Did I read the same book as everyone did? I Have Some Questions for You by Rebecca Makkai

Synopsis

A successful film professor and podcaster, Bodie Kane is content to forget her past—the family tragedy that marred her adolescence, her four largely miserable years at a New Hampshire boarding school, and the murder of her former roommate, Thalia Keith, in the spring of their senior year. Though the circumstances surrounding Thalia’s death and the conviction of the school’s athletic trainer, Omar Evans, are hotly debated online, Bodie prefers—needs—to let sleeping dogs lie.

But when the Granby School invites her back to teach a course, Bodie is inexorably drawn to the case and its increasingly apparent flaws. In their rush to convict Omar, did the school and the police overlook other suspects? Is the real killer still out there? As she falls down the very rabbit hole she was so determined to avoid, Bodie begins to wonder if she wasn’t as much of an outsider at Granby as she’d thought—if, perhaps, back in 1995, she knew something that might have held the key to solving the case.

Audiobook Review

3 stars

Rant ahead and short review

I never thought that a book read by Julia Whelan would get less than four stars from me and yet, here we are. Despite Julia’s immense talent, I didn’t like the book.

This one has been pushed everywhere on Goodreads and yet I wonder if I have read the same book as everyone else.

The story is quite simple: Bodie Kane now a successful podcaster and film professor will go back to her boarding school for one summer to teach podcast classes to a few students.

Her years at Granby School have been far from easy as she was more an outcast than part of the “in” crowd. Mainly due to her poverty and her past, her chubby appearance and second hand clothes.

She has been picked on, sometimes even harassed by other students, finding some joy with a few friends.

Something terrible happened when she was in her last year: her roommate Thalia Keith was assassinated.

Now one of her summer student wants to investigate the murder, convinced the guy they convicted was the wrong guy and that the murderer is still out there.

All this sounded very promising.. on paper.

But that book was all over the place.

I had a hard time falling into it as we had very long inner monologues from Bodie and she jumped from one anecdote to another, one person to another and this seemed very disjointed. I even had problems being focused on the book, and that never happens to me!

The author also crammed her story with many tropes and concepts, chasing too many topics at the same time.

Between the supremacy of white men over young women and over black people, social media toxicity, the #metoo movement and how it could be abused, teenagers harassing others, the immense flaws of the American law system (god I am so happy not to live in the US but in dear old and small Belgium)… it was just too much.

There were some parts that I was interested in, mainly finding who did it but it was all lost among the many topics broached by the author.

But there is one aspect of the book that resonated with me: the Twitter debacle with her husband. Everyone can accuse anyone of something in social media, rallying a crowd of uninformed people. Then when someone calls bullshit, brandishes her being people of color as a protection, playing the victim even more when she is maybe 1/8th Bolivian or whatnot, has blue eyes, pale skin etc.
it’s simply disgusting and offending to true victims of abuse and POC who have been cast out and threatened their whole life.

It shows how social media is held like a weapon, your own tribune to vilipend others. How it’s now incredibly difficult to see what’s true and what’s hoax. How this is at the same time the greatest asset to defend true abused and oppressed people and the greatest poison of all.

This is the second read after Yellowface broaching that aspect and it still makes me mad to see witches hunt. 

Now, many other readers adored that book so I’d say make your own informed opinion and maybe give it a chance.

Thanks for reading.

Sophie