Review: The Children Act

The Children Act by Ian McEwan
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I spent 6 months learning about Family Law to finish up with a 20-over pages of portfolio and it is so utterly impossible that Ian McEwan tackled the Law way better than I did (ok, I was't that good either). But truth be told, he did extremely well, not trying to pinpoint anything from an experienced, well-known, award-winning author from the other century. I guess it's sort of a habit to want to find if something was wrong whenever I read legal fiction. (thoughts)

"The music in her head had faded, but now came another old theme: self-blame."


The novel was written in a third-person perspective. Ian was a skilful and talented writer, I agree. It's his writings which made me so into the story. It feels like he was bringing us on a teleportation journey to Judge Fiona's life. Imagine Ian and the reader were "glamoured" invisible and stalking Judge Fiona. It was exactly how the story was told, very cinematic .

This piece of fiction was so well-written. The aspects of law were so clear and a part of me wish that if Ian were to write his version of all case judgments, I would be so pleased. His writings was a blessing. I couldn't stress more that I enjoy reading it. The writing style was a mixture of flashbacks and currents. It seems like a mess, yes but it's very interesting to read about the character's thoughts. It grabs your attention, as you try to figure out when's when. But that's how it goes in your head.

I would admit I like reading his way of case commentary, except it's from a judge's perspective. I like how he describe the process of summing up a judgment. The way he explained Gillick competent, child's welfare and how he summed up with a conclusion to overrule the child's wishes. It's so amazing! (I ran out of words.)

I could go on and on about how perfect this novel is but my review won't matter if you don't read it yourself. This is my first Ian McEwan's book and I have his Atonement on its way now. I'm so excited to explore all his works.

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