A review by emily1602
Murmur by Will Eaves

I think I could have had some of the thoughts in this book, but many of them I could not. It is from Alan Turing's perspective. Mathematical view of the world (not statistics! statistics are a terrible way to view the world. although maybe I have a too simplistic view of statistics), applied to questions of his life- what are we without society's acceptance? what is the relationship between cause and effect? what makes a person/thing (computer ofc) conscious? I understood why some parts of the book were there, but not why other parts were there. The parts I did understand made me think that my problem with the other parts was a lack in my own understanding, not a flaw of the book. Brilliant and kind and captures the way it feels to dream in a way that feels as real as any book I have read. The middle half of the book is a series of dreams/potential alternate lives.

At the end, it turns out that the one strand of real life that seemed to be running through the middle section, letters Turing was exchanging with a friend, turned out to be in his imagination. Deeply lonely ending.