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beedee1's review against another edition
2.0
Giller prize winner or not, this book really suffered from Man Writes Female Protagonist Disorder. Especially when he decided to include the references to mother guilt and postpartum depression.
henskm's review against another edition
3.0
I was intrigued by the premise of the book and truly hooked for about the first half. Bonus points for the humorous descriptions of Torontonians and capturing the vibe of Kensington Market. However, I found the second half less captivating and the ending unsatisfactory.
jenniferdinsmore's review against another edition
2.0
*Slight spoilers*
Joan has a problem. There is someone out there who looks *exactly* like her. Not a close resemblance, not just a passing resemblance. This person may as well be her clone. And people start mistaking Joan for the other. Then they start disappearing. So Joan gets obsessed and sets out to find her twin.
The whole novel is kind of a fever dream and I'm still not sure what was "real" or not--who is real or not. And I feel like I missed a little something at the end, but I'm not quite sure. This novel messes with your head. For that, I really liked it. It's not cookie cutter, and it's not like anything else.
The bad? The main character fell a little flat. I don't know if it was because a man was writing a woman (something a little unauthentic, but thank god he's not one that thinks we are preoccupied with our breasts 24/7), or because he sometimes went on philosophical tangents that left me more confused and wondering what it had to do with the story. (But maybe that was the point?) Things get so tangled and convoluted by the end it's somewhat hard to follow, and answers are hinted at but never fully given.
Did I love it, did I hate it? I don't know. Both. All I know for sure is that this is one of those books that is best digested if you have someone to talk about it with. Make it your next book club pick, and there will be no awkward silences!
Joan has a problem. There is someone out there who looks *exactly* like her. Not a close resemblance, not just a passing resemblance. This person may as well be her clone. And people start mistaking Joan for the other. Then they start disappearing. So Joan gets obsessed and sets out to find her twin.
The whole novel is kind of a fever dream and I'm still not sure what was "real" or not--who is real or not. And I feel like I missed a little something at the end, but I'm not quite sure. This novel messes with your head. For that, I really liked it. It's not cookie cutter, and it's not like anything else.
The bad? The main character fell a little flat. I don't know if it was because a man was writing a woman (something a little unauthentic, but thank god he's not one that thinks we are preoccupied with our breasts 24/7), or because he sometimes went on philosophical tangents that left me more confused and wondering what it had to do with the story. (But maybe that was the point?) Things get so tangled and convoluted by the end it's somewhat hard to follow, and answers are hinted at but never fully given.
Did I love it, did I hate it? I don't know. Both. All I know for sure is that this is one of those books that is best digested if you have someone to talk about it with. Make it your next book club pick, and there will be no awkward silences!
rebecca_mangulins's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
smalltownbookmom's review against another edition
2.0
Was too weird for me. Not into that type of psychological mind-fuckery. I like a more straightforward story with characters I can care about. Did not really care about the protagonist in this one.
cjhcjh's review against another edition
3.0
What in the even...what? I found the book super page-turny and compelling, but such a mind-f**k that in the end I just kind of got mad. What even happened? What parts were real? Am I too dumb for this book? Argh!
jficele's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I know that I am in the minority in rating this book 5 stars, but I really did love it. I love books that are different, that make me think and that give me a new perspective. Redhill’s writing drew me in and kept me engaged the whole time. I live just North of Toronto so I am familiar with Kensington market and the surrounding area. I was able to picture the places and people he described without any difficulty. I can’t wait to read the next book in this trilogy.
enrichingerin's review against another edition
2.0
I’m not even too sure what I just read. It started out strong and then got so lost. I feel like it was mostly gibberish that was somehow turned into a book.
ncrozier's review against another edition
2.0
While I think I understand what the author was trying to do here, I found it confusing, difficult to get in to, and ultimately unsatisfying.
samanthamccabe_'s review against another edition
3.0
Hmmmm I’m still a little unsure of how this book is sitting with me. I really enjoyed the setting — as someone who used to live right between Kensington Market and CAMH in Toronto and who doesn’t typically gravitate towards Canadian literature, the chance to read something so full of references I understood and places I could picture was great. The intersection between mystery and mental health within the plot felt very novel, but like others, sometimes I felt like I didn’t have much to grasp on to.
No spoilers but I was REALLY hoping for a more solidified ending!! That being said I do think that from a literary perspective, the author’s choice to leave it relatively ambiguous made sense (and it’s supposedly the first of three books).
Overall worth reading if you like surrealism and thinking about meta topics like perception and sense of self through the lens of fiction.
No spoilers but I was REALLY hoping for a more solidified ending!! That being said I do think that from a literary perspective, the author’s choice to leave it relatively ambiguous made sense (and it’s supposedly the first of three books).
Overall worth reading if you like surrealism and thinking about meta topics like perception and sense of self through the lens of fiction.