Big Swiss by Jen Beagin – book review

Not sure from where to start with this book.

Have you ever read a book that left you angry and wanting your time back?

Well, this is what Big Swiss is to me.

I gave it 3 starts but it was a ‘let me be nice 3 starts’.

Summary:

Big Swiss is the story of a 40+ years old woman, Greta, that cannot get her life together and a 30 years old woman, Big Swiss, that explores her sexuality limits.

She works as a transcriber for a therapist and has a dog.

During one of her walks in the parc, she meets the most beautiful woman she ever saw and they become friends.

Their relationship evolves and becomes a romantic relationship.

With this relationship, the story surfaces all sorts of twists that lead to different events.

One major event is when our transcriber gets fired because she is spying her lover during the therapy sessions.

Characters:

Greta: a 40+ years old woman that has no boundaries, no life outside of her job and dog. Lives with a friend because she cannot afford a place.

She takes advantage of her position as a transcriptionist to spy on her lover which will lead to her being fired.

She is an anxious woman, doesn’t like to get out and meet people. Her only friend is an older woman she met a few years back.

Big Swiss: is a 30 years old woman. Married to a man and they both seem to be successful.

She meets Greta and their relationship evolves from being friends to being lovers. She has an affair with Greta and is testing her sexual preferences.

At some point, she is thinking on leaving her husband and live with Greta.

Themes:

Relationship, sexual experimentation, exceeding boundaries.

Conclusions:

The book is supposed to be funny however for me there no funny moment in the book.

You can see the trauma of the characters, the depression episodes and drama caused by the relationships formed along the story.

For me, the book is slow, annoyingly slow. It feels like nothing is happening. I wanted to DNF the book so many times and I am sorry I haven’t.

It is not for me, the story or the writing style. It lacks the humour and it shouldn’t be presented as a comic story.