“Hollowness: that I understand. I’m starting to believe that there isn’t anything you can do to fix it. That’s what I’ve taken from the therapy sessions: the holes in your life are permanent. You have to grow around them, like tree roots around concrete; you mould yourself through the gaps.”
– Paula Hawkins, The Girl on the Train
Yesterday I finally got my hands on a book that I should have read ages ago. There’s the movie coming out soon and I figured, I have to read the book first, I always do. Gosh.
The Girl on the Train made me forget that I had boiled the kettle and that I actually really wanted some tea. I didn’t notice my phone flashing next to me. I only got up to pee and feed the cats. I read it in one sitting – literally. I sat in the same place, just turning each page until I reached the end.
I think books mean different things to different people at different times. What I take from this one today may be quite different to what my future self feels in 10 years time reading the same thing. See, the thing is this: It’s obvious that Paula Hawkins is a brilliant writer. You don’t sell over 10 million copies of your book cause you’re average. But that isn’t the only reason I loved her book. It’s more because it made me feel something so familiar by living through her characters. On so many pages that was me. That was him.