2nd Quarter SSR

    During the 2nd quarter, I read a novel called Before I Go To Sleep by S.J Watson which is supposedly a psychological thriller, but it had more components of a chick-lit where it consists of a heroine centered narrative. The plot revolves around a woman in her mid-40s, Christine, who is afflicted with Alzheimer's; henceforth, each day is a clean slate and she must recollect her memories before she goes to sleep. Ben, Christine's husband, remains a skeptical figure as he hides her son's existence and always excuses his reticence. Due to Ben's frequent absences from home, Christine has a rendezvous with Dr. Nash who helps her receive treatment in gradually attaining her memory back. As her therapy starts to take effect, Christine begins remembering some moments in her past and grows more troubled of Ben's omissions. The novel is told from Christine's narration which gives readers an unusual depth of insight of how terrifying it is to wake up the next day with no memories of the previous day. From this premise, the author creates a claustrophobic feeling within the context, which showed how confined Christine's world has been due to her memory loss. The novel displays psychological acuity, enough to make Christine's story discomfiting and anxious to an uncomfortable degree. Not only is she facing internal problems, but she also faces an external problem. Due to Ben's neglectful behavior, Christine is conflicted if he is leaving out the most painful details to save her from remembering the trauma or if he has another motive. I sympathize with Christine the most, since her character is admirably determined to improve her memory. Throughout the novel, the narration begins to differentiate compared to the beginning where Christine is confined in her mind and at the end she experiences more freedom within herself.