Perfect

A Novel

By: Rachel Joyce

Narrated by: Paul Rhys

Length: 11 hrs and 19 mins

Publisher's summary

A spellbinding novel that will resonate with readers of Mark Haddon, Louise Erdrich, and John Irving, Perfect tells the story of a young boy who is thrown into the murky, difficult realities of the adult world with far-reaching consequences.

Byron Hemmings wakes to a morning that looks like any other: his school uniform draped over his wooden desk chair, his sister arguing over the breakfast cereal, the click of his mother's heels as she crosses the kitchen. But when the three of them leave home, driving into a dense summer fog, the morning takes an unmistakable turn. In one terrible moment, something happens, something completely unexpected and at odds with life as Byron understands it.

While his mother seems not to have noticed, eleven-year-old Byron understands that from now on nothing can be the same. What happened and who is to blame? Over the days and weeks that follow, Byron's perfect world is shattered. Unable to trust his parents, he confides in his best friend, James, and together they concoct a plan...

As she did in her debut, The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry, Rachel Joyce has imagined bewitching characters who find their ordinary lives unexpectedly thrown into chaos, who learn that there are times when children must become parents to their parents, and who discover that in confronting the hard truths about their pasts, they will forge unexpected relationships that have profound and surprising impacts. Brimming with love, forgiveness, and redemption, Perfect will cement Rachel Joyce's reputation as one of fiction's brightest talents.

©2013 Rachel Joyce (P)2013 Random House Audio

Not Harold Fry

Rachel Joyce proves herself a word master and creative writer in this novel. She continues exploring the obsessions people harbor, yet this is very different from Harold Fry. That is what makes it so intriguing. There are two parallel stories which can be a little confusing if you aren't paying attention. The stories meld together at the end in a surprising way. The narrator is spot on with his different voices enlivening the story.

Outstanding!

The narration of this audiobook deserves a standing ovation! Characters come alive through accents, modulations, and drama. I felt as though I was watching a play. Excellent!!

Compelling

This is my second Joyce listen. While I like her style and find her stories interesting, Perfect was sometimes difficult to listen to because I could see the train wreck coming. But I was compelled to keep listening - I found I HAD to. I like that she does have a resolution at the end - thankfully. After a break from her, I will listen to another of her books. Cannot say enough about the narrator - outstanding. Over the top!

very good, but it gave me anxiety.

It took me months and months to finish this book. I stayed it last fall, but my father in law's health went south and he ended up moving in with us and then passing away in January. Because of everything that went on, my anxiety levels would shoot through the roof when I tried to listen to this book. So I put it away for a long while. However, I'm very glad I came back and finished it. She's a wonderful author and tells wonderfully human tales. The narrator did a fantastic job as well.

Beautifully Done!

I thoroughly enjoyed the book and the writing style. I was amazed at the consistent and crazy use of metaphor and simile and I was touched by its dark beauty, albeit disturbing at times. There were points when the woven tale slowed down a tad too much, encumbered by descriptive and perhaps unnecessary detail. However that is being picky. Thanks and appreciation go to The author for writing it.

Perfect...

The story is beautiful and tragic, read by wonderful narrator. No saccharin contained here, Perfect is not a fantasy.
What it does is provide glimpses into the life and mind of a lonely soul. A different prospective, definitely worth the time.

A beautifully crafted and written story

I had read Joyce's debut novel and wanted to explore more of her work with Perfect. Reading it was an evocative and emotional journey. The characters and story were rich with detail. Paul Rhys had just the right tone for this piece. I was so impressed with everything about this book and it will stick with me for a long time.

Masterful writing

Ms. Joyce is able to bring you through her writing to the people and places of a small country village in 1972. The narration is clear and voicing of the different characters very varied, making it easy to identify who is talking, especially in the differing accents of the various women characters I love how Ms. Joyce is able to paint with words! She is truly an expert of her craft!

Astounding. A perfect novel!

Like many others I found myself a bit lost about a third of the way through. Critics on the Amazon website urge readers to stay with it. I am so grateful. This book is a great story with lots of activity and numerous characters who are so well drawn that they are easy to remember.

This book is also a deeply serious look at the abstract concepts of guilt, responsibility, alienation and existence. All this is a fascinating story. Well told story.

Oh Wow!

A heads up: it took me a long time to get in to this book. If you’re in need of a quick fiction fix, this might not be the place to start. I spent two-thirds of the book grumbling to myself that as intriguing and unsettling as this story is, it just wasn’t living up to The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry for me. But I’m so thankful I stuck with it – Rachel Joyce delivers in spades. It’s not so much that she gives a clever, tidy wrap-up (though there is a twist near the end), but she creates an utterly complex ending that somehow feels completely familiar. How is it that the history of your life moves along in a zig-zaggy, random, and seemingly unremarkable fashion, but then somewhere along the way it feels as if it was pre-destined all along? This instinctual belief is both incredibly universal and totally flawed – and Rachel Joyce captures it all.

She beautifully renders the earnestness with which children approach the issues of adulthood, and the inherent misunderstandings that arise when these two worlds collide. She heartbreakingly depicts the damage that is caused when children aren’t just loved simply and wholeheartedly. I just can’t stop thinking about this book and reflecting on my own childhood in the context of it. And in the final chapters there is a scene of reconciliation that takes place in a suburban café that feels like it maybe happened in the background as Harold Fry and his entourage marched on by. Where Joyce’s first book contains elements of individual triumph, Perfect simmers with anxiety until reluctantly, gratefully finding peace and forgiveness.

Paul Rhys was a solid choice for narrator, and I think it was probably necessary to choose a man to read, but I didn’t always love his female voices, so I’m pulling one star off for this.