Beginning this book, I honestly did not think it would be worth my time, or four stars. I didn’t know much about Contrary Motion because the copy I had was a review copy with a plain cover and no synopsis. Once I had the first few chapters down, I began to feel a spark of hope that this book might be something good. My hopes were not in vain. This book is worth your time.
I’m not a musician, but I still adored this book. So if you are a musician, particularly a harpist, you will most likely find a little more to relate to in this book than I did. I felt this book was chick-lit, in men’s form. I enjoyed reading it, and I assume men might also, since it is primarily about a man, his love life, family, and struggles. I’ve never read anything by Mr. Mozina before, but if his other books are similar to Contrary Motion, then they are probably something I will want to check out.
The story set forth is realistic and what I imagine life would be like for a divorced man, simply trying to make do and keep custody of his beloved daughter. I enjoyed reading about the protagonist, Matthew Grzbc, and his life in and around Chicago as a struggling musician. Not my typical read, but definitely glad I tried it!
Review of an Advance Reader’s Copy
This book was sent to Compass Book Ratings for review by Spiegal & Grau
Content Analysis:
Profanity/Language: 12 religious exclamations; 2 mild obscenities; 3 derogatory names; 12 scatological words; 3 anatomical terms; 14 F-Word derivatives.
Violence/Gore: A man mentions his father dying of prostate cancer and a heart attack; a brief fight is observed.
Sex/Nudity: Sex is referred to; a couple kiss on the cheek; a man is mentioned to “make a pass” at a woman and touch her breast; a man and woman have sex in one brief scene with some description of the sex acts; a man and woman are mentioned to be naked while sex is implied; a mans sexual ineptitude is mentioned, he is self-conscious about his abilities; a young man’s sexual awakening is mentioned; a man and woman are mentioned to be sexually active; adults kiss.
Mature Subject Matter:
Divorce, death, cancer, illegal acts, sex identity issues.
Alcohol / Drug Use:
A minor accidentally overdoses on a pain reliever; manufacturing beer is mentioned; adults are mentioned to get drunk; a teacher is mentioned to be a smoker.
