Synopsis
1. My names is Chrysalis Moffat. 1.1 I was born in Peru. 1.2 When I was three, I was brought to the United States. 1.3 Here I was adopted by rich white people. 1.4 Insofar as that is possible, I became just like them. Writing the story of her life is not easy for Chrysalis Moffat. In fact it's so complicated that she has to resort to bullet points - but even then she is not sure whether what she has been told is true. Was Peru, for example, really the South American country that her father brought her home from? And was he really working for the CIA on biological warfare - which is what her brother Eddie seems to believe? Unfortunately, her father died when she was ten, taking the truth with him, and her alcoholic mother, Lannie, doesn't seem to have much of a clue. The world is such a confusing place that when Lannie also dies (of complications following liposuction surgery), Chrysalis thinks its safer to stay under her bed.
But then fast-talking, bad brother Eddie returns home to claim the Californian mansion he has inherited and brings with him Ralph the guru, with whom he intends to start a Tibetan School of Miracles, and fleece unsuspecting, credulous Californians of their cash. Ralph isn't really a guru - he's a Scotsman who has spent a bit of time in Tibet - but it seems he might be capable of the odd miracle. He lures Chrysalis from under her bed with a regimen of early morning walks and optimism, and - with a casual reference to his half-sister Denise - uncovers a mind-blowing series of coincidences that link his family to Chrysalis's. Professional gambler Denise, it appears, holds all the cards and is the only one who can unlock the past. First novels rarely come as entertaining, intelligent and playful as this. Sandra Newman has a Tarantino-esque feel for quick-change dialogue, a love of Byzantine plotting worthy of Laurence Sterne and a wicked sense of humour. But beneath the fun and the technical fireworks lie a brilliantly subtle understanding of human nature and our philosophical dilemmas.
From the Back Cover
1. My name is Chrysalis Moffat.
1.1 I was born in Peru
1.2 When I was three, I was brought to the United States.
1.3 Here I was adopted by rich white people.
1.4 Insofar as that is possible, I became just like them.
2. I have no memory of my former life.
Sandra Newman is a star of the UEA creative writing course. She has written a magnificently playful and original novel about four dysfunctional children of the sixties and their attempts to deal with the bizarre coincidences and random chaos of life.
(2 customer reviews)
See all 2 customer reviews...
(
