The Language of Others

This was a fascinating study of relationships within a family that has to cope with some fairly common mental health problems. The lead character, Jessica has always struggled to understand the interactions of other people and she doesn't seem to be able to read anything in their eyes. She is aware that others can interpret facial expressions but they seem to baffle her. While she loses herself in her music, her parents, sister, cousins, Aunt, Uncle and eventually husband and son revolve distantly around her. The narration is interesting - in current time Jessica tells her own story, but her early years are told in third person. So we see her as an awkward, uncomunicative child but also hear her interpretation of the world as she sees it now. She has a mental health problem that the author chooses not to name until later in the book - at the same time that Jessica realises why she has been just a little off kilter all her life. It is a positive message; as she makes her way through life, she gradually finds herself more and more able to understand the people around her. Full of fascinating characters and interesting interactions, I highly recommend this book. NB: I listened to the audio book, narrated by Lorraine Coady. The narration was good but on occasion the emphasis seemed a little wrong. 4*

Very interesting (and also enjoyable!) reading, especially if you are interested in how different we all are and hence how this affects how we interact with life and relationships.