FULL SERVICE and SHUG

Well, I had originally intended to only write about books I’d actually finished reading, but Will Weaver’s FULL SERVICE got me thinking. Set in a small town in MN in 1965, is all I’m really going to tell you though. I’m about half way through. What interests me is that it is what you might call one of those “quiet” books. I mean, in a way, so far, nothing much has happened and there’s no clear driving force goal for the main character, and yet, everything is happening… life is happening. Hard to explain without resorting to the cliche “slice of life”, but that pretty much describes it.

So many books seem to be set in either Small Town America, or a nondescript city, or NYC. STA books are so often about going against the grain of the town or a coming of age story which leads me, as a writer, to what I find so fascinating. How are authors able to pull this off again and again? Because they do. We’ve all read Kimberly Willis Holt who writes like this too. And many, many others. I was hooked from page one of FULL SERVICE and although I might not label it a “page turner” it’s always playing in the back of my mind when I’m not reading, but why? In a way, the writing is as sleepy as the town.

I found Jenny Han’s SHUG to be much the same. And I read it in two sittings in one day. So if there isn’t that BIG goal that the character’s are reaching for, where is the drama? The tension? The villain? The stuff they tell us in every writing workshop that we’ve gotta have? And guess what? I have no idea.

Part of the magic of these books is definitely the writer’s adeptness at their craft. The outstandingly developed characters, metaphors, the language, the way of evoking every sense in the reader, but is that enough? Apparently. 

And lastly, I wonder about the audience for quiet books. Who is it? Adults? Writers? Librarians? But what about teens? When I was 12, I would’ve loved SHUG, and I know a few kids who would like both of them now, but overall, are kids reading these books? If you know, please post. I tend to wonder…FULL SERVICE is about cars, girls, growing up and stars a male main character, but would a 14 year old girl be interested? What about a boy? Are we writing for ourselves or kids? Ahhh…a different post, I do believe!

Have a great weekend.