The Memory Thief by Rachel Keener
The Memory Thief by Rachel Keener. © 2010 Center Street. ISBN 1599951126. Drama. 384 pages. $13.99 US [ Purchase ] Source: from the publisher.
Hannah and Angel lead two completely separate lives, each dealing with her own struggles of identity and family. However as events converge, their meeting becomes inevitable.
Upon finishing the book, my first thought was that the title is misleading. It gives far too much importance to a secondary character who, yes, is pivotal to the plot, but does not deserve foremost billing.
Keener’s two main characters travel through independent timelines and lives. While I recognized her desire to keep the reader wondering what the connection was, I thought it took too long to arrive at the conclusion (although perhaps it was a sign of my own distractedness that I didn’t draw the obvious conclusion before it was stated). By having two main characters whose stories are completely separated for most of the book, it is hard for the reader to focus, and I found myself more interested in Hannah’s sections than those relating to Angel.
