City of Lists, The [Paperback]

This is an odd debut, somewhere between The Handmaid's Tale, Brave New World, and 1984. And yet at the same time it's unlike anything I've read before.

This is a dystopian world where thinking is against the law, where individuality is bad, where songs and TV shows are "streamlined" (a.k.a. censored) and where being an unmarried adult seems to be the sin of all sins. It is a quasi-surreal world that really pulls you in with all its little details -- from an alcohol that's like liquid silver to an underground night club where people where clothing that's against regulations. Neeve and Valentine -- being unmarried adults -- live in the Sixth Compound, an almost prison-like environment where their every movement is tracked. It is here they meet and their awkward friendship begins.

The story is told from Neeve's point of view, and it's a very involving first person narrative. Neeve is not your classic hero. She is highly empathetic, overweight (a bad thing in this streamlined world, it seems), and very shy and insecure. As a matter of fact, all the characters are not the kind you'd expect to meet -- Valetine, whilst good-looking, is painfully introverted. And Lol is a little crazy, manipulative, the kind of person you're not sure whether to root for or not. I don't know whether I liked any of them, but I definitely connected with them.

On top of the slightly bizarre cast, the writing style itself is pretty unusual. There is an almost dream-like atmosphere at times, particularly during the flash forwards. Initially I didn't really enjoy the flash forwards, as I found them a little confusing, but they are actually carefully interwoven with the main narrative, so that as you keep reading things begin to click together satisfyingly. And what I enjoyed about the flash forwards was that they were highly detailed snapshots of small moments, so when those moments pass by in "real time" later on, you have a sense of all the emotions behind the scenes as if it were you experiencing them.

There is a quiet desperateness to the story. Everyone is oppressed and regulated, and then here's Lol trying to shove Neeve and Valentine in the completely opposite way whether they like it or not. And Neeve and Valentine let themselves be pushed around -- they are almost passive characters, outwardly. The real struggle is happening on the inside, which is why the book reminded me of The Handmaid's Tale, particularly because of the female perspective which is more uncommon in these types of stories.

I don't want to say too much more because I'm afraid of ruining the story for you, but it's very hard to sum up this book. And maybe that's an indication of the type of novel it is -- unusual and different and thought-provoking.

On a final note, apparently this book is based off of Eckhart Tolle's teachings (to do with contemplation and awareness of consciousness extending beyond the physical self, I think), but knowing nothing whatsoever about the philosophy behind the book didn't impinge my enjoyment of it.

In sum, this is a weird book. Not a bad thing, but it wasn't quite what I was expecting. If you like odd dystopian science fiction stories, you should definitely check it out.

This book is subtle and intriguing. Although it says it's based on Eckhart Tolle's teachings, and other `non-duality' philosophies, it's not in the slightest bit didactic or preachy and I enjoyed for its own sake without any pre-knowledge of non-duality. The novel imagines a future where a sort of `consciousness revolution' has taken place on wide scale in society, only to be stamped out oppressively by the powers-that-be who want to retain the status quo. The book is quite a page-turner that's written in deceptively simple language from the point of view of a very unusual character, Neeve, (I don't think I've ever read a book with such unusual characters in it...) who is an overweight empathic woman who's on the bottom rung of society but whose talents as a `contemplative' start to come to the fore as the novel goes on. Towards the end of the story, another character, Neeve's friend, Valentine, stumbles accidentally into an enlightened state in which he's no longer afraid - just what the authorities have been desperate to prevent from happening. The strength of the novel for me, lies in its vividness - it stayed with me for a long time after I'd read it. Also the appeal of the three odd main characters was great - the reader really feels for them. With the story line itself - whenever I expected one thing to happen, something completely different would occur. When's the sequel?!

This a very well written book for a 1st novel, an expert command at writing tension and drama, you really care for these characters throughout the story. Reminded me a bit of Orwell, conjuring up a very real society in her colourful descriptive narrative, one really gets a feel for the surroundings of the city and where these characters travel in the city, going to and from work or travelling the subway for escapism. One can identify with elements of each character whether it be infatuated love, or trying to break free from conformity. It feels like a labour of love this book and you wont be disappointed.