BOOK REVIEW: A LIST OF CAGES BY ROBIN ROE

(Disclaimer: GET READY FOR A PARKS-AND-REC-FILLED BOOK REVIEW EXTRAVAGANZA) 

I enjoyed this book, I really did, but to be honest, given the RAVE reviews it's been getting, I was a bit disappointed that I didn't love it as much.

Let me start with what I loved:

1) The characters are wonderful and endearing and just so incredibly LOVABLE. Adam, Julian, and Charlie were my favs. There's so much love between these characters, and it just unapologetically radiates throughout this book. (Honestly, I was kinda surprised at how much I loved Charlie?? His aggressive, constantly-pissed-off love was hilarious and kind of impossible not to love, to be honest.)

2) I think Roe did an excellent job exploring what abuse does to a person. Watching Julian grapple with his abuse and his understanding of it was quite poignant, and done in a grounded way too. His development in this regard never moved too fast, and you never got the sense that at one point he's "cured" and the issue is settled and done with. Healing is not linear, and this book was a top notch example of that.

3) THE TITLE. When you finally understand what it means in the context of the novel it's such a moving moment. Everything just clicks.

And now for the slightly (very) disappointing aspects:

1) I think this book's biggest weakness is by far its writing style. It's not bad per se, but it lacks a certain punch that would've made it resonate so much more. Personally, I wanted writing that would leave me reeling (à la We Are the Ants or The Piper's Son), but what I got instead was just straight up simplistic. I've seen some reviews call it "juvenile," and honestly, it really does feel juvenile--which sucks, because this story had so much heart. You know that Parks and Rec episode when Leslie is trying to run for office and the parks and rec gang try to help her and they end up walking on like 5 seconds' worth of red carpet and slippery ice and it's hilarious and one of the best and most iconic episodes of a TV show ever? (I have a point I swear.) In the end, Leslie says, "This team has a lot of heart and zero know-how," and I think that absolutely applies to A List of Cages: It has a a lot of heart, but that heart does not live up to its potential because of the bland writing. 

(I would apologize for the tangent but I don't think there is ever a wrong time to discuss Parks and Rec)

2) ANYWAY. Another thing in A List of Cages that had a lot of room for improvement was Emerald. She wasn't exactly annoying, but she felt like such a prototypical Perfect female character. Here's the thing: I am so damn tired of reading about male characters losing their breath when they see how Perfect and Beautiful a female character is. I keep going back to that word, perfect, because Emerald really did feel like a Perfect Lil' Snowflake. EVEN HER FREAKING NAME IS PERFECT: Emerald. Never give me perfect characters, they're boring, and I lose interest in them almost as soon as they're introduced.

3) You'd think that a book that gets so much about mental illness right wouldn't make stupid, problematic comments about mental illness, but here we freaking are.

"It took a few meetings with our reading buddies before I realized that kindergartners were a lot like manic-depressives, vacillating between euphoria and despair with terrifying speed."

First of all, that is not how bipolar disorder works. People with bipolar don't go from euphoria to despair with "terrifying speed." Get your facts straight and stop adding to the mental illness stigma by describing bipolar as "terrifying." Second of all, DO NOT USE BIPOLAR AS AN ADJECTIVE UNLESS YOU ARE DESCRIBING SOMEONE WITH ACTUAL BILOLAR DISORDER. The amount of times I've heard people say "omigod I'm so bipolar lol!!" or something to that effect is ridiculous and completely unacceptable. At first I thought this problematic comment was coming from Adam, the character who said it, not from the author, but having finished the book, I don't think that's the case. The comment is never addressed nor are we meant to see Adam as that questionable of a character. Ergo, problematic comment is problematic, and I will hold the author accountable for it.

If you want to continue the Parks and Rec parallels, then here's another one to wrap up: I think A List of Cages is the book form of Andy Dwyer. Is it lovable? Yes. Does it have a lot of heart? Hell yes. Does it have good intentions? Yep. Do those things always translate into action/writing? Mmm...not really, no.