Review - BERTIE

BERTIE
by Jon Langford
Date: 2017
Publisher: East of the Web
Reading level: A
Book type: short story
Pages: 6
Format: e-book
Source: http://www.eastoftheweb.com/

What would you do if your family preferred a robot over you?

(synopsis from Goodreads)

I'd read another short story by this author and sort of enjoyed it, so I thought I'd give this one a try. The synopsis was intriguing, and I like science fiction, so I thought maybe I'd like this.

But... I didn't. I can't tell if the author intentionally made the narrator insufferable or if he was supposed to be a sympathetic character. But I hated the guy. He oozed disdain for his wife; he couldn't seem to think of anything nice to say about her. When he's called out for his parenting skills, he turns himself into the victim. He comes across as a narcissist, and that's all fine and good, but since I couldn't tell whether it was intentional or not, I was really uncomfortable reading this.

The synopsis poses the question: What would you do if your family preferred a robot over you? The answer should be: Try acting like a caring father and husband (consistently) and stop viewing your family as a worthless burden. I mean, there was absolutely no reason the wife and daughter should've preferred the narrator over the robot. His actions at the end of the story further reinforced the fact that he's just an insecure dick with a bruised ego.

Plot: 1/5
Characters: 1/5
Pace: 2/5
Writing & Editing: 2/5
Originality: 2/5

Enjoyment: 1/5

Overall Rating: 1.43 out of 5 ladybugs