Hot take: Our book club nearly imploded over a single line in 'The Goldfinch'

Last week in my Denver group, a member got so mad about the ending's moral ambiguity that she called another person's take 'intellectually lazy' and almost walked out. I had to step in and ask everyone to just read the line again out loud, which calmed things down a bit. Has your group ever had a fight over how to interpret a book's ending?

2 comments

2 Comments

felix3851mo ago

Reading the line out loud was a good move. Sometimes hearing the words again cuts through the personal stuff.

nathan_thompson621mo ago

Felix385 is onto something for sure. Reading your own work out loud is the ultimate cringe test, it filters out all the nonsense. You can't hide bad writing when you have to hear your own voice say it. It's like your ears are a built-in editor that calls you out. That trick has saved me from sending so many embarrassing messages. More people need to try this instead of just staring at the screen.