Fascinating ... Brings new life to the conceit, turning it into an opportunity to interrogate not gender but class ... Takes a sudden turn in its final pages, building toward an ending that’s genuinely moving and redemptive, though not in the way the reader has been expecting. The finale is so good, in fact, that it elevates the entire book, making it one of the year’s most compelling reads.
McElroy spits out similes as a slot machine does coins. Only a few feel counterfeit or dull ... Agile, universal ... Has some bumpy, odd spots — what body doesn’t? — but its naturalness and ease with the most fundamental questions of existence make it a big project knocking around in a small package, portending even bigger projects ahead.
Delightful ... People Collide's Freaky Friday concept covers a deep exploration of marriage, love, and the ways we know one another — and don't — as well as how slippery a sense of self can be when so much of how we navigate the world depends on how it sees us.
Compelling, hilarious, and thought-provoking, this is a fascinating Freaky Friday-like thought-experiment that questions the performance and expectations of gender roles, the body-mind puzzle, how class can define a person’s perspective, and the definition of identity.
Occasionally, the novel seems like it falters—plot points and characters feel somewhat random, and high-tension moments are interrupted before reaching catharsis—but McElroy always manages to throw a new, exciting wrench into the puzzle before the pacing has had time to slow down too much. A creative, well-written exploration of marriage, gender, and desire.
