(Started January 23rd, 2019) A Review of Ian McEwan's "On Chesil Beach"

Hello,

I love reading almost as much as I love music, but reading is harder to find time for. But it was a slow day at work and I had time to kill. I pulled out my Kindle and finished reading this book. This review is of the book by Ian McEwan, not the movie based on the book. However this is a trailer for the movie, which looks to be incredibly faithful to the book:

"On Chesil Beach" is a book about a newly married couple who struggle to consummate their marriage. Although there are several characters in this book, it's the newly married couple at the heart of the book and story. We learn quite a bit about Edward Mayhew and Florence Ponting. The book deals with the effects of and what lead up to their struggle with intimacy. The trailer above is a solid summation of the story.

Both Edward and Florence are very likable people, there isn't a question of taking sides. We are cheering for them as a couple, working together and overcoming any obstacle. I have to admit I was quite surprised by the effects of their intimacy struggle and what happened as a result of that. I love being surprised and not being able to predict how a story ends. I think that's a sign of a good author. I also liked the way McEwan handled this sensitive subject. He let the story develop slowly, but not too slowly. The pace of the story matched the love lives of the young couple at the center of the story.

Two things about this book that really work in it's favor. It's a quick and enjoyable read and it's also a story that you think about the rest of the day. I usually like to read longer books so that I can get lost in the story. However a quick and satisfying read is also very enjoyable.

Ian McEwan is one of my all-time favorite authors. I absolutely loved "Atonement" and quite liked "Saturday" as well. "On Chesil Beach" is the third of his books I've read. So how was the book, well it was pretty good. It's not quite to the level of "Atonement", but it's only a small percentage of books that matches that classic. 

Yes I liked the book. Would I recommend the book, why yes I would. For those of you who may be squeamish about the storyline, don't worry. The actual attempt at intimacy is only a small part of the entire story. That's basically the jumping off point for the rest of the story.

I definitely recommend this book, it's a very high quality book. It's not a perfect book, but it's very good. I would give it a B grade. 

themusicaddict