I’ve had this on hold at the library for awhile so I can’t remember what first drew me to it, but WOW I’m glad for it. This is my favorite book of 2019 so far.

What I Loved:

» The Reading Experience
I tried to explain this to my husband, but it’s so hard. Here’s my best shot: at the beginning of the book, I felt clear headed and present and sure of what was happening. By the end of the book, I felt a little fuzzy and like I had just woken up from a vivid dream. Like I was in that fuzzy confusing space between the dream world and the real world so I wasn’t sure what was real and what was a dream. The writing style and the story telling really did a number on me.

» The Rising Sense of Panic
Okay, so when I read The Long Walk I felt chronically exhausted. And when I read Station Eleven, I kept wanting to wash my hands or bathe in hand sanitizer. When I read this, I felt a rising sense of panic and an increasing need to stay awake. Part of the staying awake part was because I didn’t want to not wake up and part of it was because I couldn’t stop reading and I stayed up most of the night to find out the ending.

» All the Different Perspectives
A lot of times I really hate more than two perspectives because I get lost so easily and I don’t bond with any character. In this instance, I appreciated jumping into so many perspectives to get a better sense of WHAT THE HECK IS GOING ON AND WHY ARE ALL THESE PEOPLE FALLING ASLEEP AND WHO IS NEXT?

» Karen Thompson Walker Lives in Portland
If you’re new here, I’m from Portland so I love it when little things like reading a book by an author living in Portland pop into my life.

What I Wished For:

» More of the Dreamers
I wanted to see more of what was going on with them, especially the original sleepers.

» A Little Deeper Dive into Each Character
I have a pretty good sense of each character, but I wanted just a little more of a connection. A little more action from each of them and a little more of their thoughts and theories of what was happening in their town. I think Sarah and Libby were the most rounded out. I loved seeing them active with their own agendas and plan of action.

» More of and Ending
The ending was great, but I wanted more. There were a lot of snapshots of how everyone moved on, but I wanted a lot more details. We spend so much time with certain individuals, I wanted each of their stories to have a chapter’s worth of a conclusion.

TL;DR:
Amazing story telling, amazing writing. My favorite read of 2019 so far.