Book Review: A Long Way Down

Hmm... Two book reviews in a row. I need to get a life.

I just finished reading A Long Way Down by Nick Hornby. Hornby has been one of my favorite authors over the last couple years. I thoroughly enjoyed High Fidelity, About a Boy and How to be Good. I managed to identify with many characters, as they come from my generation and we all must tackle the same issues. Those connections made the stories more believable and supplied me with ample empathy for the characters.

Maybe that is why I didn't care for A Long Way Down as much as the other books. The story line focus around four different characters who stumble upon each other on the night each decided to end it all by jumping off a tall building. I had a hard time connecting with those characters--they weren't like me. I am not suicidal and never have been.

The story was still good though. I found myself laughing out loud more than once. Hornby's characters are well portrayed and his remarkable writing wit is still very much intact.

Bottom line: not the best Hornby book, but fans like me will still enjoy reading it.