Adit

Miller's “Why Fish Don't Exist” (WFDE) at first glance is about how one should (or even can) overcome difficult times. What motivates us to push through? Why push through at all, when everything seems to be falling apart? The book is about hope—sure—but it has a unique take on nihilism that I haven't come across before. Ultimately I'm not sure YET if the words here will be life changing (it may well be), they certainly motivated me to reflect more deeply on the hard times. The book takes a stab at answering “what is the meaning of life?” In my opinion, it answers that pretty well. It sort of reframes the question. Instead of focusing on life's meaning, think about the possibility of all that awaits you.

In the author's words, this book is “a prescription for hope....the promise that there are good things in store...to wonder about the reality waiting behind our assumptions.”

I gave the book 4/5 because the way it gets here is somewhat roundabout—and you certainly need to be with the author on the journey (i.e you shouldn't know the full story of David Starr Jordan). DSJ is not the most well known figure, but I do think I had to somewhat suspend disbelief that (given how extensively and commendably Miller researched him, even as much as going to hold a fish in the archives that he discovered), she didn't uncover his horrible beliefs earlier. I was skeptical of Miller's deep desire to reconcile her father's world view with that of Jordan's (or Darwin's). It felt like a quest for absolute capital T Truth, that seemed perhaps naive at times. But the ending ultimately reflects on this in a mature and self aware way, that mostly makes up for it.

My favorite moments were Anna/Mary, and Miller's vignette of her sister finding a home for herself in Boston. I also enjoyed Miller's own ending (or new beginning depending on how you see it)—I think anyone who has felt heartbreak could relate.

I picked up this book because I've seen it in multiple bookshops and the cover art is beautiful. I checked Goodreads and the reviews seemed generally positive so I figured why not?

The first story (Kushtuka) was alright. It didn't really feel that scary to me at all, something about the pacing (rushed) and the plainly good or evil characters didn't work at all for me. That being said, this story invoked Indian mythology in an interesting way, so I figured I'd keep going.

The second story (White Hills) was awful. I don't even know what it was trying to get at really, and it felt like there was no real message there at all. Just sorta violence for the sake of violence. Similar to the first story, the characters were cartoonishly evil or naive. No nuance really.

The third story (something about teeth) was what made me DNF. Unlike the more interesting first one, this one runs way too long and has numerous uncomfortable scenes that don't add much at all to the narrative. There's a gay theme that I didn't understand, which felt like a distraction from the narrative rather than a well-thought addition. Again this story wasn't scary, it was just sort of uncomfortable and weird.

After batting less than 1/3, I gave up. Maybe I'll read individual stories that other reviewers here liked, but I'm not convinced I'll like them much either.

I initially chose this for a book club. The book sounds awesome based on the synopsis (the Florida Keys during prohibition isn't a topic I've seen covered anywhere else), but it falls flat in execution. An example of this is the “code breaking”, which often feels less like a real puzzle that helps drive the plot and more like character exposition.

An example code that Elizabeth cracks:
‘“Lunar,” she says. “Moon. Mooney Key.” The men's eyes open wide.'

This makes a relatively banal observation sound incredulously intelligent. And to call this a code feels a bit undeserved.

The other female lead mostly focused on how much disdain she has for her husband. I felt there was so much in the book about the husbands of the women (their virtues and faults), that the actual narrative felt like it took a back seat. After thirteen chapters, it felt like the book was still in exposition rather than meaningful plot that reveals deeper character values and guides their development. DNF.