Reading Journal 2024: Drowning
Author: T.J. Newman
I might end up in the minority here, and I would have my suspicions/theories on why, but while this follow up to the blockbuster Falling retains much of what made that book successful- propulsive action, a feverish pace, a strong cross section of characters, genuine tension- I found Drowning to be a slight step down in terms of quality. Still good and absolutely worth the read, but lacking a bit on the thematic front and in the substantive category.
The reason I feel like I might be in the minority here is because not everyone resonated with the cynical tone in Falling, nor its rough around the edges philosophizing, its brute subject matter, and unfiltered nature. Those were the elements however that made that book more than just a blockbuster for me personally. Drowning cleans some of those edges up and is far more straight forward and easy to digest.
To its credit it’s also clearly well researched. It trades some of the internal character dynamics of Falling for lots of technical talk and musings on the science/engineering. We get to hear, and feel, how an aircraft works, what could happen in a real life scenario similar to this one, and some of the obstacles that could arise in the case of a needed rescue under water. If you don’t want the heady stuff of Fallen, and if you enjoy reading such details, chances are you will really appreciate Drowning. It has a nice, clean, sentimental lesson about moving forward in the face of hardship too, although I definitely wish we have gotten more of the characters backstories (it centers on one family).
And just like Falling, trigger warnings if reading about a plane crash causes you anxiety.
The Stories of my Life 