Review: Finding Bryan
Finding Bryan
Matthew Kesselman
Forrest Wilcox’s only brother left home unexpectedly and cut ties with his family 16 years ago. Now Forrest is an unhappy middle aged man, stuck in an endless loop of anger and frustration. When his family learns his mother is losing her battle against cancer, his father gives him what seems like an impossible task: Find Bryan and bring him home. Forrest hits the road with his 12 year old daughter and little idea of where he is going.
Rating: PG-13
Sensitivity Warning: Racial and Homophobic Slurs
Finding Bryan was a bit of a conundrum for me. Right from the beginning, I didn’t feel like Forrest was a very likeable character. In fact, he really comes across as kind of a jerk. I picture him as the kind of guy who will claim he isn’t racist because “he has Black friends”, while also dropping racial slurs left and right. But in general, he just doesn’t seem like a nice guy. Characters like that really turn me off to a book. However, Kesselman did a good job of giving us just enough of a look behind the scenes, to allow us to see that Forrest is really an angry guy who feels stuck, trapped, and unhappy. It’s enough to keep you rooting for him. (This does not excuse nor attempt to explain his use of Racial and Homophobic slurs.)
While Kesselman does give us enough to help us feel a bit of empathy towards him, I still found myself hoping for his success more for his mother’s hope to see her son before she dies. There is a lot in the book that is just plain cringeworthy. Some is in Forrest’s behavior, some is just remembering what it’s like to be a 12 year old girl, and some is the ache you feel for Forrest in coming to understand why he is the way he is.
Underneath the cringe though, is a story about a man who has spent half his life never knowing how to deal with the pain he feels. Someone who is being pulled in multiple directions and feels like he is going to implode.
If you’re looking for a lighthearted, happy-go-lucky read, this isn’t the book for you. It almost reads more like a coming of age, but for an older generation. I was very grateful to see some redemption come into the story for him.
My only other critique is, I would have liked to have seen a little bit more variation in the events. Some sections of the book are a little one note.
Overall, it was a decent read. Was it my favorite? No. Am I sorry I read it? Absolutely not! It’s still worth the read!