Review | I'm Thinking of Ending Things

This is one of those rare cases, one in which I have seen the movie before reading the book. I often find seeing the movie first, takes away from the book but not the other way around. Here however, both are equally captivating, and hold their own even with differences. But I'll do my best to simply discuss the book here.

Summary

On a trip to visit his parents, Jake and his girlfriend are a seemingly normal couple driving through the snow covered middle of nowhere. We are told the story through the perspective of the unnamed girlfriend who expresses reservations about her relationship with Jake thinking to herself "I'm thinking of ending things". The story is told in three main parts, and with a powerful use of dialogue. Upon meeting the parents, we see a slow buildup as conversations become more and more peculiar. Though the visit was a bit odd, the couple leave Jake's parents house on their journey back home and end up at an old school, where the strange fully builds up to a psychological thriller. That will leave you thinking "what just happened" until it hits you, and then you think "wow that was genius".

Dialogue

This story relies heavily on dialog and internal thought rather than action. This is a skill, and an asset to this kind of story. It fits, and even more, the author spends time asking questions between the characters and of the readers that don't always get answered. This I feel adds some underlying tension between the characters that's not at first obvious to the reader, and helps create this feeling of being unsure.

One of the strongest moments in the book is the scene when Jake says "Sometimes a thought is closer to truth, to reality, to an action. You can say anything, you can do anything, but you can't fake a thought." This is such a simple statement, but something that is so true. We often even lie to ourselves about our thoughts. Its an interesting connection between the girlfriend and Jake. She's "thinking of ending things" with Jake, and Jake himself, as we see eventually also has the thought that he's "thinking of ending things" but in a much different way, and even though there is some internal struggle they each know that the thoughts in their heads are true feelings.

Characters

One of my favorite aspects of this book is the characters. Each one is so different, which I find to be interesting...given the nature of where the story goes. Yet if you look closely, the thought patters of some are very similar. Jake and his girlfriend are quite inquisitive, and seem to deeply analyze each situation. They enjoy deep conversations, some that most people may find boring. I think this is an awesome addition that may or may not have been intentional by the author, but truly adds to the story.

Final Thoughts

This is a book for anyone interested in the strange and psychological. With the skilled use of subtlety, there is a slow build up, but the author makes use of this time for quality back story and good dialogue that keeps you interested in the lives of the characters. The added dialogue of the unknown speakers at the start of each chapter also keeps you wanting to find the answers to what their talking about. As stated earlier, I had loved the movie and went in with high expectations, I was not disappointed.