Let’s call this as a sleeping beauty story with modern plot twists set against an American backdrop. But unlike the original fairy tale where the darling princess is sleeping because of an uninvited curse, this beautiful girl is inviting sleep on account of a self inflicted curse. Wait, what???!!!!
Does this make sense at all?? Those were my first thoughts when I started listening to this sleepy saga about a resting project initiated by a 24 year old on account of unknown reasons. In the beginning, her reason of shutting out the world and pulling covers over her eyes (literally!) seem mysterious, even trivial at times.
However, as we make progress past her dry, uncharacteristically dark humour, we get to know more details about our leading lady. Somehow, her experiments with psychotic prescriptions and sleeping project starts to make a sense, at least a bit.
This bizarre tale of a yearlong hibernation project is based in New York during 2000-2001 and our unnamed protagonist fits the bill of privileged white beauty as she herself keeps reminding the reader throughout the book. She comes from a well-off family- daughter of educated and smart father who used to be a scientist and much admired by his peers, students and friends, he has a wealthy family background to support his work. Her mother, although a famous beauty in her youth, is quite cold and distant. Maybe it’s do with an unwanted pregnancy leading to an undesired marriage that has led her to be distant and aloof towards her daughter. With non-existent relationships between her parents and their uninterested disdain towards her, our protagonist had a complicated childhood to say the least.
It is not helped further by throwing in the arms of an uncaring and arrogant on-again-off-again boyfriend called Trevor. Having an over clingy and apparently needy friend like Reva also doesn’t help. Both of whom lean on the protagonist at their time of need and literally vanish once that’s done. It’s not like she treats them with any kind of respect, dignity or affection either, so there goes her only social connections.
Of course, the social circle also includes a mysterious Asian American artist and dubious psychiatrist. But much has been said about them in the book and it’s better to understand the progression of these connections first hand.
Frankly speaking, I was a bit stunned with types and amount of wastages mentioned in this novel- starting from food, clothes to medicines and everything between. Considering the protagonist comes from a secure, financial background, it shields her such mediocre thoughts about unnecessary spendings, wasting away stuffs and more importantly, wasting one’s own life. Maybe me from last year would have bristled or even horrified at these things but not the present me. I think the present day me can understand her erratic spending spread and ultimately why she throws it all away.
At times, it feels like nothing is happening in pages after pages and then suddenly so much happens like in the chapter discussing Reva’s mother’s funeral. It’s longest chapter gives us the most insight into the central narrator’s deepest thoughts. No wonder that it’s longest and most logical of all the rest chapters of this book.
Well, there are other things which can disturb readers if they are not used to such kind of darker humour like the storyteller’s apparent lack of empathy towards older women, her rude name calling of Trevor’s would-be step son and how she cruelly pokes fun or rather mocks the typical middle class upbringings specially of her only friend, Reva.
Having said that, I won’t be dismissing this book as an entire snooze fest (no pun intended!!). It has its moments of good storytelling and interesting plot line like how the last few words are written. Considering the timeline, it comes as an expected ending but still baffles the readers and makes them doublecheck. A brilliant ending for sure!! A good one time read for fans of unusual characters with humorous stories in an unexpected setting.