This shouldn’t have taken so long to read.
I sat on Chris Whitaker’s “All the Colors of the Dark” for a good while, pushing it further down into my TBR stack than it deserved. It’s a longer story, amongst all of my TBR books that are longer stories, and I had received some mixed commentary about it.
(Also, I decided to binge the entirety of “The Pitt” last weekend, which significantly cut into free reading time. Damn you, Dr. Robby!)
It’s a stunning read, people. I’m behind the curve on this one, so for the three people who haven’t read it yet? Go get it.
Whitaker’s portrait of mid-70s to early 2000s small town Missouri, its residents and the trauma that binds them together is a slow burn, but so worth it. Just as one of Whitaker’s protagonists, Patch, paints memory into reality for the heartbroken and left behind, Whitaker uses prose to paint these characters — like Patch, Saint, Misty, Charlotte, Sammy, Norma, Nix, Tooms and Grace — into reality for the reader. (Honestly, this is where some of the mixed commentary came in — a few people I talked to thought there were too many characters. But it makes sense if you stick with it.) And once you’re there, you care. Which makes the last quarter of the book so heartwrenching and beautiful all at once.
The story of Patch and Saint and their lifelong friendship begins in the backyards and crossroads of Monta Clare and it’s their combined dogged persistence for the truth that serves as the tension that both pushes them apart and binds them together through to the very end.
I spent a lot of time halfway, maybe two-thirds into the story, considering how individual actions can have repercussions days, weeks, months, years and even decades after they were set in motion. It’s a bittersweet reminder that we are all connected to each other in ways we don’t readily see.
And the twists and turns Whitaker takes with this “Where is she?” kind of mystery? I typically pride myself on picking out a good plot twist and I was thrown for a loop not once, not twice, but at least three times. So, so good.
Honestly, the limited television series (it’s been optioned) can’t get here fast enough. I am here for every single episode.
“All The Colors of the Dark” would make for an excellent book club read, as there are any number of rabbit holes on morality you can fall down and discuss for hours. My money is and will forever be on Patch. Some people just aren’t what they seem to be. They’re better.
LitzyDitz 