Monday, December 23, 2013

The Rosie Project - Book Review


While hanging out on Twitter I've made several friends who enjoy reading and talking about books as much as I do. Calling ourselves "Book Lovers Unite", we've formed a sort of "book lovers anonymous", encouraging each other to read more books from our ever-growing to-read-shelves. This month we had a Christmas Book Exchange. As part of the exchange, Tamara from Traveling with T (a fabulous blog for book lovers) sent me The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion. I was thrilled.

The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion has been on my book radar since I read some early positive reviews. I really wanted to squeeze it into the year.

Professor Don Tillman is a genius geneticists who has the gift to memorize the instructions for mixing cocktails and dance steps. In spite of these talents, Tillman is socially awkward. Extremely rigid in his schedule, Tillman eats the same menu every week.

Nearing forty years old, Tillman realizes that happily married men live longer. Determined to find the perfect wife and to avoid the uncomfortable scenes from his previous dating experience, Tillman creates a questionnaire. Surely, with such direct questions, Tillman will find the woman who doesn't smoke, drink or have weird issues with food.

Tillman doesn't factor in Rosie. She's all wrong for his Wife Project. But Rosie has her own project that is perfect for Tillman. She needs his help to find her real father. Tracking down the DNA of all the men who might have fathered Rosie, Tillman's life is thrown off balance by the beautiful and surprising Rosie.

The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion is delightful fun. Professor Tillman is so likable. There's something to be said about his tight schedule. If he says he'll be there at five o'clock, he's not going to keep you waiting. You might not want to ask him if the jeans you're wearing make your butt look fat, but otherwise, his various talents add up to a rather nice catch.

While predictable, The Rosie Project is worth the fun and subtle humor. Professor Tillman is an unusual but engaging leading man. The plotting and pace are perfect for a quick, enjoyable read. It was completely refreshing and entertaining.

No comments: