A. S. King (1) (1970–)

I'm so conflicted on this book. On the one hand, I can see what it is trying to do in showing how racism and classism are generational and systemic issues, and it does that very well. On the other hand, there was far too much going on in this book.

There were too many characters and I kept confusing them, even in the latter half of the book having to check multiple times in a chapter who the POV was. The chapters were also incredibly short, so it never really felt like I was able to get to know any of them. Because we never got much time with each of the characters, it also felt like we got to the last 10 pages and they all-of-a-sudden had meaning to life and knew what they would do with their lives. It was so sudden, and I never really saw a reason for this sudden motivation for change.

Throughout the book, it focuses heavily on the racism and classism that these (White) teenagers see and experience in their everyday lives. On a broad scale, Dig did a great job at presenting these as generational and systemic issues, and not just problems within an individual person. But, in trying to be a "weird" book, it lacked a necessary nuance. Aside from the main characters, all of the other characters were presented as extremely overtly racist people. While these people do exist in real life, it is relatively rare for people to actually admit they are racist in the ways they did in this book. Additionally, while it does show a good amount of the impact of classism on an individual level, it shies away from showing the full impact of racism on people of color, and for neither does it offer a path forward on how to unlearn these biases because it skips over the characters actually learning them and jumps straight to having "learned" it.

Trigger Warnings:
- Domestic Violence
- Racism
- Classism
- Poverty
- Child Abuse & Neglect
- Sexual Assault… (more)

People are SLEEPING on King's novels. Especially this one. As ever, her books are weird and wonderful and hardhitting and heartfelt and just GOOD. "Dig" is both noticeably King but also unlike any of her other books. This one tackles a big sprawling family, a family with ancestors who were potato farmers, and a whole lot of the dirty issues that come with secrets, prejudices, teenage-hood, privilege, selling weed, anxiety, and finding purpose. It sounds like a lot, and in many ways it is. The narrative bounces back a forth between a pretty big cast of characters, but the glorious bit is that these characters are fascinating. Not always good, decent characters, but ones who feel real and relatable. If you like your books with a big dose of surrealism and plenty of depth (and a poem about worms), "Dig" is a must-read.… (more)