We learn that Rosemary’s parents are emotionally ruined, each in their own way that her brother is wanted by the FBI and that Rosemary herself, once a sunny, chatterbox child, by age 19 “mostly doesn’t speak.” We quickly learn that Rosemary (who narrates) hasn’t seen her brother for 10 years, her twin sister for 17. When the novel starts, however, only three of the five are present and accounted for: a daughter, Rosemary, and her parents. We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves is about the Cooke family, whose members include a research psychologist at Indiana University, his wife, and their three children. (While you’re at it, skip all other reviews and the book’s own cover art. To preserve the mystery, you might skip this review.
So, there’s my take-home message up front: you’ve got to read this book.įor those wanting to know more, be forewarned that there’s a spoiler coming – it’s hard to talk about this novel without revealing its driving secret, one that isn’t disclosed until about a third of the way in.
Barbara Kingsolver, writing for the New York Times, declared that it “deserves all the attention it can get,” while Maureen Corrigan of National Public Radio called it “superb.” This reviewer skipped toothbrushing for 24 hours while glued to its pages (a Big Deal, as anyone who knows me would attest). And I mean widespread: I have yet to encounter an unfavorable review. The latter describes my experience of reading Karen Joy Fowler’s most recent novel We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves (A Marian Wood Book/Putnam, 2013), published earlier this year to widespread critical acclaim. We don’t so much finish these books as emerge from them, blinking our eyes and knowing we’re changed. Immersed in such books, sleep becomes irrelevant, bathroom breaks an annoyance, food all but forgotten. Then there are books that grab you by the wrist and yank you deep inside. Such books provide a pleasant-enough interlude from regular life, allowing the reader to dip in, walk away, dip in again.
Don’t miss this book.īook Review: “We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves” by Karen Joy Fowler We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves is one of those books, and I’m thrilled that writer and professor Melissa Tedrowe agreed to review it. When a whole flock of people go out of their way to tell you that this book will change your life, you sit down and read it. When more than one person emails you and tells you have to read a particular book, your ears perk up.
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