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Perfect

by Rachel Joyce

Other authors: See the other authors section.

MembersReviewsPopularityAverage ratingMentions
9157823,008 (3.71)30
Fiction. Literature. HTML:A spellbinding novel that will resonate with readers of Mark Haddon, Louise Erdrich, and John Irving, Perfect tells the story of a young boy who is thrown into the murky, difficult realities of the adult world with far-reaching consequences.
Byron Hemmings wakes to a morning that looks like any other: his school uniform draped over his wooden desk chair, his sister arguing over the breakfast cereal, the click of his mother??s heels as she crosses the kitchen. But when the three of them leave home, driving into a dense summer fog, the morning takes an unmistakable turn. In one terrible moment, something happens, something completely unexpected and at odds with life as Byron understands it. While his mother seems not to have noticed, eleven-year-old Byron understands that from now on nothing can be the same.
 
What happened and who is to blame? Over the days and weeks that follow, Byron??s perfect world is shattered. Unable to trust his parents, he confides in his best friend, James, and together they concoct a plan. . . .
 
As she did in her debut, The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry, Rachel Joyce has imagined bewitching characters who find their ordinary lives unexpectedly thrown into chaos, who learn that there are times when children must become parents to their parents, and who discover that in confronting the hard truths about their pasts, they will forge unexpected relationships that have profound and surprising impacts. Brimming with love, forgiveness, and redemption, Perfect will cement Rachel Joyce??s reputation as one of fiction??s brightest talents.
Praise for Perfect
 
??Touching, eccentric . . . Joyce does an inviting job of setting up these mysterious circumstances, and of drawing Byron??s magical closeness with Diana.???Janet Maslin, The New York Times
 
??Haunting . . . compelling.???Minneapolis Star Tribune
 
??[Joyce] triumphantly returns with Perfect. . . . As Joyce probes the souls of Diana, Byron and Jim, she reveals??slowly and deliberately, as if peeling back a delicate onion skin??the connection between the two stories, creating a poignant, searching tale.???O: The Oprah Magazine
 
??Perfect touches on class, mental illness, and the ways a psyche is formed or broken. It has the tenor of a horror film, and yet at the end, in some kind of contortionist trick, the narrative unfolds into an unexpected burst of redemption. [Verdict:] Buy It.???New York
 
??Joyce??s dark, quiet follow-up to her successful debut, The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry, could easily become a book club favorite. . . . Perfect is the kind of book that blossoms under thoughtful examination, its slow tendencies redeemed by moments of loveliness and insight. However sad, Joyce??s messages??about the limitations of time and control, the failures of adults and the fears of children, and our responsibility for our own imprisonment and freedom??have a gentle ring of truth to them.???The Washington Post
 
??There is a poignancy to Joyce??s narrative that mak
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    What Was Lost by Catherine O'Flynn (jayne_charles)
    jayne_charles: Both quirky then-and-now stories
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» See also 30 mentions

English (76)  Dutch (1)  French (1)  All languages (78)
Showing 1-5 of 76 (next | show all)
I thoroughly enjoyed this novel. To me it seemed perfectly formed! In 1972 we meet teenage Byron, who lives with his mother Diana and younger sister. His father comes home at weekends and rings at the same time every morning to check on Diana. Their lives seem to be idyllic on one level and filled with anxiety and tension on another. Their large house has a flourishing garden that Diana takes care of and it sits on the edge of the moor. Byron attends a private school and his best friend is James. Diana drives the children to school in a shiny Jaguar. The events of the summer begin with James telling Byron that 2 seconds are to be added to the year to re-set time and this issue churns around in Byron's mind, leading to an accident that changes everything. Diana is lonely, she doesn't appear to fit in with the mothers of other children at the school. Due to an incident she meets Beverley from the estate and they appear to get along well, Beverley and sometimes her daughter, visiting most days during the summer holidays. These chapters are alternated with the story of Jim in the 21st century, who following care in the community, has had to leave his long-term home in a mental health hospital and now lives in a campervan and cleans tables in a supermarket cafe. Jim is in his 50s and struggles with severe OCD and a stammer. An accident changes his life too and slowly and perfectly the two stories are revealed and the truth emerges. ( )
  CarolKub | Dec 3, 2023 |
One character had OCD. ( )
  kristiederuiter | May 14, 2022 |
i really enjoyed this book, however, I was a teenager in the 1970s and I cannot remember it being like that.
it is a sad story that leaves you thinking about the characters even after you have finished ( )
  karenshann | Dec 31, 2019 |
This was no Harold Fry. ( )
  LindaWeeks | May 14, 2018 |
After loving "The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry" this book was a disappointment: too depressing, too long, and the ending too little too late. No sign of the quirky wit of the previous book. ( )
  Siubhan | Feb 28, 2018 |
Showing 1-5 of 76 (next | show all)
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» Add other authors (7 possible)

Author nameRoleType of authorWork?Status
Rachel Joyceprimary authorall editionscalculated
Andreas, MariaÜbersetzersecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed

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Epigraph
Only when the clock stops does time come to life.
—William Faulkner, The Sound and the Fury
Dedication
For my mother and my son, Jo (without an e)
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In 1972, two seconds were added to time.
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Fiction. Literature. HTML:A spellbinding novel that will resonate with readers of Mark Haddon, Louise Erdrich, and John Irving, Perfect tells the story of a young boy who is thrown into the murky, difficult realities of the adult world with far-reaching consequences.
Byron Hemmings wakes to a morning that looks like any other: his school uniform draped over his wooden desk chair, his sister arguing over the breakfast cereal, the click of his mother??s heels as she crosses the kitchen. But when the three of them leave home, driving into a dense summer fog, the morning takes an unmistakable turn. In one terrible moment, something happens, something completely unexpected and at odds with life as Byron understands it. While his mother seems not to have noticed, eleven-year-old Byron understands that from now on nothing can be the same.
 
What happened and who is to blame? Over the days and weeks that follow, Byron??s perfect world is shattered. Unable to trust his parents, he confides in his best friend, James, and together they concoct a plan. . . .
 
As she did in her debut, The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry, Rachel Joyce has imagined bewitching characters who find their ordinary lives unexpectedly thrown into chaos, who learn that there are times when children must become parents to their parents, and who discover that in confronting the hard truths about their pasts, they will forge unexpected relationships that have profound and surprising impacts. Brimming with love, forgiveness, and redemption, Perfect will cement Rachel Joyce??s reputation as one of fiction??s brightest talents.
Praise for Perfect
 
??Touching, eccentric . . . Joyce does an inviting job of setting up these mysterious circumstances, and of drawing Byron??s magical closeness with Diana.???Janet Maslin, The New York Times
 
??Haunting . . . compelling.???Minneapolis Star Tribune
 
??[Joyce] triumphantly returns with Perfect. . . . As Joyce probes the souls of Diana, Byron and Jim, she reveals??slowly and deliberately, as if peeling back a delicate onion skin??the connection between the two stories, creating a poignant, searching tale.???O: The Oprah Magazine
 
??Perfect touches on class, mental illness, and the ways a psyche is formed or broken. It has the tenor of a horror film, and yet at the end, in some kind of contortionist trick, the narrative unfolds into an unexpected burst of redemption. [Verdict:] Buy It.???New York
 
??Joyce??s dark, quiet follow-up to her successful debut, The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry, could easily become a book club favorite. . . . Perfect is the kind of book that blossoms under thoughtful examination, its slow tendencies redeemed by moments of loveliness and insight. However sad, Joyce??s messages??about the limitations of time and control, the failures of adults and the fears of children, and our responsibility for our own imprisonment and freedom??have a gentle ring of truth to them.???The Washington Post
 
??There is a poignancy to Joyce??s narrative that mak

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