We Need to Talk About Kevin
By Lionel Shriver
- Release Date: 2003-03-25
- Genre: Fiction & Literature
Description
The inspiration for the film starring Tilda Swinton and John C. Reilly, this resonant story of a mother’s unsettling quest to understand her teenage son’s deadly violence, her own ambivalence toward motherhood, and the explosive link between them remains terrifyingly prescient.
Eva never really wanted to be a mother. And certainly not the mother of a boy who murdered seven of his fellow high school students, a cafeteria worker, and a much–adored teacher in a school shooting two days before his sixteenth birthday.
Neither nature nor nurture exclusively shapes a child's character. But Eva was always uneasy with the sacrifices and social demotion of motherhood. Did her internalized dislike for her own son shape him into the killer he’s become? How much is her fault?
Now, two years later, it is time for her to come to terms with Kevin’s horrific rampage, all in a series of startlingly direct correspondences with her estranged husband, Franklin.
A piercing, unforgettable, and penetrating exploration of violence and responsibility, a book that the Boston Globe describes as “impossible to put down,” is a stunning examination of how tragedy affects a town, a marriage, and a family.
Reviews
A great read
5By jwatson26This book has so much emotion. I couldn’t put it down.Very Creative!
4By OzcromeAlthough there were parts of book that were long winded, and the prose was sometimes pretentious, I really enjoyed the story, especially as it climaxed in the last several chapters.Sad
5By Whatever ✌🏻This book is so heartbreaking, lovely writing. I wish I would have read the book before watching the movie. I know majority of movies leave out a lot of information that books have, there’s so much in this book that wasn’t told in the movie. Definitely recommend this book!!Very well done, a stunning nightmare
5By DixiejackYou know where it’s going, but you have no idea how bad it really is , until the end....it’s not one of those books that make you laugh, and then bring you to tears. It’s more like a nightmare so real and so bad, you never want to sleep in that bed again.
