Review of McDowell
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Mystic96
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Review of McDowell
[Following is a volunteer review of "McDowell" by William H. Coles.]
The wealthy and high-profile people in this world often seem to be in their own world, only seen or heard about through the news or media outlets. Some of them control important decisions for other people that are not as well off. You hear the occasional headline news stories about how great they are or, on the flipside, the fraud and scams they are involved with. When hearing about the fraud and scam cases, people often wonder what was going through their head and what led to all of this happening. Were they truly ill-intentioned or was it all simply a big misunderstanding? Nobody ever seems to trust the person or people on trial because they are seen as untrustworthy due to the allegations being made. McDowell by William H. Coles explores these topics among many others.
This book centers around Hiram McDowell, a prestiged surgeon and avid climber. The first half of the book portrays McDowell at the peak of his success. He is achieving everything he wants in life with little to no regard for how it affects those around him. Whilst climbing to the top of his field, he juggles running a medical foundation in Nepal to help the locals and parenting his children as they are coming of age. However, at the very height of his success, a horrific event occurs that leads to his downfall and going to prison. The second half of the book follows Hiram as he escapes prison and goes on the run. During this time, he meets a variety of people that help him (oftentimes unknowingly) not only stay ahead of the law but also on his journey of self-discovery.
In parallel with McDowell’s story, the book also follows the lives of his children (Sophie, Ann, and Billie) and a couple of the relevant people connected with him. Mainly it follows Sophie as she tries to make a name for herself in the world of photography. There is also Ann, who struggles with mental health and feels she is disappearing in her own life. Then there is Billie with his tumultuous love life, uncertainty of what he specializes in, and figuring out what to do for the rest of his life. Outside of his family the story also follows Paige, who is a middle-aged reporter trying to stay relevant in order to keep her job. She mostly tries to chase down the details of McDowell’s life to report on, but also ends up befriending Sophie after her dad goes on the run.
This was a masterpiece of storytelling and character development. Even if they only played a small part in the overall book, you still felt like you got to know the personalities of almost every character. It also seemed like a realistic story, like it was something that truly happened instead of being entirely fictional. This is due to the way in which it was written, following Hiram’s life but also his family’s to portray how his actions were affecting them. Add in Paige to cover his story from a different view and you see how all of it plays out from multiple viewpoints with different opinions. I loved all the little details of the environment as well as characters that were added into the book, because they added a lot more realism into the story. You can tell that Coles put a lot of time and effort into developing complex characters and environment and it paid off. I also appreciated the way the book was split into the two different parts because it further emphasizes the stark difference in Mcdowell before and after his downfall.
While it was a well-written story, there were some negative aspects. In the second half of the book, there are a few times where McDowell’s movements were only described through the viewpoint of someone he is associated with at that point in time. There were times when I wanted to know what was going through McDowell’s mind in certain situations, yet it was never described through his eyes or even his words. I think it may have aided in further showcasing McDowell’s changes to have known his thoughts. For example, in the first half we clearly see his opinions towards women, even his own wife. However, in the scant sexual encounters with women in the second half of the book we only see it through the eyes of the woman. Other than that, I can’t think of any issues I had with the book.
Overall, I would rate this book a 4 out of 4 stars. I think this book would be good for people who love to delve deep into the lives of other people, knowing their personal thoughts and opinions but still seeing them from different points of view as well.
******
McDowell
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon | on Smashwords
The wealthy and high-profile people in this world often seem to be in their own world, only seen or heard about through the news or media outlets. Some of them control important decisions for other people that are not as well off. You hear the occasional headline news stories about how great they are or, on the flipside, the fraud and scams they are involved with. When hearing about the fraud and scam cases, people often wonder what was going through their head and what led to all of this happening. Were they truly ill-intentioned or was it all simply a big misunderstanding? Nobody ever seems to trust the person or people on trial because they are seen as untrustworthy due to the allegations being made. McDowell by William H. Coles explores these topics among many others.
This book centers around Hiram McDowell, a prestiged surgeon and avid climber. The first half of the book portrays McDowell at the peak of his success. He is achieving everything he wants in life with little to no regard for how it affects those around him. Whilst climbing to the top of his field, he juggles running a medical foundation in Nepal to help the locals and parenting his children as they are coming of age. However, at the very height of his success, a horrific event occurs that leads to his downfall and going to prison. The second half of the book follows Hiram as he escapes prison and goes on the run. During this time, he meets a variety of people that help him (oftentimes unknowingly) not only stay ahead of the law but also on his journey of self-discovery.
In parallel with McDowell’s story, the book also follows the lives of his children (Sophie, Ann, and Billie) and a couple of the relevant people connected with him. Mainly it follows Sophie as she tries to make a name for herself in the world of photography. There is also Ann, who struggles with mental health and feels she is disappearing in her own life. Then there is Billie with his tumultuous love life, uncertainty of what he specializes in, and figuring out what to do for the rest of his life. Outside of his family the story also follows Paige, who is a middle-aged reporter trying to stay relevant in order to keep her job. She mostly tries to chase down the details of McDowell’s life to report on, but also ends up befriending Sophie after her dad goes on the run.
This was a masterpiece of storytelling and character development. Even if they only played a small part in the overall book, you still felt like you got to know the personalities of almost every character. It also seemed like a realistic story, like it was something that truly happened instead of being entirely fictional. This is due to the way in which it was written, following Hiram’s life but also his family’s to portray how his actions were affecting them. Add in Paige to cover his story from a different view and you see how all of it plays out from multiple viewpoints with different opinions. I loved all the little details of the environment as well as characters that were added into the book, because they added a lot more realism into the story. You can tell that Coles put a lot of time and effort into developing complex characters and environment and it paid off. I also appreciated the way the book was split into the two different parts because it further emphasizes the stark difference in Mcdowell before and after his downfall.
While it was a well-written story, there were some negative aspects. In the second half of the book, there are a few times where McDowell’s movements were only described through the viewpoint of someone he is associated with at that point in time. There were times when I wanted to know what was going through McDowell’s mind in certain situations, yet it was never described through his eyes or even his words. I think it may have aided in further showcasing McDowell’s changes to have known his thoughts. For example, in the first half we clearly see his opinions towards women, even his own wife. However, in the scant sexual encounters with women in the second half of the book we only see it through the eyes of the woman. Other than that, I can’t think of any issues I had with the book.
Overall, I would rate this book a 4 out of 4 stars. I think this book would be good for people who love to delve deep into the lives of other people, knowing their personal thoughts and opinions but still seeing them from different points of view as well.
******
McDowell
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon | on Smashwords
Latest Review: I Will Make of Thee a Great Nation by Val D. Greenwood
