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3.81 AVERAGE
3.81 AVERAGE
funny
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
dark
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Published in 2020 and winner of the French literary prize the Prix Goncourt, this novel has perhaps one of the most intriguing hooks certainly I've come across: an Air France flight going from Paris to New York enters an accumulation of cloud and a subsequent storm just off the eastern seaboard of the United States. Following heavy turbulence, the plane otherwise safely lands at its destination, only for a duplicate of the plane (and everybody on it) to land a few months later at the same airport.
The novel follows several of the passengers who were onboard the flight as they deal with the repercussions of having a copy of themselves now in the world. They are of various professions, but one notable example is a writer and translator who shortly after the flight, writes his new novel called, you guessed it, The Anomaly.
I would say this book falls into what would be described as ‘slipstream fiction’ (coined by Bruce Sterling, fun fact), as it reads like and is marketed as mainstream fiction, but contains speculative elements. The conceit also is reminiscent of the works of the late Christopher Priest in its exploration of duplicates and parallel lives. The larger cast of characters this inevitably results in may be a stumbling block to some in terms of just keeping who's who straight in your head, yet Le Tellier distinguishes between the copies by appending the month of their return on the plane (March and June) to their first name.
It was interesting to see how some of the characters made the best of the situation of having a duplicate, others not at all, and some in-between. Much of the middle section of the novel involves government staff sequestered in secretive rooms trying to work out an explanation of the anomaly, exploring various concepts from theology to the simulation theory. One (odd, I thought) choice of Le Tellier's was to include the real-life heads of state of the time, which I just feel instantly dates the book to a specific time, and seemed a bit incongruous with the otherwise clearly fictitious narrative. Through this, the author's politics are what I would politely say ‘thinly-veiled’.
The culmination of this book is what really kicked it from what so far was a 3 or 3.5 star up to a 4 star read. It has a not altogether clear, postmodern ending that plays with the text-formatting itself, evoking for me faint memories of Gibson & Sterling's The Difference Engine. This playful device - right from the toolbox of Le Tellier's literary group 'Oulipo' - allows the book to linger in the mind, inspire discussion, and invite interpretation. An intelligent and thought-provoking novel.
The novel follows several of the passengers who were onboard the flight as they deal with the repercussions of having a copy of themselves now in the world. They are of various professions, but one notable example is a writer and translator who shortly after the flight, writes his new novel called, you guessed it, The Anomaly.
I would say this book falls into what would be described as ‘slipstream fiction’ (coined by Bruce Sterling, fun fact), as it reads like and is marketed as mainstream fiction, but contains speculative elements. The conceit also is reminiscent of the works of the late Christopher Priest in its exploration of duplicates and parallel lives. The larger cast of characters this inevitably results in may be a stumbling block to some in terms of just keeping who's who straight in your head, yet Le Tellier distinguishes between the copies by appending the month of their return on the plane (March and June) to their first name.
It was interesting to see how some of the characters made the best of the situation of having a duplicate, others not at all, and some in-between. Much of the middle section of the novel involves government staff sequestered in secretive rooms trying to work out an explanation of the anomaly, exploring various concepts from theology to the simulation theory. One (odd, I thought) choice of Le Tellier's was to include the real-life heads of state of the time, which I just feel instantly dates the book to a specific time, and seemed a bit incongruous with the otherwise clearly fictitious narrative. Through this, the author's politics are what I would politely say ‘thinly-veiled’.
The culmination of this book is what really kicked it from what so far was a 3 or 3.5 star up to a 4 star read. It has a not altogether clear, postmodern ending that plays with the text-formatting itself, evoking for me faint memories of Gibson & Sterling's The Difference Engine. This playful device - right from the toolbox of Le Tellier's literary group 'Oulipo' - allows the book to linger in the mind, inspire discussion, and invite interpretation. An intelligent and thought-provoking novel.
Content Warnings
Minor: Child abuse, Suicide
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Loved this book, I never knew where it was going but in a good way
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Sexual violence, Suicide
Miękka sci-fi o absurdalnej sytuacji, która zmienia świat (straszliwie i komicznie) i konkretnych ludzi (nieoczekiwanie i dramatycznie).
Dobrze napisana, nic zbędnego.
Dobrze napisana, nic zbędnego.
A rough diamond of a book. On the one hand I would have wished it t go deeper into a few storylines and omit others, but on the other hand especially this rough state of things makes me thing abut it in a way that is most interesting. And this helps it not t become just another thought experiment but a resonating experience.
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
reflective
medium-paced