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3.6 AVERAGE
3.6 AVERAGE
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book is based of a pretty interesting premise of someone being entirely forgettable. Not just mundane, but once your short-term memory is gone you have no recollection at all of anything she's done with you. A neat idea, and a good take on what life would be like for someone with this characteristic.
Also, using this to fight a huge corporation making slaves of people (with their consent).
All-in-all, a good read.
Also, using this to fight a huge corporation making slaves of people (with their consent).
All-in-all, a good read.
What reads as a thriller with a very strange conceit is actually a complex study of identity.
At the outset I found the premise of this story, a person who is almost immediately forgotten, at first by her family and friends, and then by everyone she meets, pretty depressing. It's as if everyone around her has alzheimer's , at least as far as she is concerned. Hope cannot have friends, cannot rely on anyone for anything because the moment she is out of sight she is out of mind.
North, therefore, had to create a plausible way for Hope to adapt and survive, and in the process creates a rather sympathetic and compelling master thief whose inner struggles to be memorable drive to to do more than just survive.
The world Hope lives in is being shaped by another type of identity crisis: the need to achieve "perfection" by enslaving oneself to a self-help app. Perfection, the app, takes the faithful by the hand and ultimately makes every decision for them as they climb the ladder of success and conformity. Hope is happy to rob from them until she befriends someone, in her unique way, who is driven to suicide by the app, and then it's game on for Hope to bring Perfection down.
At every turn identity plays the central role in what it means to be successful, safe, important, loved, remembered, and ultimately just "to be" in and of itself.
I rather like it.
Q: 3
E: 4
I: 4
3x4 +4 = 16
At the outset I found the premise of this story, a person who is almost immediately forgotten, at first by her family and friends, and then by everyone she meets, pretty depressing. It's as if everyone around her has alzheimer's , at least as far as she is concerned. Hope cannot have friends, cannot rely on anyone for anything because the moment she is out of sight she is out of mind.
North, therefore, had to create a plausible way for Hope to adapt and survive, and in the process creates a rather sympathetic and compelling master thief whose inner struggles to be memorable drive to to do more than just survive.
The world Hope lives in is being shaped by another type of identity crisis: the need to achieve "perfection" by enslaving oneself to a self-help app. Perfection, the app, takes the faithful by the hand and ultimately makes every decision for them as they climb the ladder of success and conformity. Hope is happy to rob from them until she befriends someone, in her unique way, who is driven to suicide by the app, and then it's game on for Hope to bring Perfection down.
At every turn identity plays the central role in what it means to be successful, safe, important, loved, remembered, and ultimately just "to be" in and of itself.
I rather like it.
Q: 3
E: 4
I: 4
3x4 +4 = 16
emotional
This book blew my mind! At first, I thought the concept was a bit too similar to The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August, but I actually liked this book way more! Hope was such a kick-ass character, but at the same time she was also really vulnerable. Because of her condition - which was really fascinating - she was also able to read people really well and I loved that because it made for such great interactions between her and the side characters. This book was full of great characters and it had such a good story. I was constantly wondering what was going to happen next. The Sudden Appearance of Hope is definitely one of my favorite books of this year!
Excellent narrator -- both the voice of the protagonist and audiobook's reader. I think my favorite thing about this book is that it basically takes what could be, maybe, three different plots for books and twines them all together into an utterly fascinating story. The ramifications of people un-rememberable are explored quite thoroughly and so much of the psychology of the characters just rings so true. I look forward to reading (or listening to) more of North's books.
Started slow, got exciting, then slowed down again, picked up speed for a few chapters, then slowed down again, took me 2 weeks to finish the last 5th of the book. I wanted to like it but ultimately The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August is a much better read.
The concept of Perfection is very intriguing though, being used as a motive to fix and or end the world. The scary thing is, is that Perfection already exists in the real world, not as one application, but as many and as social media and social constructs in general.
The concept of Perfection is very intriguing though, being used as a motive to fix and or end the world. The scary thing is, is that Perfection already exists in the real world, not as one application, but as many and as social media and social constructs in general.
I didn't like this book as much as I hoped I would, but it was still pretty good. It wasn't at all what I was expecting, but then again, I don't know exactly what I was expecting.
My biggest issue with this book is that it was way too long. It really dragged. I think it would have been much better if it were 50-75 pages shorter. I found myself skipping whole paragraphs at a time, and not missing anything plot wise at all. The writing and formatting was sometimes confusing to me, but it may be that I lack the creativity to see passed the purposeful sentence breaks and grammar.
What I did like about this book is that it got me thinking about sociological norms and values. What it means to be accepted, what and who defines perfect. And Hope's character went through a lot of growth in her own quest to finding out what it means to be forgotten, to be free (or not) and free from the ideals the world sets as the norm.
I miss adult fiction.
My biggest issue with this book is that it was way too long. It really dragged. I think it would have been much better if it were 50-75 pages shorter. I found myself skipping whole paragraphs at a time, and not missing anything plot wise at all. The writing and formatting was sometimes confusing to me, but it may be that I lack the creativity to see passed the purposeful sentence breaks and grammar.
What I did like about this book is that it got me thinking about sociological norms and values. What it means to be accepted, what and who defines perfect. And Hope's character went through a lot of growth in her own quest to finding out what it means to be forgotten, to be free (or not) and free from the ideals the world sets as the norm.
I miss adult fiction.
This is a sad beautiful book with a compelling but lengthy story, and I can honestly say I have never read anything like this before. How on earth did Claire North come up with the concept for this book? From the girl who cannot be remembered to the app called 'Perfection', the entire thing was imaginative and impactful. She took a bunch of what-if's and spun a complete and plausible story out of it. I could spend all day picking this novel apart because it touches on so many themes. The easiest theme to spot would be the dangers of exposing too much of your private life online and allowing apps to run your life, but if you read my favorite quotes above you probably already have a good idea what range of topics to expect from this novel.
At first you might think that North is simply making some very valid commentaries about society’s shallow desires to maintain appearances of false perfection, but then it leads to discussions about what shapes a person’s perception of “perfect” and “imperfect” to begin with. This in turn is connected to Hope, whose biggest "imperfection" is that she cannot be remembered by anyone. To people who are aware of her special ability, they call this freedom. To Hope it is a prison, because she is in fact NOT free to love and to be loved. With this argument alone, North already proves a point with regards to how our perception tricks our minds to believe in certain things a certain way.
A warning though: This book is not going to be for everyone. The author intended this book to read a certain way, and I think she effectively executed that, but it’s not going to be everyone’s cup of tea. I chose to consume this as an audiobook because I know I would never have managed to finish this in book form. Stream of consciousness narration is not my usual style. I feel that it’s a step too close to the character in comparison to first person narrative, and as I expected, being too immersed inside the free-flowing mind of another person is too exhausting. And in the case of Hope and her utterly problematic situation, it is extra stressful, emotionally and psychologically.
There was a part around the 75% mark where Hope was having this mental breakdown, cussing and just generally going bonkers, and I felt very rattled by her distress. And I have never been rattled by a novel before. When I read I can feel sadness and tragedy strongly, but this is the first time I felt actually unnerved. Listening to someone falling apart is not pleasant.
That said, I am of two minds with the way North executed this novel of hers. The idea is ingenious, but I am not 100% sold on the stream of consciousness style of narration. The action/heist scenes were less exciting because you only hear it from one very specific viewpoint. Considering the plot in this novel is an exciting one involving spies, murder, brainwashing, and all those terrifying things, it’s such a shame. On the other hand, all the contemplations and emotions that inevitably come with Hope’s unique situation was exquisitely delivered thanks to the author’s narration choice. The continuous flow of Hope’s thoughts allows you to feel every beat and nuance of her emotions, and you are privy to her deepest darkest loneliest thoughts.
And boy was Hope Arden the loneliest character I have ever read about. She is lonely in every aspect of the word, in every way you can probably imagine. Picture being a person who no one remembers—not your family, nor your friends. Not the doctors who are supposed to regularly check up on you while you lay recovering from a near-death experience in a hospital. Literally NO ONE. You could be the most beautiful, most intelligent, most stunning person in the world, and yet the moment you leave the room it’s like you never existed.
It would be fun and beneficial for a while, maybe even exhilarating because you can get away with anything. But once that shine wears off, you find that you have been alone all this time. And that you will remain alone for the rest of your life. Because despite owning every material thing in the world, you can never have meaningful human connections, or do anything of worth that people will remember you by.
Who are you?
What are you?
Do you even truly exist?
I sat through the novel just wanting to know if Hope will ever be “cured” or if her condition would ever be explained. If not, I wanted at least one freaking person to remember Hope Arden. I’m curious to know if anybody who has ever finished this novel actually wished for Hope’s abilities. It’s such a terrible existence.
I’ve read other reviews of this book talking about how the novel seems to keep readers at arm’s length, never quite letting them in. I honestly don’t know how much closer you can get to a character when Hope is at times already spilling her guts out in despair, but you know, unless you’ve ever been in the same situation as her, it’s kind of hard to relate a hundred percent.
What I could relate to were some of the places Hope visited around the world. North did a great job capturing enough of the essence of each location to establish ambiance. I loved that she also used the specific schools of thought present in the specific country Hope was in to add a little more food for thought. But the book is not without its flaws. For one thing, North could've cut out several chapters and made some parts shorter. And now that I can view the book in hindsight, I feel like some parts of the writing started to feel a little indulgent as it sounded like the author was having too much fun voicing out her own lengthy opinions using Hope's voice. Valid as they may be, it made the book a little too long.
Verdict:
Highly recommend listening to the audiobook. The narrator is very good and adds a lot of value to the book.
At first you might think that North is simply making some very valid commentaries about society’s shallow desires to maintain appearances of false perfection, but then it leads to discussions about what shapes a person’s perception of “perfect” and “imperfect” to begin with. This in turn is connected to Hope, whose biggest "imperfection" is that she cannot be remembered by anyone. To people who are aware of her special ability, they call this freedom. To Hope it is a prison, because she is in fact NOT free to love and to be loved. With this argument alone, North already proves a point with regards to how our perception tricks our minds to believe in certain things a certain way.
A warning though: This book is not going to be for everyone. The author intended this book to read a certain way, and I think she effectively executed that, but it’s not going to be everyone’s cup of tea. I chose to consume this as an audiobook because I know I would never have managed to finish this in book form. Stream of consciousness narration is not my usual style. I feel that it’s a step too close to the character in comparison to first person narrative, and as I expected, being too immersed inside the free-flowing mind of another person is too exhausting. And in the case of Hope and her utterly problematic situation, it is extra stressful, emotionally and psychologically.
There was a part around the 75% mark where Hope was having this mental breakdown, cussing and just generally going bonkers, and I felt very rattled by her distress. And I have never been rattled by a novel before. When I read I can feel sadness and tragedy strongly, but this is the first time I felt actually unnerved. Listening to someone falling apart is not pleasant.
That said, I am of two minds with the way North executed this novel of hers. The idea is ingenious, but I am not 100% sold on the stream of consciousness style of narration. The action/heist scenes were less exciting because you only hear it from one very specific viewpoint. Considering the plot in this novel is an exciting one involving spies, murder, brainwashing, and all those terrifying things, it’s such a shame. On the other hand, all the contemplations and emotions that inevitably come with Hope’s unique situation was exquisitely delivered thanks to the author’s narration choice. The continuous flow of Hope’s thoughts allows you to feel every beat and nuance of her emotions, and you are privy to her deepest darkest loneliest thoughts.
And boy was Hope Arden the loneliest character I have ever read about. She is lonely in every aspect of the word, in every way you can probably imagine. Picture being a person who no one remembers—not your family, nor your friends. Not the doctors who are supposed to regularly check up on you while you lay recovering from a near-death experience in a hospital. Literally NO ONE. You could be the most beautiful, most intelligent, most stunning person in the world, and yet the moment you leave the room it’s like you never existed.
It would be fun and beneficial for a while, maybe even exhilarating because you can get away with anything. But once that shine wears off, you find that you have been alone all this time. And that you will remain alone for the rest of your life. Because despite owning every material thing in the world, you can never have meaningful human connections, or do anything of worth that people will remember you by.
Who are you?
What are you?
Do you even truly exist?
I sat through the novel just wanting to know if Hope will ever be “cured” or if her condition would ever be explained. If not, I wanted at least one freaking person to remember Hope Arden. I’m curious to know if anybody who has ever finished this novel actually wished for Hope’s abilities. It’s such a terrible existence.
I’ve read other reviews of this book talking about how the novel seems to keep readers at arm’s length, never quite letting them in. I honestly don’t know how much closer you can get to a character when Hope is at times already spilling her guts out in despair, but you know, unless you’ve ever been in the same situation as her, it’s kind of hard to relate a hundred percent.
What I could relate to were some of the places Hope visited around the world. North did a great job capturing enough of the essence of each location to establish ambiance. I loved that she also used the specific schools of thought present in the specific country Hope was in to add a little more food for thought. But the book is not without its flaws. For one thing, North could've cut out several chapters and made some parts shorter. And now that I can view the book in hindsight, I feel like some parts of the writing started to feel a little indulgent as it sounded like the author was having too much fun voicing out her own lengthy opinions using Hope's voice. Valid as they may be, it made the book a little too long.
Verdict:
Highly recommend listening to the audiobook. The narrator is very good and adds a lot of value to the book.
I love the premise of this book, and was really into it at first, but it went on a little too long for me and started to feel repetitive - I get that she has to continually repeat things to people who forget her, but I don't need to actually experience that with her. I think if this book had been more tightly edited and like a hundred pages less I would have really enjoyed it.