We Disappear - The Only Truth is There is No Truth
I watched the movie Mysterious Skin and it made me want to explore the written work of Scott Heim. Since I had that movie fresh in my mind, I decided to read this other offering, We Disappear, as its concept also intrigued me.
This book is a page-turner. It felt mystifying. My need to unravel the puzzle was ravenous. The story follows Scott, a meth addict living in New York, who returns to his small home town to be with his mother who has grown ill. His mother has her own addiction to true and local crime, where young children go missing. Her house is littered with photos of the children who have disappeared in their area. She shared this passion with her children as they grew up, dragging Scott and his sister into the stories and lives of these lost children, and they never understood why. When Scott returns as an adult, it becomes clear that he has his own puzzle to solve around why his mother has been so attracted to these stories.
I wanted to give his book five stars. I think my heart just couldn't give the last star because this was one of the most painful and real books I've ever read. The scenes where Scott is describing his mother's condition happened to match almost exactly what I'd witnessed happening to my own mother with a terminal diagnosis, and it literally made me stop breathing in several sections. There is an underlying reminder that each person's life is lived through their own perceptions and there doesn't seem to be a concrete truth behind people's memories that fits everyone's experience. While this message is one of the most true things I've ever learned in my life (like people playing the game 'Telephone' and never getting the story right), it is also one of the most unsatisfying things to read in a book.
I have to give so much kudos to Scott Heim for bringing to life the most bleakest moments and realizations I've ever had in my own personal existence. I have to wonder if he lived it too, to write it so powerfully. I want to recommend this book, but I also want to protect people from feeling the pain that it will paint all over your heart. Bravo, Scott Heim, you sadist.
