Elsewhere by Alexis Schaitkin
Alexis Schaitkin’s Elsewhere is the latest female dystopian novel. It is also one of my most anticipated reads for June 2022! Vera lives in an isolated small town where the girls grow up to become women who get married, become mothers, and then disappear. Vera recounts how her own mother disappeared. As Vera starts to get older and contemplates marriage and motherhood, who will be the next to go? And is Vera ready to part with her life?
Elsewhere definitely gave me much to think about such as what do we really leave behind when we go. It does seem that parents are really pressured to give up the essence of themselves when they have children. There aren’t many parents that I know who regularly pursue their own interests.
There is one character that I am undecided about: Mr. Philips. I can’t decide if he is a puppet master or not, maybe a con artist. And I love that.
However, I don’t feel that Elsewhere is ready to be published just yet. There should be refinements. It needs more polish.
Elsewhere is five chapters (4 extremely long chapters and one extremely short chapter). The chapters are so long (almost 2 hours to read one chapter)! Also, the paragraphs were so long! I mean paragraphs that would span more than 1 page. And multiple paragraphs like this.
Vera’s world is very particular, and the author essentially comes right out and gives us an information dump at the beginning of the book. The last half of the book is also pretty weak, very forgettable, and light on action. The ending is really forgettable.
I’m angry because I really like this book in that I enjoyed the plotline. I loved the way that it brought up ideas, subtle, giving me time to noodle on some deeper thoughts. However, the storytelling, particularly with the last half of the book, really needs to be cleaned up. Additionally, how could the editor let these ginormous chapters and paragraphs go by? The female dystopian genre is extremely competitive (The Handmaid’s Tale), and I didn’t feel that this version is ready for primetime yet.
Elsewhere is a bit of a miss, but Alexis Schaitkin has some really unique, interesting ideas, and I would be honored to read more of her work. Ms. Schaitkin, if you would like me to be one of your beta readers for your upcoming works, I would be more than happy to support you. Please know that you are talented, I see it.
*Thanks, NetGalley, for a free copy of this book in exchange for my fair and honest opinion.
Are you looking for your next read? Check out the most anticipated books for Fall/Winter 2022!