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A review by emilypoche
Floreana by Midge Raymond
3.0
Thank you to Little A for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
There isn’t much media out there about “the Galapagos Affair,” but years ago I was lucky enough to watch the documentary made about the island and it’s fateful events. When I saw the title of this book I was hooked, and knew that I’d be in for a good read based on the source material alone.
That held true. The sections of this book that concern Dore’s life roughly follow the people and events of her own biographical account, with additional details and speculation. It’s a more salacious, more vivid version than the one she herself presented.
What was less successful was the alternate story of Mallory, the penguin researcher with the turbulent past. While there was plenty of drama in her story; old flames, recovered journals, penguins, I just didn’t find her story compelling. In some ways I didn’t feel like the discovery of the journals (the link between the two stories) was a strong enough story that I could fully embrace that story line. Rather than feeling like an equal partnership with the Dore storyline, it felt like a B plot.
The other thing worth mentioning is that the book’s plot is very highly back-loaded. There’s so much exposition and you have to bushwhack through 200 or so pages before the action really starts to pick up. While the drama and secrets at the end of the book are pretty interesting, especially in the Dore storyline, it is not a book for the impatient.
Overall, I do believe it’s a good read that capitalizes on an already very interesting story. There’s also a very nice conservation messaging about endangered species and invasive animals that’s an inoffensive side idea.
There isn’t much media out there about “the Galapagos Affair,” but years ago I was lucky enough to watch the documentary made about the island and it’s fateful events. When I saw the title of this book I was hooked, and knew that I’d be in for a good read based on the source material alone.
That held true. The sections of this book that concern Dore’s life roughly follow the people and events of her own biographical account, with additional details and speculation. It’s a more salacious, more vivid version than the one she herself presented.
What was less successful was the alternate story of Mallory, the penguin researcher with the turbulent past. While there was plenty of drama in her story; old flames, recovered journals, penguins, I just didn’t find her story compelling. In some ways I didn’t feel like the discovery of the journals (the link between the two stories) was a strong enough story that I could fully embrace that story line. Rather than feeling like an equal partnership with the Dore storyline, it felt like a B plot.
The other thing worth mentioning is that the book’s plot is very highly back-loaded. There’s so much exposition and you have to bushwhack through 200 or so pages before the action really starts to pick up. While the drama and secrets at the end of the book are pretty interesting, especially in the Dore storyline, it is not a book for the impatient.
Overall, I do believe it’s a good read that capitalizes on an already very interesting story. There’s also a very nice conservation messaging about endangered species and invasive animals that’s an inoffensive side idea.