Polkamouse’s Reviews > Love in the Afternoon and Other Delights > Status Update

After reading The Mermaid again, it made me wonder why people expect others they're close to, to change to suit their own wants & needs better. It feels immature for Julie to expect Nick to choose her over his own son or to push Jake to move on quicker after his mother's death. The boy's only nine years old and lost his mother when he was only seven! What sane human being sees that as morally just? Also, I kind of wish the ending was a little less fanciful and more based on character development & maturation. I feel like the only character who was actually emotionally mature was Nick. Jake could've seen better character development by owning up to his true feelings & showing his dad the pregnancy test instructions. Also, Nick's reaction to Julie's pregnancy 'announcement' (where she assumed he already knew) felt a bit rushed & unrealistic.