Em & Me by Beth Morrey was one of the palate cleansing books I needed after some more unusual reading choices. I began the month with a book that was a dark, near future, Black Mirror-esque storyline. It wasn’t quite a thriller, but it was a page turner. The problem was that I just didn’t enjoy it. I found it depressing and nearly the whole cast of characters were unlikeable and pretty deplorable. I haven’t reviewed it here because I just don’t think I would have anything constructive to say. After that, I read The Hearing Trumpet by Leonora Carrington for book club. This was also a side-step in my usual tastes (which is exactly why I joined the book club.)
Both these books left me longing for a ‘nice read’. I was looking for an ‘up-lit’ or commercial fiction, and I spotted Em & Me on the shelf. It had recently been returned to us in a bag of books – we often circulate books to neighbours and friends. This, I decided, was what I needed.
Em & Me
Delphine is a single mum to bright and gifted Em, and a carer for her dad. They live in a small, cramped flat in London. Delphine and Em share a bed, and the family are scraping by on her waitressing work. There’s little food in the cupboards, and Delphine’s dad is in a deep depression of grief having never recovered from the death of her mother. Em has a spirited and motivating school teacher, Mrs Gill, who slowly breathes new life into Delphine’s future. As Delphine begins to embrace new opportunities and meet new people, her world begins to open up.
A palate cleansing read
This book had a nice easy-reading style to it. With so much rain and miserable weather, it was nice to settle in with Em & Me. I got some good stints in of reading 50-100 pages and finished it in three to four days. There is a wide cast of characters in the book which allows for lots of different personalities.
I wasn’t entirely convinced by the romantic storyline. I felt that character perhaps needed a bit more development to grow on me. Someone who is a bit scruffy, has no furniture and sleeps on a mattress on the floor didn’t seem to be a huge leap forward for Delphine. I’m aware this makes me sound incredibly materialistic, but it was also that I didn’t feel they had the most winning personality either. I struggled to see the allure. The lack of furniture is briefly explained, but the personality never fully got going for me. Perhaps the implication is that they would grow together. Ultimately it wasn’t a huge or dominating issue. I may have been wanting too much of a rose-tinted ending from my palate cleanse.
Em & Me served its purpose of giving me a nice comfort read during cold, wet, weather, and I’m ready for a new challenge!
