Night, Forgotten - WOW!

 

NIGHT, FORGOTTEN – Meghan Joyce Tozer’s debut novel is a most fascinating, challenging book, which I highly recommend. (Note:   While I don’t know the author well, I heard of the book indirectly through meeting her in person recently.)


I believe that she is particularly hoping to reach other women (and perhaps older teenage young women.    As an older, cis/ hettish, white man I found the book intense.  

While reading this book, I often, I felt a lot of sadness and other deep emotions.   The narrator’s story frequently related to self-doubts, fueled by feeling “not heard” by the adults she cared about.

This book could trigger some – particularly women and girls who’ve faced particular major traumas in their lives.   At the same time, it may assist them in unpacking some of what may have been hard (previously) to process.

“Julie” is a caring relatively young, married woman whose life has centered around an immediate circle of those in her day-to-day life.   Besides her spouse, her mother-in-law is intrusive and overbearing.   Additionally, there is her best friend, her next door neighbor – separated by woods (in suburban Boston).  Both her husband, and she (alone) rapidly become a key part of her story.

The story is deeply troubling, and very dark.   Its subject matter will be strongly relevant to the life experiences of many, particularly women and girls.

Moving back and forth – between just before and then after the horrible incident the story focuses upon was very effective in engaging me, as a reader.

Meghan Joyce Tozer digs deeply into issues related to gender, trust, believing in oneself (or not) and much more.   This is an intense psychological (almost) thriller.

For me, Night, Forgotten, poses deep questions for me the reader.   The answers and even further questions, I will ponder for a long time.   

The confusing parts of things (for me at least), open me up to thinking of my preconceived notions of deep life issues.   I’m also stretched into reconsidering and expanding my vision(s) of some serious things in my life.

Though totally, totally different, this book reminds me of the movie:  Promising Young Woman – see:

https://www.georgemarx.org/2021/01/promising-young-woman.html  In both stories, the authors/directors – deeply passionate women – personalize in a most meaningful ways – serious issues deserving a lot more attention than they usually get due to sexism/ The Patriarchy.

This is a deeply thoughtfully written book!   It engaged my interest and my emotions, and didn’t take long to read, despite not being a short novel!   I highly recommend it!

I would add that the author also – showed her concern for “the issues” by listing relevant resources to help her readers, as well as posing questions for readers to think about, and ideally discuss with others who (also) have read the book.

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