I started this book hot on the heels of finishing up a Jodi Picoult - and found the huge contrast in writing style difficult to get to grips with at first. This isn’t just a book that tells a story in simple straightforward English - this book is full of beautiful and at times almost lyrical prose. Here’s an example from early on:

On the outside of their front door Georgia and Bessi had written in chalk ‘26a’, and on the inside ‘G+B’, at eye level, just above the handle. This was the extra dimension. The one above sight, sound, smell, touch and taste where the world multiplied and exploded because it was the sum of two people. Bright was twice as bright. All the colours were extra. Girls with umbrellas skipped across the wallpaper and Georgia and Bessi could hear them laughing.

In simple terms this novel looks into the lives of a family and tells a tale of people who don’t fit, of twins who struggle to decide whether they are half of one, or two separate individuals, an incident that changes the way life is viewed, and of depression and the way it affects a life.

But it’s not a simple novel - Evans weaves a tapestry of colours and events that all come together to reflect on the heartbreaking effects of depression and the effects it has on the individual and the people around them.

I started out rating this book a 3 and felt bad for it - as I’m writing this review I feel perhaps a 4 would be more suitable - but I really struggled with this book - I can see why it won a prize, and on some level I can appreciate it for the masterpiece it is - but I just didn’t *get it* - not in the way it was intended anyway. I think this is a book that needs to be mulled over and perhaps that’s what I must do to fully appreciate it. It’s the kind of book that would be perfectly suited to a Book Club discussion as there are many themes that can be covered. ( )

There's something so interesting about twins, and this book plays on that something without being gimmicky. The characterization is great. I also enjoyed the coming of age aspects of the book. ( )

This is a story of twins growing up in London. The plot is pretty average -- the usual family tensions and the angst of being a teenager. It was interesting enough to keep me reading, though, and got better at towards the end. ( )

http://sewfishee.livejournal.com/2006... ( )