AQUARIUM

Author:  David Vann

Genre:  Fiction, Standalone

Published:  2015

Personal Rating:  2/5 (not enjoyable)

Format/Narrator:  Audiobook/Julia Whelan

Yearly Count:  63

Twelve-year-old, Caitlyn, waits for her mom to pick her up after school at the Aquarium in Seattle, Washington.  While viewing the fish, Caitlyn befriends an old man.   

I'm not sure where I originally saw this book, but it was the setting that drew me in . . . Seattle.  And, the Aquarium (real place) that we were too late to visit.  :(  I did get an education on a lot of the fish in the book, which I didn't particularly care for (a major attempt at metaphors!), but it was fun to know the streets and area.

I love being surprised or shocked when reading or listening to a book.  However, that doesn't always translate into loving the book.  This book is a prime example of that.  I was quite surprised and even shocked on an occasion or two, but it was like seeing an accident on the side of the road.  It's hard not to look, but it's not a good scene.  I had so many thoughts throughout and disbelief that it made for an unenjoyable audioread.

It perplexes me that sometimes a scene can make me cringe in a very bad way (hence, not enjoy it) versus another scene that is bad in nature, and I'm intrigued and think it's the best thing ever.  ???  Maybe it has to do with children!  No.  I have loved numerous books with children in them.  Maybe it's the adults and how they treat the children.  ???  I'm not sure, but I do know I didn't like this one.

Thoughts of Joy