“Alex Crow” serves as dull, frustrating novel

Juliana Riverin
Staff Writer

Ravens should not be allowed near writing desks, as is proved by he complete failure that is Andrew Smith’s “The Alex Crow.”

Due to overly complicated narratives, an emotional disconnect and tedious construction, the novel amounts to a frustrating, unlikeable read.

“The Alex Crow” tells the stories of war refugee Ariel, an Arctic expedition from the 1800s, and domestic bomber through a series of short scenes that are out of context and out of order.

By far the most prominent aspect of “The Alex Crow” is the fractured narrative. Although the narrative could have been an interesting device had it been properly implemented, however the idea was poorly executed. Throughout the novel, there is never enough time to connect to a character or event. This plot device only guarantees that the reader becomes frustrated with the lack of information or context.

Additionally, the fractured timeline ensures that “The Alex Crow” is slow paced. Because the entire story is told in short increments featuring different characters, settings and contexts, the beginning of the novel moves at a snail’s pace. The eventual progression of the storyline becomes a moot point, because by the time things start to get interesting, anyone not being forced to read “The Alex Crow” will have long since given up.

This is partly due to the frustrating characters. At first, one wants to relate to the characters, but over the course of the novel, the lack of information, and context, as well as the disorientation inherent in changing plot lines so quickly make the entire experience frustrating and tiresome.

Additionally, the characters themselves are caricatures of broken people; their flaws and quirks are put on display to the point that the characters described in “The Alex Crow” are not people, they are vessels used to showcase personality flaws. Instead of a well-rounded, if slightly troubled kid, Max becomes a selfish and petty shell, just like the doctor becomes a tool of desperation and his mother the epitome of denial.

To make things worse, “The Alex Crow” uses overly formal language, which further distances the reader from the story as a whole. It doesn’t sound like a story about people, or feelings, so any sympathy, or sentiment at all, on the part of the reader seems unwarranted. Therefore, the entire experience comes into question, because without any sentimental connection, there is truly no reason to waste one’s time reading “The Alex Crow”.

Simply put, “The Alex Crow” is boring. The frustrating narrative and lack of an engaging storyline are enormous flaws on their own, but combined they here’s no urgency, nothing compelling one to keep reading. The emotional component is too distanced, and not relatable enough for audiences to care about. However, “The Alex Crow” could have been salvageable, had Smith not continued to make the same mistakes, over, and over again.

Overall, the combination and continuation of the various flaws present in the novel make “The Alex Crow” an unlikeable, tedious read.

“The Alex Crow” can be purchased at Barnes & Noble booksellers for $18.99.