You Have Arrived at Your Destination

3.5 starsThe writing is spectacular, the characters are well fleshed out and the story is intriguing. I just thought the ending was a bit abrupt and I disagree with the bartender!A spoiler/rant: The protagonist's father sold everything and bought a copper mine, which got the family into debts and made the protagonist's life miserable. The bartender was offended that the protagonist criticizes his father, because the bartender is also a father and he and his wife had to struggle to make ends meet, but at the end of the day - they made it work and their children were not resentful. Good for you, mate, but your struggles were not a result of a careless decision no one in the family consented to. Also, there are many ways parents can fail their children and children should be able to vent, or learn from your mistakes and aspire not to repeat them. As a parent, you need to accept the fact that bringing the child into this world is your choice, not theirs, and you have almost complete control over your child's formative years, so please don't bitch about your children being ungrateful. Sorry, you don't get that luxury. Moreover, the problems this character faces are a result of America's wild capitalism, but the author turns it into a feel-good story, which I also find a bit annoying. It is, however, super wide-spread and has been normalized over decades, so I can't really blame him.My reviews for the other Forward stories: Emergency Skin by [a: N.K. Jemisin 2917917 N.K. Jemisin https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1438215930p2/2917917.jpg] ★★★★★Summer Frost by [a: Blake Crouch 442240 Blake Crouch https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1479398727p2/442240.jpg] ★★★★★Ark by [a: Veronica Roth 4039811 Veronica Roth https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1544540525p2/4039811.jpg] ★★★★☆The Last Conversation by [a: Paul Tremblay 648612 Paul Tremblay https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1415058580p2/648612.jpg] ★★★☆☆Randomize by [a: Andy Weir 6540057 Andy Weir https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1382592903p2/6540057.jpg] ★★★☆☆