This book was originally reviewed on my blog, Books from Bleh to Basically Amazing.Have you ever found yourself rooting for the bad guy? Knowing that the character deserves every bad thing coming his way, but hoping that, somehow, things will work out better in the end? I don't know that I had ever truly experienced that before reading this book. I generally prefer (ahem-totally love) reading books where the bad guy totally gets his comeuppance. I'm all about hard-core justice for my villains. Mercy?! *Scoff,* What's that. Don't you know what he's done?!Reading this book changed that. This is the first time (or at least the only time that comes immediately to mind) where I have truly felt bad for our bad guy. Other times when the bad guy is pitiable or shown mercy, it is because they aren't really all that bad, merely misunderstood. Eric Poole may be misunderstood. That's a distinct possibility. But, there is no denying the fact that he is bad. He's a sociopath. When we meet Eric, he's been in a Juvenile Facility for the last three years for the cold-blooded murder of his mother and step-father. Or course, it was justified because of the 'severe abuse' Eric has been living with, so the state tries him as a juvenile instead of an adult, which means he will be released after he turns 18 and his record will be expunged. No one knows about the three young girls Eric murdered, or so he thinks.If I had to sum up my thoughts/feelings/idea of this novel in one sentence, it would be revolve around the quote that begins that novel and that I used as the title for this post (To know the pain of too much tenderness"- Kahlil Gibran) One generally equates tenderness with only positive things. It brings to mind images of gentleness, kindness and love. But, what about the idea of too much tenderness? Is that possible? Apparently. Lori and Eric are searching for that tender emotion. Almost every action is driven by this desire to experience tenderness. They are always seeking it, they look for and find it in all the wrong places and they never grasp it for long. It creates intense dysfunctions within each character.Eric kills young girls to find it and Lori subjects herself to all manner of unwanted and unwelcome sexual advances to feel it. Their paths cross and Lori decides that Eric is the one who can give her what she seeks. She goes with him, knowing that he murdered his mother and step-father (but he was so abused!) and later discovers that the murmurs about Eric killing young girls is also true. But, Eric is tender with her. She loves him. She informs Eric that she will stand by him, ignoring his past and assisting him in the future if he will simply remain tender with her. And how can he refuse that, especially once he begins to care for her, as much as he is capable of caring for anyone.If we only heard from Lori's perspective, it would be incredibly easy to hate Eric and despise him for the crazed cold-blooded killer he is. But, he isn't, is he? I still don't know. We also hear from Eric. While Eric never demonstrates any remorse for what he's done, he too merely desires a little tenderness in his life. Before his mother remarried, she and Eric had a very close relationship. The man she married and Eric do not get along at all. Eric despises him and he thinks Eric is rather in the way. Eric seeks compassion and tenderness from these girls and finds that the only way he truly feels able to experience it is upon their deaths. However evil that is, I can't hate him for it. He seems genuinely puzzled when the main detective on the case calls him a monster and surprisingly, I found myself agreeing.By the end of the novel, he seems genuinely concerned for Lori's welfare. He takes care of her, makes her feel special and begins to show her what she has been searching for. And there is no doubt that by the end, he truly cares for her. Although abrupt and a bit jarring, the ending suited the story perfectly. It was tragic, but it was the only way to end the story and be true to each character. I won't spoil it for you, but I will say that I ended up heartbroken for each of our main characters. None of them really received their happy ending. This is a book that will stay with me for a long time, and one that will influence my thoughts as well. I can't imagine someone with such a low image and perception of themselves that they would be willing to subject themselves to what Lori willingly puts herself through before and after meeting Eric. What would drive an attractive young woman to such lengths and who is to blame for not teaching this girl that she has value all on her own. This is a story that will both warm and break your heart and one that will linger in your thoughts long after you've turned the last page.
REQUIRED TEXT - CORMIERThis book is made up of two narratives that explore two very different characters as they attempt to find "tenderness" in their lives. The first character, Lori, is a young teenage girl that has run away from home. She finds herself frequently having fixations on different men, fixations that refuse to go away until she can kiss that particular man. Her latest fixation is on the other main character, Eric, an 18 year old boy that has just been released from prison. Eric is also trying to find tenderness, something that he only feels in the moments of closeness before he rapes and murders girls. Eric was sent to jail for the murder of his mother and stepfather. He had also murdered three girls, something that the police did not know. The two teens meet each other and share a fascinating journey as they both continue to pursue their very different ideas of tenderness. I was simultaneously disturbed and fascinated while reading this book. Both characters have very skewed views on the world and the concept of tenderness, and it was so interesting to see how this influenced their decisions. It is definitely a dark story, but I think these sort of stories highlight that the world can be scary and a little insane. It offers readers a chance to vicariously experience these things and understand a small portion of the world a little better. While Lori's character was often frustrating due to her baffling decisions, I was so intrigued by Eric who one minute could be do charming, but the next turn murderer. It definitely has some dark content, and is probably something better suited for older readers.
What do You think about Tenderness (2004)?
Genre: Fiction/Serial Killing/LoveAfter spending three years in the Juvenile correction facility for the murder of his mother and stepfather, Eric Poole is finally released. He moves in with his aunt for awhile until the press calm down and find something else to report on in the newspapers. One particular day he looks outside the house to find a blonde girl in the branches of the willow tree in the front yard. He eventually remembers he met her several years ago by the train tracks. He met her just after he had murdered one of three other girls her killed, all of them with beautiful black hair and tan skin. Eric was a serial killer and used his charm to lure beautiful girls to do what he wanted and then killed them to enjoy a moment of "tenderness" with their dead bodies. The girl, Lori, hides in Eric's car when he finally leaves his aunt's house and travels in search of a dark haired fellow inmate from the prison named "the Senorita." Eric spends time with her, buying her presents and food until he realizes she knows that he killed the girl the day by the train tracks. He tries to kill her in her sleep but she wakes up when the pillow to smother her is still in the air. Eric then knows he cannot kill her. Eric meets the Senorita at a carnival and it turns out to be a trap set by the police to catch him in the act of killing again. Lori discovers the trap and warns him before he does anything. The two then continue travelling and spending time together as Lori experiences the tenderness she has never felt from anyone. While out canoeing, Lori falls in the lake and drowns despite Eric's attempts to save her. He is charged with murder for her death and locked in prison, even though the Leutenient in charge of Eric's case knows that he probably didn't murder her because she was not his type. He is kept in prison anyways.This book was astonishing for it's originality. Although the subject matter is disturbing and depressing, at the same time, it is eye opening to see into the mind of a killer and try to comprehend the emotions they feel when killing. I would be careful in deciding who I recommend this book to but it is definitely worth reading for it's pure originality and uniqueness.
—Margo
This book is about an eighteen-year old kid (Eric Poole) who was sent to juvenile detention for the murder of his mother, step-father and two young girls. He is listed as a serial killer, and a sociopath. His tenderness frenzy started when he was a young boy. His crave for tenderness started with small animals, but he has moved on to killing young beautiful girls and still feels sexual pleasure even after they are dead. The book is also about a fifteen year old girl, Lori who also craves tendern
—Allison Linkous
I feel like this book was a huge let down the beginning stated out boreding just talking about how once Lori saw a guy she had to kiss em or something and how she was in love with random\creepy people. Eric is just a freakin nut-job that likes to kill girls and for like the first half of the book all it says is how he is werid and creey and talkeds about how hes in jail and why. so basicly these kids are both wack jobs and Lori sorta stalkd Eric so she can say how they were ment to be and they are in love and she hops in his van in the middle of the night and they just take of together but of course she is not erics type and he plans on killing he rin the middle of the night but things dont always turn out what they plann all the time but over all i enjoyed this book.
—Jessica
