Friday, April 19, 2013

Review: The Unchangeable Spots of Leopards

The Unchangeable Spots of Leopards
By Kristopher Jansma
Viking March 2013
251 pages
From the library 

The Unchangeable Spots of Leopards

Our narrator in this novel is an unnamed writer. He begins the book by explaining that he has lost every book he has ever written. He then proceeds to tell you the story of his life, or at least some versions of his life, beginning when he was a child who wrote a book in an airport terminal while waiting for his mother. The reader then follows him to college where he meets two people who will forever affect his life - a fellow writer and an enchanting actress. The threesome will travel the world where they will fall in and out of love and friendship, take on new identities, bask in glorious successes and hit their absolute lowest points. But as our narrator warns us, "these stories are all true, but only somewhere else." 

This is a fantastic debut novel. It deals with love and loss, friendship and fame, and what it means to be a writer. In spite of these important issues, it's a breeze to read and one of those books you will find yourself carrying everywhere just to sneak in a few more pages. While the characters are constantly evolving (or being rewritten), they are easy to love (or at least love to hate, in some moments). There were portions of this book that reminded me of both Donna Tartt's The Secret History and Michael Chabon's Wonder Boys, but I enjoyed this book and its characters much more. 

This is the story, or rather several stories, of an unreliable narrator. After I finished the book, there was a part of me that was tempted to immediately start it over in order to try to ascertain which version was the truth. But then I realized I really didn't care - each story was wonderful in its own right and deciding that one was the truth and the others made-up wouldn't diminish that. As our narrator himself says, "Maybe I'll continue with the truth. Maybe I won't. Would you know either way? Would you care, truly? Or perhaps I'll be long gone by then; who can say? We're all just travelers, after all, telling stories, passing time."

I'm a sucker for an unreliable narrator and a love of story that is obvious on every page. Kristopher Jansma accomplishes all this and more in a book that is certainly one of my favorite books in April, if not 2013. 

6 comments:

  1. I've been staring at this book for weeks, drawn to the cover AND what I know about it. Maybe one of these days I'll be moved to actually start reading it instead of just looking at it. :-)

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    1. Yes! It's a quick read and I think you will love it. :)

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  2. The cover of this book is fab and the insides are even better! I'm glad you liked it :)

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    1. Apparently Jansma may be announcing something new soon? I'm definitely intrigued.

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  3. This sounds intriguing. I'm a sucker for an unreliable narrator too. :-) I ought to check this out.

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    1. Intriguing is a great word for it. I hope you enjoy it!

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