If I could give this 3.95 stars I would.
Instead, I have to settle for 3 because it just wasn’t QUITE 4 stars. For me. I want to acknowledge that many, many people have praised this book and I hear their praise. I’ve heard that this is emotional, out-there, totally ridiculous but yet still believable, and more importantly, incredibly touching. I agree. It was touching. It was ridiculous and yet I believed all of it. And it made me emotional at times. Here are my thoughts:
It took me a while to get used to the idea of kids bursting into flames and a governess who comes to save the day. However, once the notion set in and we got to see the characters in action, got to know them a bit, it became not just believable but heartwarming.
Much of Nothing to See Here relies on humor. We’re greeted with it. But Wilson really came into his humor about halfway through. In the beginning, the jokes didn’t quite land for me and I didn’t quite understand why people were saying the things they were saying. But once I was in knee-deep in his world (about 90 pages in) I understood his cadence and his comedic style. That’s when I really started to laugh. And like they always say, a good writer is someone who can make you cry, but a great writer is someone who can make you laugh. So, kudos to Wilson.
Three things in this book gave me pause.
1 – The dialogue
I first took note of the dialogue when almost every character used Jesus as an expletive. I thought it was just Lilian’s go-to curse word but then Jasper did it. And Carl. And Maddison. It felt like the author’s tendency coming through in the characters and it took away from the story. It literally made me pause every time. Sometimes the dialogue was smooth and I enjoyed it, but other times it felt contrived and a little stiff. Only the adults, though. The kids somehow were written beautifully. They were unique unto themselves. I really enjoyed them.
2 – Lilian
Lilian, as she’s written, is not the most likable character. So, in a way, the fact that I didn’t like her could mean Kevin Wilson succeeded. Her quirkiness added a layer of likability, which worked in her favor, but the things she said kind of left me with question marks. I don’t think it’s a case of bad dialogue otherwise every character would’ve suffered from the same fate. I personally just felt annoyed by the things Lilian said. Also her lack of foresight. And her self-deprecating humor. And her self-esteem got tiresome quickly because it was one-note and went nowhere. I fear that’s harsh of me to say because I would never clock someone on their insecurities or sensitivities in real life, but because this is a fictional book I feel capable of speaking freely. I hoped that by the time I got to the end of the book my feelings for Lilian would change but they didn’t. Still, her words and actions annoyed me. I don’t know if that was intentional but there you are.
3 – Jasper
By the end of the book it’s obvious we’re not supposed to like Jasper. By no means is he Father of the Year. Other characters hate him for their own personal reasons, and I can see where they’re coming from, but the way he’s described feels unaligned with their perceptions. In the end, he suddenly turns into a villain, and yet I didn’t hate him. I wanted to because the other characters did, but I couldn’t because of what Wilson gave us descriptively and narratively. I don’t think it’s for lack of good writing because Wilson can obviously tell a good story, I just think Jasper wasn’t written in a way that conveyed Wilson’s intentions. He’s described too many times as being handsome and because we’re in Lilian’s perspective for the entirety of the book we need her to guide us, but yet her internal dialogue didn’t hate him enough, didn’t describe his mannerisms enough to make him hate-worthy. Other characters, like Carl, suffered from this same fate, but the fate of the book didn’t weigh on his shoulders like Jasper’s so it was unimportant in comparison.
One thing Nothing to See Here had that I loved and appreciated was the gasp factor. I don’t expect it in every book but when it comes along I revel in it. That was a fun gasp.
My favorite aspect of this book was the notion that every child deserves to feel wanted. It’s so sad to see these kids struggle with simply finding people to love and take care of them. That being said, it was beautiful to see their metamorphosis. In that vein, it was also touching to see how they changed Lilian. Kids have a way of doing that. Anyone who personally has kids or has babysat longterm understands the feeling. Kevin Wilson captured that brilliantly.
Overall, you can easily tackle this book in a single weekend. It has wit, humor, sentiment, and an outrageous plot you can’t help but believe. It’s lighthearted at some points and poignant at others. It sweeps you away. Like I said, 3.95 stars.
Nothing to See Here can be purchased on Amazon, Barnes & Nobel, or Bookshop, where every purchase supports independent bookstores.
