Duncan's review
recommended for:
small crabs that scurry along the sea floor in search of their long lost facebook friends
I've been spending my migraine filled days browsing through people's reviews of books and none struck me as much as the reviews for Shelley's book. I can see why so many people had trouble with this book when I look at the description from the publisher. Jackson first gained popularity on the writing scene with her hypertext work. She followed this hype up with a stunning collection of short stories called the Melancholy of Anatomy (a title that plays on the work by Robert Burton called the Anatomy of Melancholy). As she worked on Half Life and some of her children's books, she began work on a project called "Skin," a story tattooed one word at a time on people around the world. This, although interesting because no one will ever know the entire story (lest all the words happen to meet in one place and miraculously fall into the correct order), seems to have become a problem for Jackson. It seems people only want to talk about "Skin." The novelty over shadowed the t...more
I've been spending my migraine filled days browsing through people's reviews of books and none struck me as much as the reviews for Shelley's book. I can see why so many people had trouble with this book when I look at the description from the publisher. Jackson first gained popularity on the writing scene with her hypertext work. She followed this hype up with a stunning collection of short stories called the Melancholy of Anatomy (a title that plays on the work by Robert Burton called the Anatomy of Melancholy). As she worked on Half Life and some of her children's books, she began work on a project called "Skin," a story tattooed one word at a time on people around the world. This, although interesting because no one will ever know the entire story (lest all the words happen to meet in one place and miraculously fall into the correct order), seems to have become a problem for Jackson. It seems people only want to talk about "Skin." The novelty over shadowed the theory behind the piece. So, people, hearing the buzz about her "Skin" story, bought this novel and seemed to be disappointed. Big surprise. Jackson is not part of a side show freak exhibit. She is a dedicated artist, who tells tales that exist in a realm just beyond us. Yes, the characters use the same sinks, televisions, trains, and computers as us, but they somehow slip into a thin fabric of otherworldliness (an onion skin) where they experience complications and revelations that other characters can't see.
Half life is as much about conjoined twins as it is about curiosity museums in England. It's a book that examines the possibility of our other selves. It's about a world that thinks of itself as a better half and can't realize that it might not be the better half.
There are a few weak moments, I will agree. The word play in some of the notes doesn't seem to move the book along as much as I would have like to see, but that's a small complaint when one looks at the size of the book.
Jackson scared me for a moment when I thought the book was going to take a turn into the cliché "split personality" ending that seems to be so popular these days. However, she doesn't go there. She leads the reader right to the point where s/he thinks they have it all figured out and quickly dashes it all away.
Sure, if you're looking for Middlesex or a book on twins or another "Skin" this book is not going to do it for you. However, if you put expectations aside and let Jackson take you into the post nuclear world of a West that could have existed, you might just be thankful these words weren't tattooed on somebody in Idaho....less
Half Life: A Novel 
