Then Again

This book is surprisingly funny, full of twists and turns and is so realistic that you can basically close your eyes and see exactly what's happening. There are of course, many sexually disturbing images, but it's still one of my favourite newly discovered Canadian Authors!

Elyse Friedman's novel Then Again is one of those all too rare creatures: an impeccably written literary novel that's funny as hell. It's also extremely moving in parts. Friedman's prose has style, punch, and inventiveness. This book is worth reading just for the story of the poodle ("nature's most perfect food," it was invented in 1872 by Otto Van Plotsberg, apparently). But the bigger issues are where this novel is at -- the characters range from the banal to the grotesque, and the dialogue is brilliant. Fans of the smart and the offbeat will dig this rectangle.