Book Review: A Long Way Down

I got A Long Way Down by Nick Hornby out of the library because I really enjoyed listening to Juliet, Naked but I was sadly kind of disappointed by this one.  I found it very hard to get into and once I got into it I again lost interest pretty quick.

The book was based around 4 people who all showed up at the same spot to commit suicide on New Year's Eve and don't end up doing it.  The 4 people are very different and are not a likely crew but alas they help each other get through the difficult times in their lives.  I wasn't a huge fan of the characters: none of them seemed to be developed at all except maybe Maureen.  I understand the book was supposed to be a dark comedy and maybe I just didn't get the joke, but it overall had too many unnecessary swear words and not enough chuckles. 

The writing did have some charm to it which makes me decide that it is more the story I didn't enjoy, not so much the author's writing.  There were a few moments where there were ideas being thought of in interesting ways.  Not to give too much away but I really liked the analogy used when the characters realized whether or not they really could commit suicide about suicide always being something saved in a box for a rainy day only to realize that there was nothing in the box when you decide to use it. Hornby of course writes this in a much more concise easy to understand manner and I suggest you read the book if only for that analogy.  It is a different way of looking at death and suicide, I only wish it was written in a more compelling way.