Yeah, but...
I don't usually demand a fully resolved ending to a book. I don't need everything handed to me on a silver platter, literature-wise. This one, however, needed some resolution to justify how it was constructed.I've heard this novel described as a coming-of-age slice of life, which would be fine, but "The Little Friend" isn't written like a slice of life. It's written like a Southern gothic murder mystery, with much loving, beautifully-written detail afforded to subplots that we're led to believe are essential, but ultimately go exactly nowhere.This book doesn't know what it wants to be. One star for the writing, which is great if a little too untrammeled, and one for the interesting characters. I wish I'd passed it by, though.