Dory has not skipped multiple grades as have all of his older siblings. He has not acquired any advanced academic degrees and he has not defended his PhD thesis. He believes he is barely even noticed by anyone, even when he routinely runs away from home to test his theory. The only one who does seem to see him is Denise, the only other person in his class with no friends. Denise, who is known to be chronically depressed, even suicidal at times, and who shuns every other human being’s attention. As Dory works hard to decipher just who he is in the context of his odd, cynical, intellectual family, he learns that one doesn’t need a PhD to be kind or to find justice.
This is a quirky coming-of-age novel that will no doubt wind up on your local indie foreign film screen one day soon. Simultaneously dark and sardonically comical, the story goes where you least expect it to go. And the characters are wonderfully unconventional. Dory himself is so painfully awkward and is so utterly endearing that the reader feels for him from the very first line. Even his siblings, who are narcissistic and socially objectionable, are still quite funny and entertaining. Even Denise, who is depressed, isolated, and cynical, offers her own brand of glib commentary on the world which is often sarcastic.
On the other hand, it is also a quite serious commentary on the emotional crippling of the educational system. While Dory finds himself surrounded by siblings who excel academically, he finds no one is able to mentor him in the area of emotional intelligence. This he has to figure out on his own, and this is his greatest challenge. His siblings are all emotionally suppressed, have no friends and have never learned to express or cope with emotions in any healthy way. Ironically, it seems they look to the youngest of them all – Dory – as an example.
I actually really liked this book and I believe you will hear more about it and its author.
kindread spirits 