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Beautyland
From the acclaimed author of Parakeet, Marie-Helene Bertino’s Beautyland is a wise, tender novel about a woman who doesn't feel at home on Earth.
At the moment when Voyager 1 is launched into space carrying its famous golden record, a baby of unusual perception is born to a single mother in Philadelphia. Adina Giorno is tiny and jaundiced, but she reaches for warmth and light. As a child, she recognizes that she is different: She possesses knowledge of a faraway planet. The arrival of a fax machine enables her to contact her extraterrestrial relatives, beings who have sent her to report on the oddities of Earthlings.
For years, as she moves through the world and makes a life for herself among humans, she dispatches transmissions on the terrors and surprising joys of their existence. Then, at a precarious moment, a beloved friend urges Adina to share her messages with the world. Is there a chance she is not alone?
Marie-Helene Bertino’s Beautyland is a novel of startling originality about the fragility and resilience of life on our Earth and in our universe. It is a remarkable evocation of the feeling of being in exile at home, and it introduces a gentle, unforgettable alien for our times.
At the moment when Voyager 1 is launched into space carrying its famous golden record, a baby of unusual perception is born to a single mother in Philadelphia. Adina Giorno is tiny and jaundiced, but she reaches for warmth and light. As a child, she recognizes that she is different: She possesses knowledge of a faraway planet. The arrival of a fax machine enables her to contact her extraterrestrial relatives, beings who have sent her to report on the oddities of Earthlings.
For years, as she moves through the world and makes a life for herself among humans, she dispatches transmissions on the terrors and surprising joys of their existence. Then, at a precarious moment, a beloved friend urges Adina to share her messages with the world. Is there a chance she is not alone?
Marie-Helene Bertino’s Beautyland is a novel of startling originality about the fragility and resilience of life on our Earth and in our universe. It is a remarkable evocation of the feeling of being in exile at home, and it introduces a gentle, unforgettable alien for our times.
336 pages, Hardcover
First published January 16, 2024
About the author
Marie-Helene Bertino
12 books603 followersMarie-Helene Bertino was born and raised in Philadelphia. She is the author of the novels Beautyland (Best Books of 2024 (So Far) NYTimes, TIME Magazine, Esquire, Elle)), Parakeet (NYTimes Editor's Choice) and 2 a.m. at The Cat's Pajamas, and the short story collection Safe as Houses. Awards include The O. Henry Prize, The Pushcart Prize, The Iowa Short Fiction Award, The Mississippi Review Prize, The Center for Fiction NYC Emerging Writers Fellowship and The Frank O'Connor International Short Story Fellowship in Cork, Ireland. Her work has appeared in The New York Times, Tin House, Electric Literature, Granta, Guernica, BOMB, among many others. She is the recipient of fellowships from The MacDowell Colony, Hedgebrook Writers Colony, The Center For Fiction NYC, and Sewanee Writers Conference, where she was the Walter E. Dakin fellow. In June 2021, "Disrupting Realism," an online master class and panel she designed to make graduate level resources available at no charge, was attended by 1,300 people. She has taught in the Creative Writing programs of NYU, The New School, and Institute for American Indian Arts. She currently teaches in the Creative Writing Department at Yale University. More info: www.mariehelenebertino.com
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,757 reviews
January 23, 2024
6 out of 5 stars. this shit has me fucked all the way up. sobbing. bye.
March 5, 2024
A mote of dust suspended in a sunbeam
Move along sci-fi readers, nothing to see here: Beautyland is straight up literary fiction. The ‘aliens communicate via fax machine’ hook is not a plot engine, it’s an entry point to the human experience. A slightly aslant frame around one woman’s relatively uneventful life, taking in the beauty and wonder and cruelty and sadness and absurdity of it all. ‘Beautyland’ refers to a discount cosmetic supply store, but it could be an alternative moniker for Earth.
Carl Sagan’s line about a mote of dust refers to Pale Blue Dot, a famous photograph taken in 1990 by the Voyager 1 space probe. In it, Earth appears as a tiny speck, 6 billion kilometres in the distance. The mental shift in perspective—a humbling/miraculous insignificance/significance—induced in the viewer is startling.
In Beautyland, we follow the Earth life of Adina Giorno, who believes herself to be an alien reporting back to unseen ‘superiors’. It’s a perspective shift that gives this novel an excuse to be relentlessly observational:
[Speaking of fifteen years in New York… there’s something wonky about this book’s timeline (1977 to 2020, give or take). I wish my brain didn’t fixate on these things, but given the space alien theme, I thought maybe the inconsistencies were clues to some kind of plot twist. In the end, they were never explained and I can only assume they are just errors.]
It’s hard to articulate exactly why Beautyland kept me reading late into the night. Its tone is in a similar vein to Rufi Thorpe, Vendela Vida, and Kevin Wilson—sort of quirky-but-grounded—and I would highly recommend it to fans of those authors. Beautyland is an engrossing, compelling, life-affirming read. 4.5 stars.
Move along sci-fi readers, nothing to see here: Beautyland is straight up literary fiction. The ‘aliens communicate via fax machine’ hook is not a plot engine, it’s an entry point to the human experience. A slightly aslant frame around one woman’s relatively uneventful life, taking in the beauty and wonder and cruelty and sadness and absurdity of it all. ‘Beautyland’ refers to a discount cosmetic supply store, but it could be an alternative moniker for Earth.
Carl Sagan’s line about a mote of dust refers to Pale Blue Dot, a famous photograph taken in 1990 by the Voyager 1 space probe. In it, Earth appears as a tiny speck, 6 billion kilometres in the distance. The mental shift in perspective—a humbling/miraculous insignificance/significance—induced in the viewer is startling.
In Beautyland, we follow the Earth life of Adina Giorno, who believes herself to be an alien reporting back to unseen ‘superiors’. It’s a perspective shift that gives this novel an excuse to be relentlessly observational:
‘The ego of the human male is by far the most dangerous aspect of human society. THIS HAS BEEN WELL-DOCUMENTED.’
‘Upon encountering real problems, human beings compare their lives to riding a roller coaster, even though they invented roller coasters to be fun things to do on their days off.’
‘The moment of silence under an overpass when driving in a storm.’
‘When you reach fifteen years living in New York... they surgically replace your heart with a bagel.’
[Speaking of fifteen years in New York… there’s something wonky about this book’s timeline (1977 to 2020, give or take). I wish my brain didn’t fixate on these things, but given the space alien theme, I thought maybe the inconsistencies were clues to some kind of plot twist. In the end, they were never explained and I can only assume they are just errors.]
It’s hard to articulate exactly why Beautyland kept me reading late into the night. Its tone is in a similar vein to Rufi Thorpe, Vendela Vida, and Kevin Wilson—sort of quirky-but-grounded—and I would highly recommend it to fans of those authors. Beautyland is an engrossing, compelling, life-affirming read. 4.5 stars.
Read
January 15, 2024For fellow lovers of weird, philosophical, formally interesting coming-of-age stories!!
This book felt like a breath of fresh air in its warmth and tenderness. An extraterrestrial girl named Adina is born on Earth and grows up, trying to make sense of what it means to be human, in both its joy and darkness, from birth to death. Along the way, she communicates her witty and peculiar observations via fax machine to her ancestors on a distant planet. Adina’s self-discovery will make you feel grateful to be alive and occupying space with others, reminding you of the beauty in the mundane. Bertino has crafted one of my favorite characters in recent memory. This is an Adina stan account now!!!!
The novel has a fragmentary structure, which feels like the most appropriate way to tell this story; the novel gallops through time, parsing through bits of Adina’s life to explore her conception of loneliness and otherness. The result is wise, open-hearted, quietly sad, and earnest. Bertino crafts this novel with so much care; the novel is a fairly quick read, but I spent a week with it, savoring its copious ideas and construction.
One of my favorite passages in the novel is a quiet one that I feel captures the heart of the book: “Adina stares into the warm windows of passing houses. Every so often, she glimpses a moment of a stranger’s life. A woman holding a pot, crossing to a table. A man watering a plant. Every one of them has a mother. At the end of a long birthday week, salt air weary, the simple thought is miraculous.”
Read if you liked: The Idiot by Elif Batuman, How Should a Person Be? by Sheila Heti, No One is Talking About This by Patricia Lockwood
This book felt like a breath of fresh air in its warmth and tenderness. An extraterrestrial girl named Adina is born on Earth and grows up, trying to make sense of what it means to be human, in both its joy and darkness, from birth to death. Along the way, she communicates her witty and peculiar observations via fax machine to her ancestors on a distant planet. Adina’s self-discovery will make you feel grateful to be alive and occupying space with others, reminding you of the beauty in the mundane. Bertino has crafted one of my favorite characters in recent memory. This is an Adina stan account now!!!!
The novel has a fragmentary structure, which feels like the most appropriate way to tell this story; the novel gallops through time, parsing through bits of Adina’s life to explore her conception of loneliness and otherness. The result is wise, open-hearted, quietly sad, and earnest. Bertino crafts this novel with so much care; the novel is a fairly quick read, but I spent a week with it, savoring its copious ideas and construction.
One of my favorite passages in the novel is a quiet one that I feel captures the heart of the book: “Adina stares into the warm windows of passing houses. Every so often, she glimpses a moment of a stranger’s life. A woman holding a pot, crossing to a table. A man watering a plant. Every one of them has a mother. At the end of a long birthday week, salt air weary, the simple thought is miraculous.”
Read if you liked: The Idiot by Elif Batuman, How Should a Person Be? by Sheila Heti, No One is Talking About This by Patricia Lockwood
February 1, 2024
Bertino skillfully dissects the alien nature of growing up and the complexities of human existence with dry wit, deadpan observational comedy, and incisive insights into life’s little absurdities.
This is a rare book where the concept and execution are both pitch perfect. Even if you dropped the fact that the main character is (oh by the way) an alien, this would still be a wonderful coming of age story. The alien angle is just gravy that Bertino plays with to great (tragi)comedic effect. Her writing is heartfelt, deeply funny, and without a whiff of cynicism about it. I loved this and can’t recommend it highly enough.
My thanks to the public library for providing me with a post-release copy in exchange for a pinky promise that I’ll give it back within 14 days. (I did).
See this review and others at The Speculative Shelf and follow @specshelf on Twitter and @thespeculativeshelf on Instagram.
This is a rare book where the concept and execution are both pitch perfect. Even if you dropped the fact that the main character is (oh by the way) an alien, this would still be a wonderful coming of age story. The alien angle is just gravy that Bertino plays with to great (tragi)comedic effect. Her writing is heartfelt, deeply funny, and without a whiff of cynicism about it. I loved this and can’t recommend it highly enough.
My thanks to the public library for providing me with a post-release copy in exchange for a pinky promise that I’ll give it back within 14 days. (I did).
See this review and others at The Speculative Shelf and follow @specshelf on Twitter and @thespeculativeshelf on Instagram.
December 10, 2023
"Endings are hard."
This hit me in just the right way. We see Adina's life, an alien sent to study humans, through vignettes and the observations she faxes back to her home planet. To some of you, that's going to be an immediate yes. To the rest I say: trust Bertino.
This is such a quiet and beautiful novel about grief, longing, and belonging. It's about the mundaneness and beauty of humanity. It's also very specifically about being a bit lonely, a bit weird, and definitely having misophonia. 🙋🏼♀️ Let's just say, my Gen X heart is very attached to Adina.
For Hilary Leichter and How To With John Wilson fans. If E.T. was the first movie you saw in the theater and you miss Carl Sagan. If you pronounce it as 'wooder'. If you enjoy reading about joy and heartache. If you don't feel at home.
This hit me in just the right way. We see Adina's life, an alien sent to study humans, through vignettes and the observations she faxes back to her home planet. To some of you, that's going to be an immediate yes. To the rest I say: trust Bertino.
This is such a quiet and beautiful novel about grief, longing, and belonging. It's about the mundaneness and beauty of humanity. It's also very specifically about being a bit lonely, a bit weird, and definitely having misophonia. 🙋🏼♀️ Let's just say, my Gen X heart is very attached to Adina.
For Hilary Leichter and How To With John Wilson fans. If E.T. was the first movie you saw in the theater and you miss Carl Sagan. If you pronounce it as 'wooder'. If you enjoy reading about joy and heartache. If you don't feel at home.
January 7, 2024
It looks like I'm going to be an outlier on this one... it was a very well-written book, it was entertaining and held my interest throughout. I liked the characters, I enjoyed the plot, it was all fine. But my main takeaway was that it was just... generic. A coming of age story about a girl who leaves her small town and goes to New York. The attempt to create a hook with the alien angle fell completely flat to me. It read like a novelized version of those "Strange World" comics by Nathan W Pyle with just a touch of YouTuber Ryan George explaining everyday activities like camping or birthdays in an unconventional way. "Boy these humans sure are strange, aren't they?" I do love both those things, and I didn't hate it in the book, it just wasn't enough to pull the novel to any real heights.
Grateful to Netgalley for the advanced audio copy!
Grateful to Netgalley for the advanced audio copy!
February 6, 2024
Adina was born to a mother in Philadelphia but she’s not human. Adina was sent to earth as a newborn in order to report her observations back to her home planet via fax machine. We follow Adina as she grows up, meets friends, struggles to fit in, and deals with heartbreaks.
Despite the story being about an alien, this is no science fiction novel. Instead it’s a poignant, coming of age tale about the human experience written with a lot of heart. Beautyland is also deeply funny and filled with humorous philosophical musings such as, why does that one Anthropologie model always make such pained expressions?
Following Adina growing up in the 80s made me super nostalgic. I adored Adina and could have followed her for a thousand pages! This story is truly one of the best books I’ve read in the longest time and will definitely be on my list of top reads of the year.
I listened to the audiobook version which was narrated by Andi Arndt. If you do decide to read Beautyland, I highly recommend this format!
Beautyland by Marie-Helene Bertino was published on January 15 so it is available now! Many thanks to Libro FM, Dreamscape Media, and FSG Books for the gifted copy🩷
Despite the story being about an alien, this is no science fiction novel. Instead it’s a poignant, coming of age tale about the human experience written with a lot of heart. Beautyland is also deeply funny and filled with humorous philosophical musings such as, why does that one Anthropologie model always make such pained expressions?
Following Adina growing up in the 80s made me super nostalgic. I adored Adina and could have followed her for a thousand pages! This story is truly one of the best books I’ve read in the longest time and will definitely be on my list of top reads of the year.
I listened to the audiobook version which was narrated by Andi Arndt. If you do decide to read Beautyland, I highly recommend this format!
Beautyland by Marie-Helene Bertino was published on January 15 so it is available now! Many thanks to Libro FM, Dreamscape Media, and FSG Books for the gifted copy🩷
June 18, 2024
READING VLOG
Major thanks to NetGalley and FSG for an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest thoughts:
Borders on twee and that indie-feel from the 2008's, but once you get into the swing of an alien girl sent to earth to fax back the going-ons of life to her homeland, you realize it's in Bertino's wry eye that you understand who we are and the way we act. Inventive. Fresh. A great sense of renewal. It sharpens its focus on humanity and, done brilliantly, on girlhood.
"𝘓𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘴𝘵 𝘩𝘶𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘴, 𝘴𝘩𝘦’𝘥 𝘣𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘢 𝘩𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘣𝘰𝘥𝘺, 𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘧𝘦𝘳𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘳𝘦𝘱𝘦𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘢𝘮𝘦 𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘵𝘦𝘴. 𝘛𝘰 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘤𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘸𝘪𝘴𝘩 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘩𝘢𝘥 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘢 𝘧𝘦𝘸 𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘳𝘰𝘢𝘥𝘴—𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘣𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘩𝘶𝘮𝘢𝘯? 𝘖𝘯𝘦 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦 𝘴𝘱𝘢𝘯 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘰𝘰 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘳𝘺 𝘵𝘰 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘳𝘺 𝘵𝘰 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦, 𝘥𝘰 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘴 𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘺 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘴 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘯."
It's also about grief and grieving (a very interesting surprise given I'd just come out of Akbar's Martyr!, who was one of the early readers for this book), friendship, and again, I must mention, girlhood, because this one is for the girls!!!
"𝘔𝘢𝘺𝘣𝘦 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘤𝘦𝘦𝘥 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘢𝘴𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘯𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘩𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘪𝘯 𝘴𝘱𝘢𝘤𝘦, 𝘢 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘰𝘥 𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘢 𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘺𝘦𝘵 𝘸𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘯. 𝘔𝘢𝘺𝘣𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘪𝘳𝘤𝘶𝘮𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘴 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘣𝘦𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘮. 𝘚𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘥 𝘢𝘭𝘸𝘢𝘺𝘴 𝘧𝘦𝘭𝘵 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘸𝘢𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘤𝘩 𝘶𝘱, 𝘢𝘧𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘭𝘭, 𝘢𝘴 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘤𝘤𝘳𝘶𝘦𝘥 𝘯𝘰𝘵𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘭𝘰𝘴𝘵 𝘩𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘢𝘧𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘩𝘰𝘮𝘦."
We're all a bit alien. We're all completely human. We are not alone in what ostracizes us, though we may feel that way. Because when you get down to it, there's a resilience in our species that will always overcome the worsts, to prove that there is greater good in the world.
"𝘚𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘈𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘯, 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘭𝘺 𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘥. 𝘈𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘯, 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘳𝘦𝘮𝘰𝘵𝘦. 𝘏𝘶𝘮𝘢𝘯, 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘯𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘥𝘮𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘳𝘦𝘮𝘰𝘵𝘦 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘦𝘭𝘵."
Bertino hits home with all emotional swells that it began hard to read the last few portions because my eyes started to blur. It was then I realized I was crying. Crying! Bertino got me good. And she will do the same for you.
Major thanks to NetGalley and FSG for an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest thoughts:
Borders on twee and that indie-feel from the 2008's, but once you get into the swing of an alien girl sent to earth to fax back the going-ons of life to her homeland, you realize it's in Bertino's wry eye that you understand who we are and the way we act. Inventive. Fresh. A great sense of renewal. It sharpens its focus on humanity and, done brilliantly, on girlhood.
"𝘓𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘴𝘵 𝘩𝘶𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘴, 𝘴𝘩𝘦’𝘥 𝘣𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘢 𝘩𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘣𝘰𝘥𝘺, 𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘧𝘦𝘳𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘳𝘦𝘱𝘦𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘢𝘮𝘦 𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘵𝘦𝘴. 𝘛𝘰 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘤𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘸𝘪𝘴𝘩 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘩𝘢𝘥 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘢 𝘧𝘦𝘸 𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘳𝘰𝘢𝘥𝘴—𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘣𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘩𝘶𝘮𝘢𝘯? 𝘖𝘯𝘦 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦 𝘴𝘱𝘢𝘯 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘰𝘰 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘳𝘺 𝘵𝘰 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘳𝘺 𝘵𝘰 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦, 𝘥𝘰 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘴 𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘺 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘴 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘯."
It's also about grief and grieving (a very interesting surprise given I'd just come out of Akbar's Martyr!, who was one of the early readers for this book), friendship, and again, I must mention, girlhood, because this one is for the girls!!!
"𝘔𝘢𝘺𝘣𝘦 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘤𝘦𝘦𝘥 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘢𝘴𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘯𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘩𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘪𝘯 𝘴𝘱𝘢𝘤𝘦, 𝘢 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘰𝘥 𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘢 𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘺𝘦𝘵 𝘸𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘯. 𝘔𝘢𝘺𝘣𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘪𝘳𝘤𝘶𝘮𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘴 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘣𝘦𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘮. 𝘚𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘥 𝘢𝘭𝘸𝘢𝘺𝘴 𝘧𝘦𝘭𝘵 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘸𝘢𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘤𝘩 𝘶𝘱, 𝘢𝘧𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘭𝘭, 𝘢𝘴 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘤𝘤𝘳𝘶𝘦𝘥 𝘯𝘰𝘵𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘭𝘰𝘴𝘵 𝘩𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘢𝘧𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘩𝘰𝘮𝘦."
We're all a bit alien. We're all completely human. We are not alone in what ostracizes us, though we may feel that way. Because when you get down to it, there's a resilience in our species that will always overcome the worsts, to prove that there is greater good in the world.
"𝘚𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘈𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘯, 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘭𝘺 𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘥. 𝘈𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘯, 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘳𝘦𝘮𝘰𝘵𝘦. 𝘏𝘶𝘮𝘢𝘯, 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘯𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘥𝘮𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘳𝘦𝘮𝘰𝘵𝘦 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘦𝘭𝘵."
Bertino hits home with all emotional swells that it began hard to read the last few portions because my eyes started to blur. It was then I realized I was crying. Crying! Bertino got me good. And she will do the same for you.
August 24, 2023
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the advanced reader copy
I requested this novel because I thought it might fall into that sweet spot between literary and science fiction, and it kind of does? I think fans of a more fragmented narrative style will find a lot to love here, but those hoping for a truly alien-alien story might want to look elsewhere.
Having decided years ago that I had read enough bildungsroman novels for one lifetime, I almost set this one aside, however I'm glad I stuck with it. I fell in love with Adina for her humour and how she navigated a world she struggled to connect with, from childhood into adulthood. It's these aspects that make the former bookseller in me want to tell all the fans of Convenience Store Woman to check this one out.
I requested this novel because I thought it might fall into that sweet spot between literary and science fiction, and it kind of does? I think fans of a more fragmented narrative style will find a lot to love here, but those hoping for a truly alien-alien story might want to look elsewhere.
Having decided years ago that I had read enough bildungsroman novels for one lifetime, I almost set this one aside, however I'm glad I stuck with it. I fell in love with Adina for her humour and how she navigated a world she struggled to connect with, from childhood into adulthood. It's these aspects that make the former bookseller in me want to tell all the fans of Convenience Store Woman to check this one out.
"Voyager 1 spacecraft launches in Florida, containing a copper-plated phonograph record of sounds intended to explain human life to intelligent extraterrestrials.......The astronomers hoped to include the Beatles’“Here Comes the Sun,” but Columbia Records asked for too much money. It’s hard to make human beings believe in things."
August 7, 2024
I can’t even begin to tell you how much this book resonated with me. Chock full of symbolism in every nook and cranny. It was therapeutic, cathartic, beautifully written, original, and seamless. There’s parts that felt like science fiction and parts that felt that general fiction. I loved this. I’ve read a lofty amount of books this year and this is in my top 3 without any doubt. Believe the hype on this especially if you love symbolism and subtext. Blown away! Truly!! On my way to a beloved indie bookstore to own a hard copy.
September 1, 2024
A stunner. Quirky, poignant, magical, heartbreaking - I loved it.
January 28, 2024
Oof! I have to be more careful about what I read. And also, did I read the same novel as everyone else?
This novel was so heavy, it threatened to drag me down into despair. I was already sinking a bit this week, and listening to this book about the pointlessness of human existence didn’t exactly lift me up.
It helped that the writing was detached to the point of almost clinical as Adina, who believes she is sent to Earth to study humans, catalogues the endless banality and pettiness of people. It’s so bad that eventually she begs her “superiors”, via fax machine, to “please, please come get me. I’m done done done”
I kept waiting for the joy to come. I spent 97% of the book feeling no emotion except hopelessness, only to sob for about three pages and then the story came to an abrupt end.
This novel was so heavy, it threatened to drag me down into despair. I was already sinking a bit this week, and listening to this book about the pointlessness of human existence didn’t exactly lift me up.
It helped that the writing was detached to the point of almost clinical as Adina, who believes she is sent to Earth to study humans, catalogues the endless banality and pettiness of people. It’s so bad that eventually she begs her “superiors”, via fax machine, to “please, please come get me. I’m done done done”
I kept waiting for the joy to come. I spent 97% of the book feeling no emotion except hopelessness, only to sob for about three pages and then the story came to an abrupt end.
January 24, 2024
2.5
Could've gone further/harder in every way. This is a standard coming-of-age narrative masquerading as something more because of its half-baked sci-fi-isms.
Could've gone further/harder in every way. This is a standard coming-of-age narrative masquerading as something more because of its half-baked sci-fi-isms.
February 8, 2024
Adina isn’t the kind of person who jumps into your mind when you first hear the word “alien.” By the time she reaches her teens, she is an underweight, bucktoothed, near-sighted extraterrestrial with an aversion to mouth noises.
But indeed, she is an alien born to a single mother in Philadelphia, from a faraway place. (Any similarities to the Jesus story are, I suspect, intentional). She is wholly of and not of Earth. Her mission is to communicate with her extraterrestrial superiors by fax. Her own planet, Cricket Rice, is dying, and she is asked to report to them whether the planet Earth is hospitable.
In ways, Adina is not unlike any person who feels different and apart from those who seem “normal” – people like the popular J girls – Janae, Joy, Jen, Jiselle, and the other Jen. She is far more sensitive and as an alien, she views the world with fresh and innocent eyes. She faxes interplanetary reflections like, “Human beings don’t like when other human beings are happy.” Or “Human beings fetishize no organ more than the heart”. Or more profoundly, “Every human dies. But the bad news is that every day they act like they don’t know they’re alive.”
But eventually, she realizes that to do her job correctly, she must get close to human beings. By doing so, she begins to learn that human life is quick, and human life spans do not give us time to feel temporally in proportion. As she begins to understand the quirkiness – and sometimes, the blessings – of being human. When a friend urges her to share her message with the world, she complies.
I expected great things from Marie-Helene Bertino after reading her remarkable debut book, Parakeet. Beautyland is a very different book, but it is equally stunning in its ability to delve into what it means to be alien – in reality, and as a kind of allegory for seeing things in a different way. I love this book and give a big thanks to Farrar, Straus and Giroux for sending me an early copy in exchange for an honest review.
But indeed, she is an alien born to a single mother in Philadelphia, from a faraway place. (Any similarities to the Jesus story are, I suspect, intentional). She is wholly of and not of Earth. Her mission is to communicate with her extraterrestrial superiors by fax. Her own planet, Cricket Rice, is dying, and she is asked to report to them whether the planet Earth is hospitable.
In ways, Adina is not unlike any person who feels different and apart from those who seem “normal” – people like the popular J girls – Janae, Joy, Jen, Jiselle, and the other Jen. She is far more sensitive and as an alien, she views the world with fresh and innocent eyes. She faxes interplanetary reflections like, “Human beings don’t like when other human beings are happy.” Or “Human beings fetishize no organ more than the heart”. Or more profoundly, “Every human dies. But the bad news is that every day they act like they don’t know they’re alive.”
But eventually, she realizes that to do her job correctly, she must get close to human beings. By doing so, she begins to learn that human life is quick, and human life spans do not give us time to feel temporally in proportion. As she begins to understand the quirkiness – and sometimes, the blessings – of being human. When a friend urges her to share her message with the world, she complies.
I expected great things from Marie-Helene Bertino after reading her remarkable debut book, Parakeet. Beautyland is a very different book, but it is equally stunning in its ability to delve into what it means to be alien – in reality, and as a kind of allegory for seeing things in a different way. I love this book and give a big thanks to Farrar, Straus and Giroux for sending me an early copy in exchange for an honest review.
February 18, 2024
The novel showcases Adina Giorno, who is born to parents living in Philadelphia. Her birth is a dramatic one. Her mother almost dies and sees herself as wanting to move towards a bright light. Adina is different from the day she is born. We soon learn that she is an alien sent from a distant planet. Her mission is to report to her superiors on how humans think and behave. Adina communicates with them via a fax machine in the bedroom. It is an interesting premise.
I had a mixed reaction to the book. Some of the writing was fresh and original, with droll humor. I loved how Adina's mother was portrayed, but was frustrated with Adina's character, mostly when she was an adult. She didn't quite gel for me. Many of her faxes to her superiors were inane, in contrast to her intelligence (even with making allowances for her human age). And, as the book proceeded, her superiors' responses stopped. Adina was faxing her thoughts into a void.
Adina is portrayed as being on the autism spectrum. Themes include feeling different, alienation and loneliness.
The novel looks at Adina's evolution from childhood to up through her early 40's. We also get to know her mother, best friend Toni, Toni's brother, and eventually, Adina's boyfriend. I found myself preferring scenes with these characters, and also, the scenes with Adina as a child and teen.
Additional Note: There is a certain similarity to Agatha of Little Neon.
Content Warning: Cancer
I had a mixed reaction to the book. Some of the writing was fresh and original, with droll humor. I loved how Adina's mother was portrayed, but was frustrated with Adina's character, mostly when she was an adult. She didn't quite gel for me. Many of her faxes to her superiors were inane, in contrast to her intelligence (even with making allowances for her human age). And, as the book proceeded, her superiors' responses stopped. Adina was faxing her thoughts into a void.
Adina is portrayed as being on the autism spectrum. Themes include feeling different, alienation and loneliness.
The novel looks at Adina's evolution from childhood to up through her early 40's. We also get to know her mother, best friend Toni, Toni's brother, and eventually, Adina's boyfriend. I found myself preferring scenes with these characters, and also, the scenes with Adina as a child and teen.
Additional Note: There is a certain similarity to Agatha of Little Neon.
Content Warning: Cancer
June 25, 2024
amy book
January 28, 2024
Gosh, she's done it again! Marie-Helene Bertino's previous novel "Parakeet" was released in the depths of summer 2020, when authors couldn't go on book tours to promote their novels and we all sat through a lot of Zoom interviews. It was total serendipity that I read an early 2021 Lithub interview with Ted Dodson wherein the interviewer asked "What book from the past year would you like to give a shout-out to?" and he mentioned Parakeet (really cute interview that I recommend reading - disclaimer: Ted is MHB's partner). Needless to say I rushed out to purchase Parakeet and was absolutely wowed, leading me to pick up this book for several bookish friends and continue recommending it just about anytime I was prompted for a suggestion.
It's with that unbridled enthusiasm for the author that I learned Beautyland was coming soon (January 2024) and I was lucky enough to read an ARC thanks to NetGalley and Farrar Straus & Giroux.
Beautyland is such a warm and loamy novel with big heart. The protagonist Adina feels everything so deeply, just like the most sensitive people, despite being an alien sent by her superiors to report on the human condition. In addition to being tender, Adina is also funny in her observations: "When it was time to decide the official food of movie-watching, human beings did not go for fig Newtons or caramel, foods that are silent, but popcorn, the loudest sound on earth" or "Why are there two words (thaw and dethaw) for what you do to a frozen chicken and only one for missing your best friend?"
She's keenly aware of how she needs to lie low to fit in, for pop culture has showed her "what humans do to extraterrestrials in film and television. Americans, especially those who live in suburbs, cannot be trusted," citing E.T., Close Encounters Of The Third Kind, Small Wonder and ALF. Adina is a child of the 1980s, after all!
We follow Adina through her school years as she learns how to be a teenager with its cliques and betrayals, an adult who holds down a job, a woman who experiences love and loss. I was not ready for the book to end. There's a tenderness to the way Adina moves through life and observes what many of us chugging along take for granted or don't even remark on. I'm so excited for January 2024 when I can pick up a hard copy of Beautyland and go through the rollercoaster or laughter and tears all over again. Simply one of my top reads in recent memory!
It's with that unbridled enthusiasm for the author that I learned Beautyland was coming soon (January 2024) and I was lucky enough to read an ARC thanks to NetGalley and Farrar Straus & Giroux.
Beautyland is such a warm and loamy novel with big heart. The protagonist Adina feels everything so deeply, just like the most sensitive people, despite being an alien sent by her superiors to report on the human condition. In addition to being tender, Adina is also funny in her observations: "When it was time to decide the official food of movie-watching, human beings did not go for fig Newtons or caramel, foods that are silent, but popcorn, the loudest sound on earth" or "Why are there two words (thaw and dethaw) for what you do to a frozen chicken and only one for missing your best friend?"
She's keenly aware of how she needs to lie low to fit in, for pop culture has showed her "what humans do to extraterrestrials in film and television. Americans, especially those who live in suburbs, cannot be trusted," citing E.T., Close Encounters Of The Third Kind, Small Wonder and ALF. Adina is a child of the 1980s, after all!
We follow Adina through her school years as she learns how to be a teenager with its cliques and betrayals, an adult who holds down a job, a woman who experiences love and loss. I was not ready for the book to end. There's a tenderness to the way Adina moves through life and observes what many of us chugging along take for granted or don't even remark on. I'm so excited for January 2024 when I can pick up a hard copy of Beautyland and go through the rollercoaster or laughter and tears all over again. Simply one of my top reads in recent memory!
June 19, 2024
4.5 stars
Born when the NASA space probe, Voyager 1, launched in September 1977, Adina Giorno was welcomed into this world through the trauma and pain of birth. Her Earth mother almost died during delivery, and Adina is small and jaundiced. By the time Voyager 1 has entered the asteroid belt, both mother and baby have recovered and are at home. By 1983, Adina, now aware she is an alien sent to observe life on Earth to see if it is habitable and suitable for celestial immigrants, has been activated and begins sending messages of her examinations via a fax machine.
An interesting aspect of Adina, and the way Bertino wrote the novel, is directly bumping up against humans’ desires for answers and categories. Is Adina an alien? Is Adina just a woman who suffers from delusions, misinterpreting her otherness for this idea she concocted when she was a kid? Is she actually communicating with her superiors, a multi-soul being beyond Earth? Does it matter? If you are looking for absolutes, look elsewhere, but if you can let go of that and glide along like a trip on a lazy river, there is grace to be found here.
Bertino adopted an empyreal third-person narration, characterized by its complete observation and distant tone, yet she managed to infuse it with a sense of intimacy and warmth. It’s easy to find the beauty in the fantastic, the miracles, the extraordinary. It’s so much harder to constantly see the beauty in the mundane, the everyday, the expected. But Bertino does just that by wielding the lens of the narrator, Adina. Through Adina's continued exploration of the people around her and, importantly, of herself, Bertino reminds us that if you can find wonder in the mundane, you’ve found Beautyland.
Audiobook, as narrated by Andi Arndt: Arndt did a phenomenal job of handling the balance between the monotonous, detached observations and the warmth expressed in their underlying themes.
Born when the NASA space probe, Voyager 1, launched in September 1977, Adina Giorno was welcomed into this world through the trauma and pain of birth. Her Earth mother almost died during delivery, and Adina is small and jaundiced. By the time Voyager 1 has entered the asteroid belt, both mother and baby have recovered and are at home. By 1983, Adina, now aware she is an alien sent to observe life on Earth to see if it is habitable and suitable for celestial immigrants, has been activated and begins sending messages of her examinations via a fax machine.
An interesting aspect of Adina, and the way Bertino wrote the novel, is directly bumping up against humans’ desires for answers and categories. Is Adina an alien? Is Adina just a woman who suffers from delusions, misinterpreting her otherness for this idea she concocted when she was a kid? Is she actually communicating with her superiors, a multi-soul being beyond Earth? Does it matter? If you are looking for absolutes, look elsewhere, but if you can let go of that and glide along like a trip on a lazy river, there is grace to be found here.
Bertino adopted an empyreal third-person narration, characterized by its complete observation and distant tone, yet she managed to infuse it with a sense of intimacy and warmth. It’s easy to find the beauty in the fantastic, the miracles, the extraordinary. It’s so much harder to constantly see the beauty in the mundane, the everyday, the expected. But Bertino does just that by wielding the lens of the narrator, Adina. Through Adina's continued exploration of the people around her and, importantly, of herself, Bertino reminds us that if you can find wonder in the mundane, you’ve found Beautyland.
Audiobook, as narrated by Andi Arndt: Arndt did a phenomenal job of handling the balance between the monotonous, detached observations and the warmth expressed in their underlying themes.
May 2, 2024
This wasn't bad it was just a generic life of someone on the spectrum. 100% not science fiction and not even a tease of sci-fi like Haig's The Humans. The vehicle to comment on the human condition is that Adina thinks she is an alien put on Earth to observe humans. The sub-text is that people on the spectrum frequently feel like they are outside of humanity so not human.
It was fine and I suspect others will like it, it just is yet another entry in my list of books about "normal" lives that I just don't ever seem to be able to engage with.
It was fine and I suspect others will like it, it just is yet another entry in my list of books about "normal" lives that I just don't ever seem to be able to engage with.
May 9, 2024
An intriguing, emotionally sensitive look at what it is to be human, at least as a female, over about 40 years at the end of the 20th century and the early 21st living in the northeastern US. The premise is that Adina, in the seconds that she is being born, is inhabited by an alien, sent by a very, very distant planet to observe life on Earth and report back to her home civilization. But nothing could be more human than Adina, and her experiences are achingly typical of a little girl living with a hardworking but broke single mom. As she grows up, her “alien” observations and questions highlight for the reader some of the absurd inconsistencies of life that we’ve stopped noticing or considering. Lovely stuff, sad and funny and joyful.
May 20, 2024
If you love story- and action-driven books, Beautyland might not be the one for you. However, if contemplative and perceptive novels are your thing, then this is absolutely one to dive head-first into. But please be aware that Beautyland is listed as sci-fi and it's definitely not that. I am a sci-fi nerd, which is how Beautyland ended up on my radar. But unless you count constant references to Carl Sagan, there's nothing scientific about it.
Adina, a self-identifying alien, is easy to relate to because she is us and we are she. We walk the walk of an observer, someone who outwardly appears to be human but whose identity is not. To those who are dismissing this novel's message with "she's just on the spectrum", I want to remind them that every single one of us, at one time or another, has felt like an imposter in their own life. Adina just puts a voice to her inner outlander.
As someone who came of age in approximately the same timeline as Adina does, the reminiscent sprinkling of all the little period-specific things enriched Beautyland in ways I simply can't explain. It is in this world-building where Beautyland really sparkles and shines.
Is Adina truly an alien? If you are still asking, you completely missed the point.
Adina, a self-identifying alien, is easy to relate to because she is us and we are she. We walk the walk of an observer, someone who outwardly appears to be human but whose identity is not. To those who are dismissing this novel's message with "she's just on the spectrum", I want to remind them that every single one of us, at one time or another, has felt like an imposter in their own life. Adina just puts a voice to her inner outlander.
As someone who came of age in approximately the same timeline as Adina does, the reminiscent sprinkling of all the little period-specific things enriched Beautyland in ways I simply can't explain. It is in this world-building where Beautyland really sparkles and shines.
Is Adina truly an alien? If you are still asking, you completely missed the point.
January 21, 2024
Beautyland is the coming-of-age story of Adina, an extraterrestrial being sent to live life as a human girl. We follow Adina from childhood to adulthood, as she navigates earth and humans (specifically U.S.ians), sending her observations home via fax machine. Reading about humankind through Adina's alien lens is one of the best things I've ever read.
This book is an absolute gem! What a special, special book. Adina's story is so original, so clever, so stupendously enjoyable, I can barely contain my glee! I can't wait for more people to read this book!
Andi Arndt's narration was out of this world (pun intended)! She was the perfect choice here. She infused an alien-like quality to her voice and it was just brilliant!!! Well done, team!!!
THANK YOU #partner Dreamscape for my gifted ALC
This book is an absolute gem! What a special, special book. Adina's story is so original, so clever, so stupendously enjoyable, I can barely contain my glee! I can't wait for more people to read this book!
Andi Arndt's narration was out of this world (pun intended)! She was the perfect choice here. She infused an alien-like quality to her voice and it was just brilliant!!! Well done, team!!!
THANK YOU #partner Dreamscape for my gifted ALC
February 16, 2024
Weeping, yelling, sending faxes. I loved this beautiful book so much
August 26, 2024
A beautiful, gentle story, for every person who has ever felt like an alien among all the humans here on earth.
June 15, 2024
Read if you like Emily Austin’s stuff
3.5
I think I need books like this to be in first person due to the introspective-what it means to be human-you are what you love nature of the story. When it’s in third person I feel too disconnected from the lessons the character is learning.
Also the asexual alien trope is tired. Please stop sincerely an asexual HUMAN.
3.5
I think I need books like this to be in first person due to the introspective-what it means to be human-you are what you love nature of the story. When it’s in third person I feel too disconnected from the lessons the character is learning.
Also the asexual alien trope is tired. Please stop sincerely an asexual HUMAN.
March 24, 2024
This is not sci-fi. If you are looking for another Hail Mary then you’re in the wrong aisle. This is a coming of age work of literary fiction. If that’s your thing, you’ll probably love this. If it’s not, and the ‘alien communicating via a fax machine’ hook snared you, move along.
January 22, 2024
I got 1/3 through the audiobook. (The narrator was good.) I was looking for more alien, less angst. If I just didn't get that far, oh well.
November 9, 2023
Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of
Beautyland.
The premise is unique, unlike most science fiction themes where the alien is usually malevolent or kind and being pursued by evil government forces.
** Minor non-alien spoilers ahead **
Adina is a stranger in a strange land; a literal alien born into the body of a human girl to a single parent.
Her mission is to observe and learn as much as she can about the human race.
She uses a fax machine to send her observations and questions to her home world, and their replies are equally quirky, hilarious, and astute.
Much like Adina.
Adina is a fascinating character; she's emotional and sensitive, eager to learn, and says what she thinks.
She doesn't lie, she feels and sees and thinks. and a lot whole more.
In a way, she is more human than human.
As she navigates the biggest stages of her life; childhood, teen angst, young adulthood and middle age, Adina learns what relationships are, how humans interact and don't say what they mean and sometimes do but not in the way they're supposed to.
Adina learns what it's like to love; love her mom, her BFF, her dog, and experience joy, sorrow, grief, and tragedy.
Adina, in many ways, reflects how many people feel at some point in their lives; that we don't belong in our bodies, in this world, in this time.
That the world is cray-cray and no one understands how we feel, think, and see.
That we must belong elsewhere, somewhere, but not here.
That we're all the same, not different, but more similar than dissimilar, and in the end, we all end up in the same way, not gone, but part of a collective whole.
My only caveat is the author's writing style. I wasn't a fan of it.
The writing was disjointed and confusing, the broken sentences distracting.
All throughout the book, I kept wondering what the title meant and I liked how the author explains it at the end.
The premise is unique, unlike most science fiction themes where the alien is usually malevolent or kind and being pursued by evil government forces.
** Minor non-alien spoilers ahead **
Adina is a stranger in a strange land; a literal alien born into the body of a human girl to a single parent.
Her mission is to observe and learn as much as she can about the human race.
She uses a fax machine to send her observations and questions to her home world, and their replies are equally quirky, hilarious, and astute.
Much like Adina.
Adina is a fascinating character; she's emotional and sensitive, eager to learn, and says what she thinks.
She doesn't lie, she feels and sees and thinks. and a lot whole more.
In a way, she is more human than human.
As she navigates the biggest stages of her life; childhood, teen angst, young adulthood and middle age, Adina learns what relationships are, how humans interact and don't say what they mean and sometimes do but not in the way they're supposed to.
Adina learns what it's like to love; love her mom, her BFF, her dog, and experience joy, sorrow, grief, and tragedy.
Adina, in many ways, reflects how many people feel at some point in their lives; that we don't belong in our bodies, in this world, in this time.
That the world is cray-cray and no one understands how we feel, think, and see.
That we must belong elsewhere, somewhere, but not here.
That we're all the same, not different, but more similar than dissimilar, and in the end, we all end up in the same way, not gone, but part of a collective whole.
My only caveat is the author's writing style. I wasn't a fan of it.
The writing was disjointed and confusing, the broken sentences distracting.
All throughout the book, I kept wondering what the title meant and I liked how the author explains it at the end.
January 8, 2024
*kindly sent to me by @fsgbooks and out on 1/16/23
THE STORY: This is a unique story written in fragments about a young woman named Adina, born to a single woman on Earth, while simultaneously humans have sent Voyager 1 to space, which contains Earth’s golden record. Adina quickly comes to realize she is different, she is other, and eventually begins communicating via fax machine about life on Earth among humans, with her extraterrestrial relatives that exist on a faraway planet which she knows as her home. I love Adina’s wit, I love the way she observes the world, the way she observes humans and humanity. She’s my new favorite fictional character.
WHAT YOU’LL FIND: The portrayal of girlhood is so tender and honest, as well as the authentic exploration of the push and pull of a mother daughter relationship.
Bertino also gives us beautiful philosophical musings on grief and humanity. She shows us what it means to feel lonely, always longing for home. What it means to feel alien, to feel homesick.
“Humans want to find aliens so they feel less alone. They don’t know there is nothing lonelier than an alien.” (pg. 241)
This story reminds us that we have this one fragile human life, and how special it is that we get to love, to love others, to love things, whether it’s romantic or platonic, we simply get to love, and how lucky we are.
“The human life span was perfectly designed to be brief but to at times feel endless. A set of years that pass in a minute, eternity in an afternoon. ... To reach the end of your life and wish you had time for a few other roads—what could be more human? One life span is too short to try to love everything she wants to try to love, do everything she loves as many times as she can.” (pg 320 & 321)
I was completely enchanted by this story, by Adina and I’ll be thinking about this one for a long time.
THE STORY: This is a unique story written in fragments about a young woman named Adina, born to a single woman on Earth, while simultaneously humans have sent Voyager 1 to space, which contains Earth’s golden record. Adina quickly comes to realize she is different, she is other, and eventually begins communicating via fax machine about life on Earth among humans, with her extraterrestrial relatives that exist on a faraway planet which she knows as her home. I love Adina’s wit, I love the way she observes the world, the way she observes humans and humanity. She’s my new favorite fictional character.
WHAT YOU’LL FIND: The portrayal of girlhood is so tender and honest, as well as the authentic exploration of the push and pull of a mother daughter relationship.
Bertino also gives us beautiful philosophical musings on grief and humanity. She shows us what it means to feel lonely, always longing for home. What it means to feel alien, to feel homesick.
“Humans want to find aliens so they feel less alone. They don’t know there is nothing lonelier than an alien.” (pg. 241)
This story reminds us that we have this one fragile human life, and how special it is that we get to love, to love others, to love things, whether it’s romantic or platonic, we simply get to love, and how lucky we are.
“The human life span was perfectly designed to be brief but to at times feel endless. A set of years that pass in a minute, eternity in an afternoon. ... To reach the end of your life and wish you had time for a few other roads—what could be more human? One life span is too short to try to love everything she wants to try to love, do everything she loves as many times as she can.” (pg 320 & 321)
I was completely enchanted by this story, by Adina and I’ll be thinking about this one for a long time.
May 3, 2024
I haven't been moved by a book like this in a very long time. A story about a girl who feels like an alien somehow perfectly encapsulates the human life experience.
I will definitely be re-reading, and if you see this at the bookstore it is a must read.
I will definitely be re-reading, and if you see this at the bookstore it is a must read.
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