Saturday, October 12, 2013

The Rosie Project

This lovely little romance novel, The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion, was a pleasure to read. I had seen a view on the ABC's Book Club, and knew I had to read this Aussie novel that had become so popular.



From Good Reads: "Narrator Don Tillman 39, Melbourne genetics prof and Gregory Peck lookalike, sets a 16-page questionnaire The Wife Project to find a non-smoker, non-drinker ideal match. But Rosie and her Father Projectsupersede. The spontaneous always-late smoker-drinker wants to find her biological father. She resets his clock, throws off his schedule, and turns his life topsy-turvy."
   What makes this novel unique and endearing it the main character, Don. He is clearly autistic, and his friends are trying to get him to self-diagnose by dropping hints. But, although he is very realistic about his lack of social abilities, he does not draw the link between the symptoms of Aspergers syndrome and himself. 
   He doesn't think that he feels like others do, and he's probably right, but that doesn't mean that he doesn't feel at all. So he comes to realise that he does feel love, which is just the most heart-warming moment that I have read in a book for a long time. 
    Typical romance, with a twist. Really enjoyable.