When You Finish Saving the World by Jesse Eisenberg

Jasper, Indiana

This is probably the worst book I've read (or listened to, which I consider reading) all year. Not because it was that bad, but because it could have been SO good. They do say there's a fine line between love and hate...

The book starts off as audio files between Nathan, a husband and new father, and his therapist. He is going through therapy because he is having a difficult time connecting with their new baby. Nathan's files are relatable and raw. And I love anything that brings light to people going through therapy, especially men. This first section also introduces Rachel, Nathan's wife. She is a tremendously kind person who has spent her whole life trying to help others.

The second section follows Ziggy, Nathan and Rachel's son, now 15 years old. He got into a fight at school, so now he has to do "therapy" sessions with an AI program. Eisenberg was really trying to capture how a teenager in the future might talk, so he used a lot of slang that was very distracting and frankly annoying. Ziggy was bratty and didn't really have any redeeming qualities. His character arc was disappointing and unremarkable.

Then that brings us to the third section: Rachel. Rachel is this complete badass, and we learned, in part, her kindness stems from tragedy. Her high school/college sweetheart dies while she is in college. Her section takes place around 2002 when Rachel first starts college. She is sending tapes to her boyfriend who is serving in the military. We hear as Rachel goes from being a privileged, sheltered teenager to learning more about the world. During her last tape, she mentions she hasn't heard from him for a few weeks, so we are led to believe her boyfriend has been killed at this point.

What the hell, Jesse Eisenberg? Rachel was such a cool character, and the beginning of this book was some jam-packed with emotion. Rachel's tapes should have addressed her boyfriend's death. The last one could have started with "I know you're gone, but I wanted to send you one last tape." And there was nothing, other than the fact that Rachel mentions she loves volunteering at the women's shelter, linking Rachel's past to the present (Nathan's section) or the future (Ziggy's section). Yes her boyfriend died and that is tragic, but why did that lead Rachel on a lifelong quest to make the world a better place? You can't just begin a book with so much emotion and so much potential, create two really interesting characters, and then completely let everyone down. It's not fair.

Review by the Numbers:

Overall: 2/5

Writing: 3/5

Plot: 1/5

Character Development: 3/5

Message: 2/5