Benny & Shrimp – Katarina Mazetti
Title: Benny & Shrimp
Author: Katarina Mazetti
Buy This Book
This copy was provided by the publisher for me to review.
It started in a cemetery, where they begrudgingly share a bench. “Shrimp,” the childless young widow and librarian with a sharp intellect and a home so tidy that her jam jars are in alphabetical orer, meets Benny, the gentle, overworked milk farmer who fears becoming the village’s Old Bachelor. Both driven by an enormous longing and loudly ticking biological clocks, they can’t escape the powerful attraction between them.
But how will she learn to accept that he falls asleep at the opera and has a house full of his mother’s cross-stitch? And how could he ever feel at home in her minimalist apartment, bare as a dentist’s waiting room?
This book is unique in that it is told from each side of the character’s story, in alternating chapters. I enjoyed reading about one event in the thoughts of Benny, and having it recapped or evaluated by Shrimp. The chapters didn’t always overlap with events, but they did directly correlate with each other.
The story didn’t mesh well with me. While I appreciated the writing style, as I mentioned above, something didn’t click with me, and I was unable to finish. It doesn’t have much dialogue, since it is largely thoughts and feelings of each of the characters in their own chapters, so I’m not sure if that’s what bothered me or if I simply didn’t connect with the story this time. I didn’t much appreciate Shrimp’s view on Benny’s lifestyle, either.
I’ve looked around and found others really enjoyed this story, so please don’t let my review stop you from trying it out – it is a very popular book in Sweden, just not for me.
Related Posts:
Related Posts
Tags
Share This
hmmm, I think I would give this book a try. I do like books that alternate characters with chapters. I just finished a book like that. I think it is very easy to read and you get to know the different people better.
I'm sorry you weren't able to finish the book because it has an unexpected ending. I was one of those who really liked it. The author has written a sequel and I wish they would hurry up and get it translated into English.