b. ♡'s Reviews > Half His Age

mccurdy’s first foray into fiction writing is an absolutely harrowing look at intergenerational trauma and the wreckage it can leave behind

i find this book so difficult to rate. the graphic sex scenes between adult and minor were vile (purposefully so) and made my reading experience demoralizing, yet the imagery and writing never felt gratuitous. rather, i felt deeply connected to the protagonist and her desperation for love, understanding, and emotional depth.

the scenes with waldo and her mother were some of my favorites, and they were also some of the hardest to read. the writing was bitter yet tender and vulnerable, and it made me think of my own mother as i reflected on the jagged edges of our relationship

can we ever truly outrun the traumas our parents passed onto us? is there any point in searching for love and meaning in this consumerist, capitalist world? are we all just floating from one “add to cart” button to the next, waiting for either death or enlightenment to find us?

i’ve come out of this read a bit more brokenhearted than i was going into it, but not in a wholly unwanted way

tldr: a heavy read for the thought daughters with mommy issues who keep looking for connection in all the wrong places

thank you to libro.fm for this arc!