review: the local news by miriam gershow

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Miriam Gershow’s debut novel, The Local News, is a peek into the life of a teen who would be unremarkable if it weren’t for the fact that her older brother disappeared while walking home from the park. While some think Danny intentionally left home, the family believes he was kidnapped. They appear on the news, work with the police, and eventually hire a private investigator to pursue the numerous crazy leads that pour in. Lydia becomes very involved with the private investigator’s hunt for answers while her parents completely fall apart.

Despite it being a finalist for the Oregon Book Award, I couldn’t get into The Local News. Lydia is a nerdy teenager who would be utterly boring if it weren’t for the fact that her brother is missing. Even with the missing brother, Lydia does not rise to the level of a protagonist one would root for. She remains a shallow girl with little social skills and evokes no sympathy. The pace is tedious, but then the ending is rushed and unnecessarily tries to wrap up Lydia’s life for the next ten years. The Local News was not an enjoyable read and provided little entertainment.
1/5
Review copy provided by BookDivas.