Review: The Thin Place by Kathryn Davis

Book Info:
The Thin Place by Kathryn Davis
Paperback: 304 pages
Publisher: Back Bay Books (February 1, 2007)
ISBN-13: 9780316014243
Genre: Contempory Fiction
Source: My Shelves
Rating: 2.5/5

In Varennes, a town near the Canadian border, three girls come across the body of a dead man on the local lake's beach. Two of them run to get help, but twelve-year-old Mees Kipp stays with the body and somehow, inexplicably, brings it back to life. Her mysterious gift is at the center of this haunting and transcendent novel.

The Thin Place is the story of these girls, their town, and the worldly and otherworldly forces that come into play there over one summer. From the ladies in the old-folks' home to trappers, lawyers, teachers, ministers, drug addicts-even the dogs and cats, beavers and bears Davis peoples this novel with astonishingly vivid beings. The extraordinary comes to visit an ordinary town.

One of the back of the book blurbs describes this book as "odd and engaging", and I would agree with the odd portion. Engaging...kind of.

I usually like different books and that was what drew me to this one in the first place. I was looking for something other than your typical plot. Unfortunately, I didn't feel like there was much plot in this book. It was kind of an odd collection of tales about the different people in town, mostly centered around a group of three friends. My other big complaint is that there seemed to be very little character development. I didn't really ever feel like I knew any of the people very well.

I never had any doubt that I would finish this book, but what kept me going was the feeling that something was going to happen soon. I was sure the book would all come together and the characters and odd asides in the book would all make sense. Instead, I was left with the feeling that I was missing something, that I just didn't get this book. 2.5 stars