppose I could push on ... I've spent three hours listening, and at least an hour re-reading, and there's TWELVE more hours to go. Methinks not. Looking back at the reviews, it seems many people struggled. Who loved this? Why?
I'm not rating it because I didn't finish.
I'll put the physical book in the little library, see if someone else wants it. I'll return my digital copies to the library, because it does still seem quite in demand.
ProFanity x18