Half His Age by Jennette McCurdy | Audiobook Review

I received this book for free from Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

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From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of I’m Glad My Mom Died comes a sad, funny, thrilling novel about sex, consumerism, class, desire, loneliness, the internet, rage, intimacy, power, and the (oftentimes misguided) lengths we’ll go to in order to get what we want.

Waldo is ravenous. Horny. Blunt. Naive. Wise. Impulsive. Lonely. Angry. Forceful. Hurting. Perceptive. Endlessly wanting. And the thing she wants most of all: Mr. Korgy, her creative writing teacher with the wife and the kid and the mortgage and the bills, with the dead dreams and the atrophied looks and the growing paunch. She doesn’t know why she wants him. Is it his passion? His life experience? The fact that he knows books and films and things that she doesn’t? Or is it purer than that, rooted in their unlikely connection, their kindred spirits, the similar filter with which they each take in the world around them? Or, perhaps, it’s just enough that he sees her when no one else does.

Startlingly perceptive, mordantly funny, and keenly poignant, Half His Age is a rich character study of a yearning seventeen-year-old who disregards all obstacles—or attempts to overcome them—in her effort to be seen, to be desired, to be loved.

Why Did I Listen To Half His Age by Jennette McCurdy?

Half His Age by Jennette McCurdy is a book that I picked up because I thought I’m Glad My Mom Died was quite book and I always appreciate when authors try different genres. I also felt like this book is under 5 hours to listen to, so might as well give it a whirl. Additionally, I wanted to try branching out from my typical genres.

What’s The Story Here?

Half His Age follows Waldo who is a 17 year old girl who has a crush on her writing teacher, Mr. Korgy. She is consumed with her desire for him. Waldo lives with her mother who keeps placing high value on men who aren’t very good and — it seems valuing them more than Waldo herself. She lives in a trailer park in Alaska. She’s not particularly intellectual or talented. Waldo has one friend, Franny. She spends some of her free time working at Victoria’s Secret and then spending all her checks trying to fill the void in her life with the perfect outfit and then regretting the spending. This is a story about consumerism, class, and an illicit relationship.

How Did I Like Half His Age?

Honestly, I found this story deeply unsettling and almost wish I didn’t read it. Maybe I am not as enlightened as I thought I was, because the only character I liked in this book was Mr. Korgy’s wife, Gwen. I was rooting for her — girl get your divorce and your custody and maybe pair back up with that finance guy you used to date that your parents actually like. And clearly Gwen’s parents were right not to like Mr. Korgy. I felt this absolute pit of dread when he engaged back into an affair with Waldo. He’s the adult, he showed he was capable of saying no and not engaging and setting a hard boundary — but then the line is crossed and well, what results is an affair that the explicit details made me sick to my stomach. As said, maybe I am not as intellectual, but I just, ugh, feel so grossed out by this book.

How’s The Narration?

The audiobook of Half His Age is narrated by the author, Jennette McCurdy. It is a very quick listen. It is 4 hours and 34 minutes. I did not feel I could listen to this as sped up as I normally do. McCurdy narrates at a really fast clip even just at 1x speed. So I would adjust my listening speed throughout. There were moments where I wanted to listen to parts faster just to get them done and over with. Also, the narration style is very dry and monotone. I guess it works for Waldo’s character. 

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April (Books&Wine)

April is in her 30s and created Good Books And Good Wine. She works for a non-profit. April always has a book on hand. In her free time she can be found binge watching The Office with her husband and toddler, spending way too much time on Pinterest or exploring her neighborhood.

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