Passengers
About the book
Author: Alexander Maksik
Publisher: Europa Editions
More info:
The StoryGraph | Goodreads
Note: Content and trigger warnings are provided for those who need them at the bottom of this page. If you don’t need them and don’t want to risk spoilers, don’t scroll past the review.
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Bookshop.org (print or ebook) | Libro.fm (audio)
My review
I hadn’t heard of Passengers before it was longlisted for the National Book Award, but its premise (a father and daughter gradually realize that they are stuck in an airport amidst some mysterious, uncanny events) has my name written all over it. I had high hopes as I started, especially because I loved the ideas and relationships it was exploring, but ultimately the execution was just not to my taste.
First: those great themes. I was very drawn to his exploration of the relationship between the parent of an adult child (who just cannot explain the lived reality of how much their child changed them/their life) and an adult child (who feels frustrated by their need to try). Having waited until my 30s to become a parent, I feel like I have a glimpse into both sides of that relationship — obviously my daughter isn’t an adult yet, but I can see and feel the path from here to there laid clearly in front of me. The way Maksik brought these characters’ relationship to life (via dialogue and internal monologue) was just SO effective. I sympathized with both of them and wanted to give them each a good shake and a good hug.
That said, the structure began to wear away at me by the halfway mark or so. Despite the dynamic presence, this book is almost entirely made up of these two characters having variations of the same conversations over and over in different parts of the airport, even as the tension was building in the background. To me, this dichotomy just felt totally incongruous, and I became more and more frustrated me waiting for something new to happen. And finally, all I can say here is that I was not a fan of the ending.
Finally, a quick note to say that the audiobook edition of this one was well done! Easy to follow and well acted.
If you find yourself drawn to this one, I say give it a try. Just be prepared for the fact that the pace stays relatively slow for 95% of the book.
Content and trigger warnings
Confinement (minor; they are trapped in the airport)
