I found this book to be an extremely thought provoking and immersive read with the main message being "no matter how you feel in your everyday life, if you have a dream and goal to stick with it no matter what and rise above the judgement and criticism of others".
The main character of Warner (feeling disgruntled with his 9-5 job as well as buying into the stigma of whether or not he was doing enough to provide for his family) really resonated with me as a reader and as a person and even though he felt unappreciated at his main job he still had a fire inside him to achieve his aspiration to be a writer- he just needed to believe in himself and the self confidence to reach his goal.
It proved to be an eye opening read which I easily read in one sitting.
Thankyou to both NetGalley as well as Atmosphere Press for providing me with the ARC of this book.

This has been a difficult book to connect with, and at times, even to appreciate. I truly wanted to, but it just didn't come together for me. Initially, I thought the novella would resonate with me – the struggle to stay creative in today's world is something I can relate to. However, that wasn’t quite the case. The protagonist seems to be trapped in an idealized past that he never even lived through, romanticizing it to the point that anything modern feels insignificant in comparison. We learn that he loves the great classics and old music, yet he doesn't seem to see any beauty in contemporary life.

Halfway through, we discover that he's only 27 years old. He has so much ahead of him and has already accomplished more than many do in a lifetime, yet he feels like a failure simply because he hasn’t finished his manuscript. I could understand a 40 or 50-something feeling this way, reflecting on the futility of life and a 9-to-5 job, but at 27, there’s still so much room for growth and improvement. You still have a lifetime ahead of you to figure things out.

Most of the characters feel flat and lack purpose. After 64 pages, I can’t help but notice that the protagonist has deeper, more meaningful conversations with people he serves drinks to than with his wife. I really wanted to see Rose become more than just a background character in his life – a true partner, with some substance to their relationship. Honestly, I would have liked more depth in all his relationships. His friendships with Jack and Charlie feel somewhat one-sided, and in general, all of his connections seem to serve only to show that people admire him, acknowledge his talent, and encourage him. But nothing is ever enough. Only the admiration of a “kindred spirit” can truly inspire him.

This was a quick read for me!
I love how relatable the main character was and how detailed all of the scenes and characters were!
Great novella 🙌🏻

The struggles of every day life for a 27 year old aspiring writer.
He has a loving wife who is worried about his mental health.
He's at a job he doesn't enjoy and feels as if he's just going through a mundane 9-5 life.
This book really portrays effectively what it is like to be a creative in this day and age. As one myself I really related to the main character.
He meets Jameson at a party and through relating to him finds his spark for writing again.


I loved the overall feeling of being to relate to the character and the beautiful prose. I just wish there was more scene building and descriptions of the characters as I like to be able to really picture myself in the settings.

Thank you NetGalley for providing an ARC for and honest review.