On Chesil Beach

I think Ian McEwan is a major talent and have enjoyed many of his books, but sometimes they don’t quite work for me. He’s a great stylist and does extensive research for all of his novels. Some of my favorites are Atonement, Black Dogs, and Amsterdam. Sometimes they don’t hit the mark for me, Saturday felt very contrived, as did Enduring Love. On Chesil Beach falls in between the successes and failures for me. I had trouble getting into the story at first and wasn’t invested in the main characters and had no special affection for Victorian England. It picked up near the end for me as the male and female psyche were evaluated and discussed. But I didn’t like the condensed fast-forward of the character’s lives at the end so much either. It was a worthwhile read, but not one of my favorites.