A review by carlycormier_
Call Me By Your Name by André Aciman

emotional medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No

5.0

The exploration of the psyche that Aciman takes you on is… just wow. This book captures a snapshot of all young people’s lives when they find themselves in their first relation/situation-ship that is all-encompassing, passionate, maddening, and the intricacies of figuring out yourself and life. You truly feel like you are Elio experiencing turbulent mental and emotional processes as he navigates his relationship with Oliver, his family, and, most importantly, himself. This narrative perspective opens a window into the unspoken depths of our minds. Elio has many racing, and racy, thoughts that we don't typically vocalize, which makes the book feel almost intrusive and voyeuristic at times.

"He came. He left. Nothing else had changed. I had not changed. The world hadn't changed. Yet nothing would be the same. All that remains is dreammaking and stranger remembrance."

Part Four will rip your heart out and put it back just so it can do it all over again.
The hazy, dream-like visuals and intense inner-monologues of remembering a life that equally feels distant and unreal, yet fresh, are the gems of this book. Memory is an additional, unspoken character woven through the storyline and the dialogue with billowy (wink wink) and effortless ease.

Palpable, visceral, intoxicating, bellissimo.

I have a feeling - I know, rather - that I will be thinking about this book for a long time. To add more to this review would do this book a major injustice. So, just read it for yourself and feel all of its beauty first-hand.
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