Jacob Have I Loved

This is a book of the perpetual sibling rivalry--the competition between brothers for love and parents' accolades. The story is told in a unique fashion and the reader will be surprised by the twists and turns the plot takes. This is a first novel for the author and, in my opinion, a great start. The author should continue his writing endeavors and treat us to more of his wonderful storytelling!

I really didn't see the ending to this one coming at all -- it definitely surprised me, which was quite refreshing after reading so many books that are so formulaic in their structure. There's nothing worse than being able to predict how the book is going to end -- so that said this book definitely will surprise you. I started reading the book and at first I had a hard time with it simply because I couldn't see where it was going. However, after a while I found the relationship between the brothers to be similar to other books/stories about sibling relationships where one sibling succeeds and the other feels like they are living in the shadows (John Grisham's book "The Summons" comes to mind, as does Sam Shepard's play "True West"). Jacob Have I Loved is written in the first person narrative and tells the story from the younger brother's point of view, so you never actually know what the older brother thinks or how he views the sibling relationship -- you only see the one perspective. This single focus I found to be a pleasant change from most books where you hear the thoughts of all the characters -- here there is only one voice, that of the book's author. That said, as I stuck with the book I found I was up reading it until 2 a.m. just to finish it and see how it ended (keep in mind I had to be up for work at 6 a.m.) ;o). Tired as I was, I really didn't see the ending coming... I'm not sure saying I "enjoyed" the book is the right thing to say (since it's about a dysfunctional relationship), but in the end I found I couldn't put it down until I finished it so I guess that's the real hallmark of a good book.