About The Climax Forest by Mary Morris

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We start off with a good amount of conflict (plenty now, but promise for aggressive expansion) and intriguing past mysteries and some good background well integrated right off the bat. Together, all signs of a good, solid story to follow. Which is exactly, I felt, what was there.

There was nothing experimental or innovative though about the language or style or structure. All those things, solid, so the weight of quality rested entirely on the plot and the characters, which of course is where most of that weight should be anyway, so there’s really no complaint to be made there. “It’s not new enough” is only really a fair criticism when other, perhaps more important aspects of the story can’t stand up on their own either.

            So, what about the characters? The plot? Both reflected the language in simplicity. Which is a good thing, I think. It’s a tone that just felt right. Or, at least, it didn’t feel wrong. (Although some of the short tangents did feel a bit “off.” Like that little bit about Hansel and Gretel. What?)

            All of that, even if it doesn’t shine exactly, acts as support for where the story, I think, really succeeds, which is, simply, the choice of narrator. Her’s is a side we usually only get angry glances of a couple times in the movie when the main character, who’s dealing with the real conflict of childhood adventure and adult responsibility, calls home only to be harangued by any number of Karen versions about why are you late for the party? Where are you!

            This is Karen’s perspective. Her story. And it’s important, if only because she’s there too and we never see it.

If I could make one complaint, it would be this: It’s too solid. Too static. No one changed, and no one looked as though they were planning to in the near future. Even Pete, who promised to change at the end, was doing that for at least the second time, which is just another nod how he hadn’t changed at all. It’s not so much a story as a painting (albeit one stretched over a day’s worth of time). Which isn’t a bad thing exactly, necessarily, but when simple characters exhibit no change at all your left wondering just a little bit why you spent the time…