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Fishbowl
At turns funny and heartbreaking, a goldfish named Ian escapes from his bowl and, plummeting toward the street below, witnesses the lives of the Seville on Roxy residents.
A goldfish named Ian is falling from the 27th-floor balcony on which his fishbowl sits. He's longed for adventure, so when the opportunity arises, he escapes from his bowl, clears the balcony railing and finds himself airborne. Plummeting toward the street below, Ian witnesses the lives of the Seville on Roxy residents.
There's the handsome grad student, his girlfriend, and the other woman; the construction worker who feels trapped by a secret; the building's super who feels invisible and alone; the pregnant woman on bed rest who craves a forbidden ice cream sandwich; the shut-in for whom dirty talk, and quiche, are a way of life; and home-schooled Herman, a boy who thinks he can travel through time. Though they share time and space, they have something even more important in common: each faces a decision that will affect the course of their lives. Within the walls of the Seville are stories of love, new life, and death, of facing the ugly truth of who one has been and the beautiful truth of who one can become.
Sometimes taking a risk is the only way to move forward with our lives. As Ian the goldfish knows, "An entire life devoted to a fishbowl will make one die an old fish with not one adventure had."
A goldfish named Ian is falling from the 27th-floor balcony on which his fishbowl sits. He's longed for adventure, so when the opportunity arises, he escapes from his bowl, clears the balcony railing and finds himself airborne. Plummeting toward the street below, Ian witnesses the lives of the Seville on Roxy residents.
There's the handsome grad student, his girlfriend, and the other woman; the construction worker who feels trapped by a secret; the building's super who feels invisible and alone; the pregnant woman on bed rest who craves a forbidden ice cream sandwich; the shut-in for whom dirty talk, and quiche, are a way of life; and home-schooled Herman, a boy who thinks he can travel through time. Though they share time and space, they have something even more important in common: each faces a decision that will affect the course of their lives. Within the walls of the Seville are stories of love, new life, and death, of facing the ugly truth of who one has been and the beautiful truth of who one can become.
Sometimes taking a risk is the only way to move forward with our lives. As Ian the goldfish knows, "An entire life devoted to a fishbowl will make one die an old fish with not one adventure had."
304 pages, Hardcover
First published March 1, 2015
160 people are currently reading
4461 people want to read
About the author
Bradley Somer
8 books125 followersBradley Somer’s novels have been published in over twenty countries, translated into several languages, and produced in many print, digital, and audio formats. A few have even been optioned for screen.
His newest, WE ARE ALL OF US LEFT BEHIND, will be released in the Fall of 2025.
He is the author of three previous novels: EXTINCTION (Blackstone Publishing & HarperCollins UK, 2022), FISHBOWL (St. Martin’s Press & Penguin Random House UK, 2015), and IMPERFECTIONS (Nightwood Editions, 2012). He has also written a ton of short fiction, which has appeared in literary journals, reviews, and anthologies over the past twenty years.
Bradley holds degrees in Archaeology and Anthropology, where his studies focused on paleoenvironments and human prehistory in North America. He lives with his husband at the foot of the Rocky Mountains. Between sitting for hours reading and chronic bouts of writing, he enjoys snowshoeing and hiking the outdoors.
His newest, WE ARE ALL OF US LEFT BEHIND, will be released in the Fall of 2025.
He is the author of three previous novels: EXTINCTION (Blackstone Publishing & HarperCollins UK, 2022), FISHBOWL (St. Martin’s Press & Penguin Random House UK, 2015), and IMPERFECTIONS (Nightwood Editions, 2012). He has also written a ton of short fiction, which has appeared in literary journals, reviews, and anthologies over the past twenty years.
Bradley holds degrees in Archaeology and Anthropology, where his studies focused on paleoenvironments and human prehistory in North America. He lives with his husband at the foot of the Rocky Mountains. Between sitting for hours reading and chronic bouts of writing, he enjoys snowshoeing and hiking the outdoors.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 725 reviews
August 14, 2018
This book reminds me just a bit of Elegance of the Hedgehog, it attracted my attention with the quirky concept of a fish narrating a story while falling from the top of a 27 ft apartment complex.
I absolutely loved this book. It's definitely the most fun book with some of the most endearing characters that I have read in 2015.
Ian lives with a grad student, Connor, who lives a self absorbed and oversexed life. As Ian continues his fall he describes the scenes that flash by him and are shortly forgotten since goldfish don't have the best memories. We meet a myriad of characters who live in the apartments.
Ian sees what looks to him to be a very large woman in a dress, Paramedics arriving to help a woman who has just given birth, a lonely young boy and his grandfather, a janitor who is asked to fix everything, even the elevator, without any thanks for the occupants. Luckily for us we are allowed more insight into each of these characters and how some of them will eventually interact with each other.
I loved all of them!! Each was unique and had some flaws, as all humans must have. Bradley Somer is a brilliant writer, his prose was amazing and appealed to all of our senses. We can see the sky and apartments, smell the burn of an electrical fire as well as the delightful smell of a quiche cooking. We can feel the grime on the janitor's hands as well as the construction workers.
We also experience diverse emotions, fear, anxiety, love, hate, loneliness, and much more.
There is nothing I can find fault with. It is fresh, funny, heartfelt and very memorable. The writing is wonderful and his style is unique. I will tell everyone I know about this book and I wish the author great luck, I feel a bestseller is in order.
**note: I just re-read this book before I gave it to my daughter and she loved it. It's a fun book that I don't think got the attention it deserved so I'm going to re-post it in the hopes that some others will pick it up from their book shops or library :)
I absolutely loved this book. It's definitely the most fun book with some of the most endearing characters that I have read in 2015.
Ian lives with a grad student, Connor, who lives a self absorbed and oversexed life. As Ian continues his fall he describes the scenes that flash by him and are shortly forgotten since goldfish don't have the best memories. We meet a myriad of characters who live in the apartments.
Ian sees what looks to him to be a very large woman in a dress, Paramedics arriving to help a woman who has just given birth, a lonely young boy and his grandfather, a janitor who is asked to fix everything, even the elevator, without any thanks for the occupants. Luckily for us we are allowed more insight into each of these characters and how some of them will eventually interact with each other.
I loved all of them!! Each was unique and had some flaws, as all humans must have. Bradley Somer is a brilliant writer, his prose was amazing and appealed to all of our senses. We can see the sky and apartments, smell the burn of an electrical fire as well as the delightful smell of a quiche cooking. We can feel the grime on the janitor's hands as well as the construction workers.
We also experience diverse emotions, fear, anxiety, love, hate, loneliness, and much more.
There is nothing I can find fault with. It is fresh, funny, heartfelt and very memorable. The writing is wonderful and his style is unique. I will tell everyone I know about this book and I wish the author great luck, I feel a bestseller is in order.
**note: I just re-read this book before I gave it to my daughter and she loved it. It's a fun book that I don't think got the attention it deserved so I'm going to re-post it in the hopes that some others will pick it up from their book shops or library :)
November 20, 2015
Oh, the lives that are lived behind the myriad doors of an apartment building, Seville on Roxy. Claire is a stone cold agoraphobic who works the telephone in a most surprising way. Jimenez, the building super, waters the silk plants in the foyer, fixes leaky faucets, clogged toilets, and ill-advisedly tries to repair a faulty elevator. There is a grandpa with an old man's swollen hands, his fingers 'warped from a lifetime of use'. These and others are all about to make some momentous decisions that will affect the rest of their lives. As Ian the goldfish plummets from his fishbowl on the balcony of a 27th floor apartment, we are able to witness bits of life through his fish eye.
I loved this novel for its unusual structure, its way with words, and for its refreshing originality. On the right hand side of the pages, there is a small fish. It didn't soak in for quite some time that the little swimmer turns into a flip page animation. Perfect touch for such a different book.
I loved this novel for its unusual structure, its way with words, and for its refreshing originality. On the right hand side of the pages, there is a small fish. It didn't soak in for quite some time that the little swimmer turns into a flip page animation. Perfect touch for such a different book.
August 5, 2015
I really enjoyed Fishbowl. It's clever - in a good way. The book opens with Ian -- a goldfish -- falling from the balcony of a high rise apartment. We are told that this is actually what happens at the end of the story and that we will find out at end how Ian came to be in a free fall. The rest of the book consists of numerous short chapters told from the perspectives of a number of residents and visitors of the high rise. The story spans no more than 30 minutes before Ian starts his free fall. Each character is idiosyncratic and at a particularly momentous time in his or her life -- intended declarations of love, childbirth, job loss, fear that a grandfather has died, to name a few. The characters and their dramas converge in small ways, but mostly they are silos living out their stories in parallel. I like the characters Somer has created. Each one is a thumb nail sketch, but with enough detail and substance to bring them to life as unique and interesting. I liked the depiction of the small dramas they were all involved in -- senses of urgency all unfolding in parallel. And I liked the writing -- in a direct and simple style, Somer has us seeing through the eyes of each character -- including Ian the goldfish -- I kid you not. In fact Ian is given the privileged position of musing about the meaning of time, memory, freedom and other odds and ends. In the end, this is a book of moments -- moments of fear, courage, unexpected sweetness, rage, confusion and regret. This won't be for everyone but it worked well for me -- at times moving, sad and funny, and clever throughout. Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for an opportunity to read Fishbowl.
August 14, 2018
{8/14/18 Reposting because this is such spectacular writing, and I have many more GR friends now than when I first read this delightful novel.}
Fishbowl is the magnificent tale of a fish's fall from a top-floor balcony and of all the apartment building's inhabitants' up-and-down-the-stairs travails. "Delicious" is the first word that comes to mind to describe Bradley Somer's exquisite prose. He expands moments, detailing fleeting actions or sensations. Here's a taste:
And
And
All these examples probably take the time of a thought, but the writing is so luscious and juicy and sometimes even crunchy and crispy that you want to read slowly. Hard, since the story is equally tasty and you want to know what happens next. This is a gentle, compassionate, exquisitely written look at life from a falling fish's eye view. I loved it!
I had an interesting personal experience reading: Time in this story is altered in many ways—perception is slowed down, while events concurrently unfold in and out of real time. The quantum mechanics notion that time simply doesn't exist as we experience it is played with and discussed. While reading Fishbowl my private sense of time was altered. Slowed perceptions plus events in real time became my "real" time, to such an extent that when I put the book down, I felt as if all my actions, thoughts, and reactions were like slogging through molasses. Imagine being away from gravity and then returning to it. I'd be curious to hear if other readers had this experience.
Thanks to Netgalley for an ARC of this book.
Fishbowl is the magnificent tale of a fish's fall from a top-floor balcony and of all the apartment building's inhabitants' up-and-down-the-stairs travails. "Delicious" is the first word that comes to mind to describe Bradley Somer's exquisite prose. He expands moments, detailing fleeting actions or sensations. Here's a taste:
Garth draws a deep breath to steady his heart and gives the package a squeeze, pinching it between the crook of his arm and his torso. It gives a reassuring crackle in return. He takes it in both hands and gives it another squeeze. The softness compresses to a point, and then he can feel something solid and hard in the middle. He repeats the motion and decides he has to run up the remaining flights. He needs to move through this horrible space as quickly as he can. He needs to get to his apartment and recapture the full excitement he had felt before the stairwell sucked it out of him.
And
That’s where she met Matt, her first crush. Matt lifted weights every day and was on the high school football team. Matt worked the same shifts that she did. He looked so good in his work uniform. The company logo bent so slightly around the curve of his sculpted pectoral muscle. An embroidered little man in a waiter’s uniform dashed away from Matt’s armpit and toward the cleft in his chest, carrying a burger the size of his head on a platter. Three embroidered steam lines on the logo implied the food was fresh and piping hot.
And
Ian [the titular fish] is torn from the scene when, as he falls past the eighteenth floor, he discovers the final betrayal of his body. His instinct for freedom has led to several such revelations so far. Even in the short second of his flight, the experience has been more edifying than the months he spent in his bowl. He not only has found that he can’t breathe in this atmosphere but also that eyelids are handy devices and evolution has left him ill prepared for flight. Now he learns that the aerodynamic nature of his body, which allows him to slice through water so effortlessly, with the right amount of wind shear transforms him into a streamlined, nose-down golden rocket. It pushes his tail to the sky and forces his head ground-ward. The turbulence compels his body to wiggle in a fashion not dissimilar to swimming in a strong current. No longer does he tumble. His descent becomes much more sinister and direct through the shrieking air.
All these examples probably take the time of a thought, but the writing is so luscious and juicy and sometimes even crunchy and crispy that you want to read slowly. Hard, since the story is equally tasty and you want to know what happens next. This is a gentle, compassionate, exquisitely written look at life from a falling fish's eye view. I loved it!
I had an interesting personal experience reading: Time in this story is altered in many ways—perception is slowed down, while events concurrently unfold in and out of real time. The quantum mechanics notion that time simply doesn't exist as we experience it is played with and discussed. While reading Fishbowl my private sense of time was altered. Slowed perceptions plus events in real time became my "real" time, to such an extent that when I put the book down, I felt as if all my actions, thoughts, and reactions were like slogging through molasses. Imagine being away from gravity and then returning to it. I'd be curious to hear if other readers had this experience.
Thanks to Netgalley for an ARC of this book.
August 31, 2015
Spoiler alert, "Fishbowl" really isn't Ian the goldfish's story. It's a deceptive ploy to make the book seem more quirky than it is – if you take away the goldfish bits, which are minimal to begin with, you get nothing but a regular story revolving around an ensemble of characters. Eventful things happen to a memorable handful, but more often than not, the chain of circumstances felt more like filler, the timeline didn't add up in my opinion, and the cast, while meant to be unique and edgy, came across as flat stereotypes.
A plot of intertwining lives of the residents of the Seville on Roxy meant that occurrences were rehashed from multiple perspectives, and while I'm usually all up for a story told from different point-of-views, the presentation of this in "Fishbowl" felt really tedious and repetitive since every action was detailed with little consequence to the story. So, by the end of the novel, it felt like I'd gained nothing in return for my time spent on this book, except lamenting what could have been. I really thought I'd enjoy this and I tried my hardest by sticking with it till the end, but I rolled my eyes way more than I should have and was left extremely disappointed by this squandered premise.
A plot of intertwining lives of the residents of the Seville on Roxy meant that occurrences were rehashed from multiple perspectives, and while I'm usually all up for a story told from different point-of-views, the presentation of this in "Fishbowl" felt really tedious and repetitive since every action was detailed with little consequence to the story. So, by the end of the novel, it felt like I'd gained nothing in return for my time spent on this book, except lamenting what could have been. I really thought I'd enjoy this and I tried my hardest by sticking with it till the end, but I rolled my eyes way more than I should have and was left extremely disappointed by this squandered premise.
May 28, 2015
A school bus ran over Conner's dog, Ian. Katie felt sorry for him and bought him a goldfish
named Ian.
"Deep down, subconsciously, Conner has grown to believe than Ian the goldfish is
spiritually linked to Ian the dog, perhaps even to the extent that the fish is the
reincarnate."
This is an odd- quirky- unique-story about a FISH --named *Ian*--who longs for freedom and adventure ... ( like many of us do).
Ian escapes his fishbowl -- clears the balcony railing - tumbling towards the street from the
27th floor. Ian witnesses the lives of residents in the apartment building.
The characters: a pregnant woman on a rest bed who craves ice cream sandwiches,
a construction worker, an agoraphobic sex worker, an invisible caretaker. A home school
boy - Herman- who thinks he can travel through time and space ...
and a grad student and his girlfriend.
All the characters are struggling with their own challenges ..... each needs to face choices
in their lives that will determine how life will proceed next.
So, As we witness Ian take the plunge ... and observe the other socially-challenged
residents..
I can't help it wonder if I'm a little too wired differently than the average reader to
find the humor in this story. I wanted to laugh.. I wanted to 'feel' that heartwarming
reading charm.... Yet, this wasn't an escape book for me.. or laugh out loud..
Emotions were not unleashed --
It's not slapstick.. not sad.. not full of twisters..
Mostly I felt neutral. Cute title. Cute idea for a story... but for me it lacked enchanting
sincere richness.
I'm always thankful - to the publisher - Netgalley - an the author for the opportunity
to be an early reader.
Others may adore this book. I think it takes a person with a little more range of
imagination and natural sense of humor than my genetic make up.
named Ian.
"Deep down, subconsciously, Conner has grown to believe than Ian the goldfish is
spiritually linked to Ian the dog, perhaps even to the extent that the fish is the
reincarnate."
This is an odd- quirky- unique-story about a FISH --named *Ian*--who longs for freedom and adventure ... ( like many of us do).
Ian escapes his fishbowl -- clears the balcony railing - tumbling towards the street from the
27th floor. Ian witnesses the lives of residents in the apartment building.
The characters: a pregnant woman on a rest bed who craves ice cream sandwiches,
a construction worker, an agoraphobic sex worker, an invisible caretaker. A home school
boy - Herman- who thinks he can travel through time and space ...
and a grad student and his girlfriend.
All the characters are struggling with their own challenges ..... each needs to face choices
in their lives that will determine how life will proceed next.
So, As we witness Ian take the plunge ... and observe the other socially-challenged
residents..
I can't help it wonder if I'm a little too wired differently than the average reader to
find the humor in this story. I wanted to laugh.. I wanted to 'feel' that heartwarming
reading charm.... Yet, this wasn't an escape book for me.. or laugh out loud..
Emotions were not unleashed --
It's not slapstick.. not sad.. not full of twisters..
Mostly I felt neutral. Cute title. Cute idea for a story... but for me it lacked enchanting
sincere richness.
I'm always thankful - to the publisher - Netgalley - an the author for the opportunity
to be an early reader.
Others may adore this book. I think it takes a person with a little more range of
imagination and natural sense of humor than my genetic make up.
May 20, 2015
This quirky novel takes place in one, high rise, apartment block – the Seville, on Roxy – where a goldfish named Ian has a perilous plunge from the 27th floor balcony…. As the author narrates the events which led up to Ian’s escape from the bowl he shares with Troy the Snail, we gradually learn more about the inhabitants of the building.
There is Connor Radley, the unfaithful grad student, his girlfriend Katie, who longs for him to say that he loves her, the maintenance man, Jimeriez, who does his best to make everyone happy, even if he is unappreciated, a pregnant woman who is bored by having to take bed rest, her builder boyfriend Danny and his colleague, Garth, who harbours a secret, Homeschooled Herman and agoraphobic Claire. So many people, living so close to each other, but unaware of each other’s loneliness and worries. If you live in a city, as I do, much of this novel will resonate with you – the people you see every day, perhaps at a station or in a shop, but never get to know.
Clever and original, this is a feel good novel – which perhaps wraps up a little too neatly, but will leave you smiling and perhaps more willing to reach out to others. Lastly, I received a copy of this book from the publishers, via NetGalley, for review.
There is Connor Radley, the unfaithful grad student, his girlfriend Katie, who longs for him to say that he loves her, the maintenance man, Jimeriez, who does his best to make everyone happy, even if he is unappreciated, a pregnant woman who is bored by having to take bed rest, her builder boyfriend Danny and his colleague, Garth, who harbours a secret, Homeschooled Herman and agoraphobic Claire. So many people, living so close to each other, but unaware of each other’s loneliness and worries. If you live in a city, as I do, much of this novel will resonate with you – the people you see every day, perhaps at a station or in a shop, but never get to know.
Clever and original, this is a feel good novel – which perhaps wraps up a little too neatly, but will leave you smiling and perhaps more willing to reach out to others. Lastly, I received a copy of this book from the publishers, via NetGalley, for review.
March 8, 2018
A goldfish can only do so much and in the end the rest is up to life and life takes care of him in one way or another, if that way is well or poorly, no bother, he’ll l only revel in its glow or suffer its neglect or short time
May 30, 2017
This book has too many words in it for me.
That complaint sounds ridiculous, but my patience is running thin for books that don't just get to the damn point. The first chapter is four pages about an apartment building. Not describing the height, look, appearance, and feel of the building, but the significance of it. "The box reaches beyond the organic to the ethereal." It goes on and on like this, as if the narrator thinks the reader doesn't know he's talking about a goddamned building.
Also, I've been misled by marketing copy again. I need a new shelf for this. I've been BLURB'D! The back of the book makes it seem like this is a book that takes place as a goldfish falls from the top floor of a building. Wow, I thought, maybe this could be something brilliant, like Nicholson Baker's The Mezzanine. I wanted to see how the author pulled it off.
But that's not what the book is about. The book is about the thirty minutes before that, and it's told in this unconventional, overwritten way.
This sentence in the third chapter marked where I stopped reading: "He's up there, she thinks, in the concrete box at the top." It seems that the book's presumed main character thinks like the narrator, unwilling or unable to call a thing by its name, instead referring to the top floor of an apartment as a "concrete box."
I read a few Goodreads reviews to see if I should keep reading. Some reviews said the book is very repetitive, so I decided not to continue. One review said the whole story is recapped in the last chapter, so I read that one. Nice to see there's a gay romance in it. The author appears to be gay (he thanks his husband) so I'm not sure why this book reads like a lovesick hetero man wrote it. I do feel bad about giving this book one star. The author's acknowledgements at the back seem genuine and heartfelt to me. But the rest of the book did not come across that way. What I read floundered in a sea of cleverness. It didn't seem like it would get any stronger, and I did not like it.
Deciding not to finish, I'm now going to return this bound stack of ink-covered wood slivers to the brick box where I checked it out from.
That complaint sounds ridiculous, but my patience is running thin for books that don't just get to the damn point. The first chapter is four pages about an apartment building. Not describing the height, look, appearance, and feel of the building, but the significance of it. "The box reaches beyond the organic to the ethereal." It goes on and on like this, as if the narrator thinks the reader doesn't know he's talking about a goddamned building.
Also, I've been misled by marketing copy again. I need a new shelf for this. I've been BLURB'D! The back of the book makes it seem like this is a book that takes place as a goldfish falls from the top floor of a building. Wow, I thought, maybe this could be something brilliant, like Nicholson Baker's The Mezzanine. I wanted to see how the author pulled it off.
But that's not what the book is about. The book is about the thirty minutes before that, and it's told in this unconventional, overwritten way.
This sentence in the third chapter marked where I stopped reading: "He's up there, she thinks, in the concrete box at the top." It seems that the book's presumed main character thinks like the narrator, unwilling or unable to call a thing by its name, instead referring to the top floor of an apartment as a "concrete box."
I read a few Goodreads reviews to see if I should keep reading. Some reviews said the book is very repetitive, so I decided not to continue. One review said the whole story is recapped in the last chapter, so I read that one. Nice to see there's a gay romance in it. The author appears to be gay (he thanks his husband) so I'm not sure why this book reads like a lovesick hetero man wrote it. I do feel bad about giving this book one star. The author's acknowledgements at the back seem genuine and heartfelt to me. But the rest of the book did not come across that way. What I read floundered in a sea of cleverness. It didn't seem like it would get any stronger, and I did not like it.
Deciding not to finish, I'm now going to return this bound stack of ink-covered wood slivers to the brick box where I checked it out from.
May 1, 2015
Ships Passing in the Night
That's how my Dad used to describe the encounters we have with others as we all pass through our lives. In the case of The Fishbowl these encounters are just as fleeting but are experienced by a goldfish who made the instinctive leap toward the surface of his bowl only to escape its watery confines and find himself rushing headlong from the balcony on the 27th floor of his building toward his doom on the cement sidewalk below.
The imagery of the author's description of the apartment building's construction, the goldfish view of a cityscape from his bowl, the analogy of the building as a living organism are all enough to keep the reader interested. But to this wonderful interweaving of words and language he has added the lure of an almost voyeuristic glimpse into the lives of some of the apartment dwellers. Through them the individual boxes that comprise the building come alive.
He wanders back and forth among them but each of their stories begins as Ian, the goldfish, passes the floor on which they live. And being a goldfish, the initial glimpse is short and not very deep. After all gravity is pulling this little guy down to earth rather rapidly and, in addition, the brain of a fish is not exactly highly developed. So, as quickly as the scene makes an impression, it is lost and the fish cannot remember where he is or what is happening. A reoccurring refrain on his part is " what was I doing?" Not unlike the preoccupied musing of people in apartment buildings when their routine is interrupted by a brief encounter with another of its residents.
The author amazed me with his observational skills and his ability to describe so well various aspects of the story. I also loved his mind wandering to things like the amino acids of DNA and the concept of terminal velocity in Ian's descent. And at the end, the summation that shows how much can happen in people's lives in a very short time span and how little control they have over much of what happens.
I loved the book because I grew up in a six floor building with no elevator and no parking garage in Manhattan. Two towers with four apartments on each floor--48 boxes in all. Probably knew the occupants of about ten of them but really KNEW and interacted with those in only four. This story truly resonated with me and got me thinking back to that time 50 years ago and wondering what stories were being lived by all those neighbors.
All in all, for such a short book, an enjoyable and thought provoking read.
This review is of an ARC received from BookBrowse First Impressions for review.
PS--after reading do a page flip to follow Ian's descent. Clever touch.
That's how my Dad used to describe the encounters we have with others as we all pass through our lives. In the case of The Fishbowl these encounters are just as fleeting but are experienced by a goldfish who made the instinctive leap toward the surface of his bowl only to escape its watery confines and find himself rushing headlong from the balcony on the 27th floor of his building toward his doom on the cement sidewalk below.
The imagery of the author's description of the apartment building's construction, the goldfish view of a cityscape from his bowl, the analogy of the building as a living organism are all enough to keep the reader interested. But to this wonderful interweaving of words and language he has added the lure of an almost voyeuristic glimpse into the lives of some of the apartment dwellers. Through them the individual boxes that comprise the building come alive.
He wanders back and forth among them but each of their stories begins as Ian, the goldfish, passes the floor on which they live. And being a goldfish, the initial glimpse is short and not very deep. After all gravity is pulling this little guy down to earth rather rapidly and, in addition, the brain of a fish is not exactly highly developed. So, as quickly as the scene makes an impression, it is lost and the fish cannot remember where he is or what is happening. A reoccurring refrain on his part is " what was I doing?" Not unlike the preoccupied musing of people in apartment buildings when their routine is interrupted by a brief encounter with another of its residents.
The author amazed me with his observational skills and his ability to describe so well various aspects of the story. I also loved his mind wandering to things like the amino acids of DNA and the concept of terminal velocity in Ian's descent. And at the end, the summation that shows how much can happen in people's lives in a very short time span and how little control they have over much of what happens.
I loved the book because I grew up in a six floor building with no elevator and no parking garage in Manhattan. Two towers with four apartments on each floor--48 boxes in all. Probably knew the occupants of about ten of them but really KNEW and interacted with those in only four. This story truly resonated with me and got me thinking back to that time 50 years ago and wondering what stories were being lived by all those neighbors.
All in all, for such a short book, an enjoyable and thought provoking read.
This review is of an ARC received from BookBrowse First Impressions for review.
PS--after reading do a page flip to follow Ian's descent. Clever touch.
November 4, 2015
This book became extremely frustrating to read and in the end, not worth it. Save yourself some time and if the summary is even the slightest bit interesting to you, just read the last chapter of the book. It literally summarizes the entire thing without the endless overlay of point of views. Each chapter would feature a different character at the same moment in time as the previous, but from the other person's perspective. Reading about the same scene three different times became unbearable. It added little to no new level of appreciation or insight into the characters. The idea had potential but it morphed into a string of inane repetition. Thirty minutes elapsed in the span of 304 pages. 7.5/55 chapters featured the so-called protagonist, Ian the fish, where he was involved for a whopping four seconds. I was hoping this would be a quirky, fun read, but in the end it felt like riding a coin operated horse when you were promised the real deal.
June 11, 2018
Very beautiful and philosophical language that barely moves on at all. And to think I chose this book for its puzzling synopsis.
It's the kind of book a writer keeps stored in his desk for inspiration - a page a day kicks the block away.
Not something you flip through looking for twists and answers.
Bradley Somer was certainly a great find.
It's the kind of book a writer keeps stored in his desk for inspiration - a page a day kicks the block away.
Not something you flip through looking for twists and answers.
Bradley Somer was certainly a great find.
January 4, 2015
I received this book for free from the publisher through Netgalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.
Fishbowl was unexpectedly quirky and delightful.
A fantastic novel that is equal parts, uninhibitedly funny and thought provoking. An unusual and captivating look at the lives of the inhabitants of an apartment building. Somer has a rare talent for making each and every character relatable, even as you feel a mild disdain for some.
I particularly loved the writing style, it filled me with a sense of whimsy I have not experienced since reading The Perks of Being a Wallflower. The author presents a number of flawed characters, characters with secret struggles that would normally feel clumsy or heavy handed, Somer handles with a deftness and compassion that strikes straight at your heart.
Fishbowl was unexpectedly quirky and delightful.
A fantastic novel that is equal parts, uninhibitedly funny and thought provoking. An unusual and captivating look at the lives of the inhabitants of an apartment building. Somer has a rare talent for making each and every character relatable, even as you feel a mild disdain for some.
I particularly loved the writing style, it filled me with a sense of whimsy I have not experienced since reading The Perks of Being a Wallflower. The author presents a number of flawed characters, characters with secret struggles that would normally feel clumsy or heavy handed, Somer handles with a deftness and compassion that strikes straight at your heart.
October 5, 2018
I really liked this book! The story centres around Ian, the goldfish, who is plummeting to his death after somehow jumping out of his fishbowl which was sitting on the 27th floor balcony of the apartment building. Throughout his journey the reader gets a glimpse of some of the residents of the apartment building. I love stories where you see the characters beyond the image they want you to see. Highly recommended!
May 13, 2016
Nearly 4 stars but not quite 4 stars.
I enjoyed reading this book a lot. A lot, a lot, A LOT. It was fast paced and undeniably quirky. The characters weren't exactly likeable but each and every single one of them had an unique style and story. And Ian, the goldfish, was definitely something. Oh, Ian the mysterious cute goldfish. It was such a wonderful idea to string together these very ordinary yet extraordinary stories through the wide eyes of forgetful and charming Ian. I particularly loved the moments when - during the plummet to his death - he felt all nostalgic towards his old room-mate - Troy the Snail - whom he abruptly abandoned in the fishbowl, only to forget of the snail's very existence a few seconds later.
I did feel like the message of the book was piled on a bit too heavy at times. Especially towards the conclusion of the connecting stories and, of course, the end of Ian's fall. And a lot of the character's actions did feel very staged, much like watching a play unfold in a theatre in front of you rather than reading a novel, but that doesn't mean I didn't like where the story ended up. No, it was a very charming tale that had lots of action, creativity and, also, a whole bunch of incredibly amusing chapter titles.
I enjoyed reading this book a lot. A lot, a lot, A LOT. It was fast paced and undeniably quirky. The characters weren't exactly likeable but each and every single one of them had an unique style and story. And Ian, the goldfish, was definitely something. Oh, Ian the mysterious cute goldfish. It was such a wonderful idea to string together these very ordinary yet extraordinary stories through the wide eyes of forgetful and charming Ian. I particularly loved the moments when - during the plummet to his death - he felt all nostalgic towards his old room-mate - Troy the Snail - whom he abruptly abandoned in the fishbowl, only to forget of the snail's very existence a few seconds later.
I did feel like the message of the book was piled on a bit too heavy at times. Especially towards the conclusion of the connecting stories and, of course, the end of Ian's fall. And a lot of the character's actions did feel very staged, much like watching a play unfold in a theatre in front of you rather than reading a novel, but that doesn't mean I didn't like where the story ended up. No, it was a very charming tale that had lots of action, creativity and, also, a whole bunch of incredibly amusing chapter titles.
June 22, 2018
Really weak novel – the key and interesting premise is of a City apartment block that contains all of life as well as lives interacting with each other, and the book has a clear life-motif that these lives are observed by a goldfish on his fall from the top of the building.
The book has two key flaws.
The key characters include a sex-obsessed graduate student, his girlfriend (who he gradually realises he loves) and lover; the loner supervisor/maintenance man; a cross-dressing burly construction worker; a woman giving birth; an agoraphobic who works on sex chat lines; an oddball home schooled child who believes he can perform time travel and transportation – in other words they are not representative of normal life at all and as well as being clichéd stereotypes.
The goldfish conceit is ridiculous and an excuse for some sub-Coelho cod philosophical meditations.
The book has two key flaws.
The key characters include a sex-obsessed graduate student, his girlfriend (who he gradually realises he loves) and lover; the loner supervisor/maintenance man; a cross-dressing burly construction worker; a woman giving birth; an agoraphobic who works on sex chat lines; an oddball home schooled child who believes he can perform time travel and transportation – in other words they are not representative of normal life at all and as well as being clichéd stereotypes.
The goldfish conceit is ridiculous and an excuse for some sub-Coelho cod philosophical meditations.
August 10, 2015
Ian the Goldfish is on a journey of discovery. Falling from a rooftop of a 27 floor apartment block, he catches glimpses of the varied lives through the passing windows. The reader is treated to a deeper look at the lives of the residents of the building.
Each chapter has a name (rather like each episode of the TV show, Friends) and each one is filled with the individual stories of a wonderfully diverse range of characters. A young couple who's ideas of a relationship vary immensely, a first time mother in labour, a woman who is afraid to leave her apartment, a young boy who is home-schooled, the lonely caretaker of the building, the construction worker with a secret and a visiting mistress. There is no connection between these people and they all close their apartment doors without knowing each other.
As Ian floats past each window, he struggles to make sense of what is happening (goldfish memories not being the greatest) and the author cleverly describes the human world through the (dry) eyes of the fish.
There are some of the most amazing pieces of prose dotted through this wonderful novel. It reminds me of a modern day James Joyce, with acute observations, wry humour and wit, combined with honest and endearing characters. Like 'Dubliners' without dwelling on the location of the apartment block or separating each chapter into short story form. There is a slight similarity, in style, to Nick Hornby's works, but this author brings a more literary edge to the table. An absolute joy to read.
This is a quirky read, full of wonderful characters and unique stories. The lightness of Ian the Goldfish is balanced by some great writing and memorable moments. Definitely worth buying, for the arty cover alone.
Each chapter has a name (rather like each episode of the TV show, Friends) and each one is filled with the individual stories of a wonderfully diverse range of characters. A young couple who's ideas of a relationship vary immensely, a first time mother in labour, a woman who is afraid to leave her apartment, a young boy who is home-schooled, the lonely caretaker of the building, the construction worker with a secret and a visiting mistress. There is no connection between these people and they all close their apartment doors without knowing each other.
As Ian floats past each window, he struggles to make sense of what is happening (goldfish memories not being the greatest) and the author cleverly describes the human world through the (dry) eyes of the fish.
There are some of the most amazing pieces of prose dotted through this wonderful novel. It reminds me of a modern day James Joyce, with acute observations, wry humour and wit, combined with honest and endearing characters. Like 'Dubliners' without dwelling on the location of the apartment block or separating each chapter into short story form. There is a slight similarity, in style, to Nick Hornby's works, but this author brings a more literary edge to the table. An absolute joy to read.
This is a quirky read, full of wonderful characters and unique stories. The lightness of Ian the Goldfish is balanced by some great writing and memorable moments. Definitely worth buying, for the arty cover alone.
May 29, 2025
*Sigh*
This book was a major nope for me.
It sounded SO interesting. Following a fish as he falls down to the ground (which is terrifying, by the way) but... that's not really the point of this? Just lots of petty drama. And yes, all of it connects, but it didn't hit right. It felt too congestive. I felt like I was pulled in for one thing but instead got another.
I also wasn't a fan of the writing style, which is my own preference. But I'm always willing to try a book, so I figured... it might be one of those that surprises me. But sadly, it just didn't work for me.
As a marketer, it annoys me that the book was the opposite of what was advertised. And that it's overwritten. But... that's me. That's my opinion. It just wasn't for me.
One out of five stars.
This book was a major nope for me.
It sounded SO interesting. Following a fish as he falls down to the ground (which is terrifying, by the way) but... that's not really the point of this? Just lots of petty drama. And yes, all of it connects, but it didn't hit right. It felt too congestive. I felt like I was pulled in for one thing but instead got another.
I also wasn't a fan of the writing style, which is my own preference. But I'm always willing to try a book, so I figured... it might be one of those that surprises me. But sadly, it just didn't work for me.
As a marketer, it annoys me that the book was the opposite of what was advertised. And that it's overwritten. But... that's me. That's my opinion. It just wasn't for me.
One out of five stars.
October 15, 2025
2.5/5
A fun, quick read. I liked reading about the different characters and their lives and how they come together. Really liked the intro chapter about how this building is in its world basically. The whole fish falling aspect was lost on me though. But I had fun with the flip book animation of the fish falling. Also feel like the book should’ve ended with Ian falling into the water bottle; the last chapter wasn’t necessary really. There were also chapters that felt veryyyy repetitive (esp the ones with Katie and Connor), like we get it, they had sex under the stars. Overall, not something I’d recommend to others but it was fine.
A fun, quick read. I liked reading about the different characters and their lives and how they come together. Really liked the intro chapter about how this building is in its world basically. The whole fish falling aspect was lost on me though. But I had fun with the flip book animation of the fish falling. Also feel like the book should’ve ended with Ian falling into the water bottle; the last chapter wasn’t necessary really. There were also chapters that felt veryyyy repetitive (esp the ones with Katie and Connor), like we get it, they had sex under the stars. Overall, not something I’d recommend to others but it was fine.
June 15, 2024
Fishbowl is a clever story following the decent of Ian the goldfish after jumping out of his bowl and over the balcony railing of an apartment building. Various interconnected stories of strangers residing in the apartment flash by as Ian falls several stories toward the street below. I enjoyed the quirky aspect and the warmth of the dynamics. I rooted for each character and felt compassion for the oddness exposed. I worried for Ian as he fell but all is saved by serendipity. Fun quick read.
July 12, 2015
I had never heard of this book or its author until I spotted it in a Netgalley email highlighting some books to look out for over the next few months. I’m not going to lie, it was the cover that first caught my eye but after reading the synopsis I knew that Fishbowl was a book I needed to read straight away. Luckily I was approved by Ebury (thanks!) for a review copy, but obviously that doesn’t affect my opinion.
The Seville on Roxy is the fishbowl, and we are the observers who stand on the outside watching how events unfold within. At the centre of the story we have the villain Connor, the heroine Katie and the evil seductress Faye, along with a host of other characters including a lonely handyman, a builder with a secret and a time-travelling teenager. Ian the goldfish was a gift to Connor from Katie. He sees an opportunity to flee the constraints of his fishbowl and so he launches himself over the edge of the balcony without much thought as to what will happen next. The rest of the novel follows him on his descent from the 27th floor.
My absolute favourite character was without a doubt Claire, the shut-in. Suffering from some kind of anxiety disorder with OCD tendencies she has cut herself off from the outside world and never leaves her apartment. She has her groceries delivered to her home, only allows her mother to have her telephone number and in order to pay her bills she works for a phone sex line because they allow her to work from home.
Sometimes it is easier to shut yourself away rather than dealing with the rest of the world- something I understand completely. When I was pregnant I was signed off work at 3 months and barely left the house for the rest of my pregnancy. I would panic if I had to go to the doctors or the supermarket on my own, and once my OCD went into overdrive I convinced myself everything I touched was contaminated. I didn’t want to press the buttons to call the lift or change the lights at the crossing, I couldn’t push a shopping trolley and I certainly couldn’t use a public toilet. It was easier to stay home than to go out and worry about every single thing. Obviously this isn’t healthy at all and reading about someone who is at the very extreme end of the scale is quite frightening.
There was a part in another character’s chapter towards the end where I thought Claire’s reaction to what was happening around her wasn’t acceptable, but when the same situation was shown through Claire’s eyes later on it all fell into place and I ended up feeling quite sad for her. Something I struggle with in my own life is making people see things from my perspective, especially when they perceive my behaviour to be irrational. This opened my eyes to how easy it is to misunderstand a person when you don’t know the full extent of their condition.
Petunia Delilah was the only character I didn’t particularly care for either way, and her storyline made me quite anxious and uncomfortable. She is a 26 year old heavily pregnant first time mother who is faced with a traumatic delivery when she goes into labour alone. I can’t read about pregnancy related issues without getting upset and, whilst the storyline itself is wonderfully written, it was quite difficult for me to get through these chapters. I think if you are pregnant or you worry about things going wrong during pregnancy then you should be aware that this book does deal with issues that you might find upsetting. It was interesting how the author had written such a sympathetic storyline for a character who isn’t particularly likeable, especially at first.
The characters are linked, and the actions of one person quite often affect another person somewhere else in the building even if it is indirectly. I enjoy books where the individual character’s stories are woven together somehow and in fact this could have been broken into a series of short stories from each person’s point of view, although I do think it works better as a full novel.
I liked the fact that not every person that Ian sees on his descent is one of our main characters, but even the ones who we only meet in passing are given backstories. I think it’s this character development as well as the diversity of the cast that really makes this book stand out. Fishbowl deals with love, infidelity, sexuality, death, birth, loneliness and mental illness, and is essentially a wonderfully written novel about what it is to be human. Also, with chapters that have titles such as ‘In Which Garth Finds the Center of Unadulterated Loneliness in the Stairwell‘ or ‘In Which Jimenez Witnesses a Spontaneous Creation in the Blackness‘ how can you resist picking this book up straight away? If you only read one book this Summer I strongly recommend it be this one.
The Seville on Roxy is the fishbowl, and we are the observers who stand on the outside watching how events unfold within. At the centre of the story we have the villain Connor, the heroine Katie and the evil seductress Faye, along with a host of other characters including a lonely handyman, a builder with a secret and a time-travelling teenager. Ian the goldfish was a gift to Connor from Katie. He sees an opportunity to flee the constraints of his fishbowl and so he launches himself over the edge of the balcony without much thought as to what will happen next. The rest of the novel follows him on his descent from the 27th floor.
My absolute favourite character was without a doubt Claire, the shut-in. Suffering from some kind of anxiety disorder with OCD tendencies she has cut herself off from the outside world and never leaves her apartment. She has her groceries delivered to her home, only allows her mother to have her telephone number and in order to pay her bills she works for a phone sex line because they allow her to work from home.
Sometimes it is easier to shut yourself away rather than dealing with the rest of the world- something I understand completely. When I was pregnant I was signed off work at 3 months and barely left the house for the rest of my pregnancy. I would panic if I had to go to the doctors or the supermarket on my own, and once my OCD went into overdrive I convinced myself everything I touched was contaminated. I didn’t want to press the buttons to call the lift or change the lights at the crossing, I couldn’t push a shopping trolley and I certainly couldn’t use a public toilet. It was easier to stay home than to go out and worry about every single thing. Obviously this isn’t healthy at all and reading about someone who is at the very extreme end of the scale is quite frightening.
There was a part in another character’s chapter towards the end where I thought Claire’s reaction to what was happening around her wasn’t acceptable, but when the same situation was shown through Claire’s eyes later on it all fell into place and I ended up feeling quite sad for her. Something I struggle with in my own life is making people see things from my perspective, especially when they perceive my behaviour to be irrational. This opened my eyes to how easy it is to misunderstand a person when you don’t know the full extent of their condition.
Petunia Delilah was the only character I didn’t particularly care for either way, and her storyline made me quite anxious and uncomfortable. She is a 26 year old heavily pregnant first time mother who is faced with a traumatic delivery when she goes into labour alone. I can’t read about pregnancy related issues without getting upset and, whilst the storyline itself is wonderfully written, it was quite difficult for me to get through these chapters. I think if you are pregnant or you worry about things going wrong during pregnancy then you should be aware that this book does deal with issues that you might find upsetting. It was interesting how the author had written such a sympathetic storyline for a character who isn’t particularly likeable, especially at first.
The characters are linked, and the actions of one person quite often affect another person somewhere else in the building even if it is indirectly. I enjoy books where the individual character’s stories are woven together somehow and in fact this could have been broken into a series of short stories from each person’s point of view, although I do think it works better as a full novel.
I liked the fact that not every person that Ian sees on his descent is one of our main characters, but even the ones who we only meet in passing are given backstories. I think it’s this character development as well as the diversity of the cast that really makes this book stand out. Fishbowl deals with love, infidelity, sexuality, death, birth, loneliness and mental illness, and is essentially a wonderfully written novel about what it is to be human. Also, with chapters that have titles such as ‘In Which Garth Finds the Center of Unadulterated Loneliness in the Stairwell‘ or ‘In Which Jimenez Witnesses a Spontaneous Creation in the Blackness‘ how can you resist picking this book up straight away? If you only read one book this Summer I strongly recommend it be this one.
June 5, 2015
As Ian the goldfish tumbles from his bowl on the balcony of the twenty-seventh floor and heads toward the ground below, he glimpses the sky, the pavement, and a snippet of the lives of the residents of the apartment building (the Seville) from which he is plunging.
But the story doesn’t begin with Ian falling—that doesn’t happen until a bit later. The story begins a half hour earlier with Katie who stops by the Seville to visit her boyfriend, Connor, who lives on the 27th floor. Unfortunately the elevator is broken and she must use the stairs. Meanwhile Conner is hurrying to clean up his messy apartment and get Faye out of his bed and the building without being seen and sends her down the stairs. At the same time Garth the construction worker is arriving home from work with a secret package; Petunia Delilah goes into premature labor in her apartment and her phone battery is dead; Claire, who fears leaving her apartment, loses her phone-sex job; and home-schooled Herman teleports his way through the building.
All-the-while Ian is tumbling from the twenty-seventh floor. We mark his progress with a little illustration of a goldfish on each page falling closer and closer to the bottom. If you fan through the pages like a flip-book, you can watch him fall.
This is a unique, quirky tale with well-developed, likable characters (even the cheating Connor has his good moments), and a clever writing style. Short, fast-paced chapters each begin with a fun and equally clever title. Chapters are written in alternating perspective of each of the residents with their stories overlaping to link together to form a larger picture of life in the apartment.
This was brilliant, different, and enjoyable. One of the most entertaining books I’ve read this year.
But the story doesn’t begin with Ian falling—that doesn’t happen until a bit later. The story begins a half hour earlier with Katie who stops by the Seville to visit her boyfriend, Connor, who lives on the 27th floor. Unfortunately the elevator is broken and she must use the stairs. Meanwhile Conner is hurrying to clean up his messy apartment and get Faye out of his bed and the building without being seen and sends her down the stairs. At the same time Garth the construction worker is arriving home from work with a secret package; Petunia Delilah goes into premature labor in her apartment and her phone battery is dead; Claire, who fears leaving her apartment, loses her phone-sex job; and home-schooled Herman teleports his way through the building.
All-the-while Ian is tumbling from the twenty-seventh floor. We mark his progress with a little illustration of a goldfish on each page falling closer and closer to the bottom. If you fan through the pages like a flip-book, you can watch him fall.
This is a unique, quirky tale with well-developed, likable characters (even the cheating Connor has his good moments), and a clever writing style. Short, fast-paced chapters each begin with a fun and equally clever title. Chapters are written in alternating perspective of each of the residents with their stories overlaping to link together to form a larger picture of life in the apartment.
This was brilliant, different, and enjoyable. One of the most entertaining books I’ve read this year.
February 6, 2017
3.5 stars rounded to 4. I keep telling myself to be a bit more stingy with the stars but I seem to be getting better at choosing books or at least more able to see the value in all of them.
I usually avoid these types of books. I really don't care to read much about normal lives. I prefer some supernatural thrown in somewhere to emphasize the point the author wants to make, or reading about some extraordinary historical figure. The setup here has been done many times before, an apartment building where the author can examine a swath of lives and how they each, briefly, interact with each other. The element that got me to pick the book up was that I was anticipating some twist due to the fish plummeting down past the windows. Perhaps the fish gives a new and interesting perspective or the examination of each set of lives gets shorter and shorter as the fish picks up speed? Nope, none of that. The goldfish doesn't seem to have much of a perspective and is a bit superfluous, except for the fact that you wonder throughout the entire book, how he gets airborne.
Somer was able to inject much more drama into these lives and situations than I thought was possible. He has a knack for letting you see problems many pages in advance and then letting you stew while he seemingly goes about telling other stories.
Probably a 4 star solid rating if I weren't predisposed to not liking it. I was picking too many nits at the beginning but by the end I had laughed out loud several times, gotten quite nervous and angry at multiple points. What else do you really want from a book besides that?
I usually avoid these types of books. I really don't care to read much about normal lives. I prefer some supernatural thrown in somewhere to emphasize the point the author wants to make, or reading about some extraordinary historical figure. The setup here has been done many times before, an apartment building where the author can examine a swath of lives and how they each, briefly, interact with each other. The element that got me to pick the book up was that I was anticipating some twist due to the fish plummeting down past the windows. Perhaps the fish gives a new and interesting perspective or the examination of each set of lives gets shorter and shorter as the fish picks up speed? Nope, none of that. The goldfish doesn't seem to have much of a perspective and is a bit superfluous, except for the fact that you wonder throughout the entire book, how he gets airborne.
Somer was able to inject much more drama into these lives and situations than I thought was possible. He has a knack for letting you see problems many pages in advance and then letting you stew while he seemingly goes about telling other stories.
Probably a 4 star solid rating if I weren't predisposed to not liking it. I was picking too many nits at the beginning but by the end I had laughed out loud several times, gotten quite nervous and angry at multiple points. What else do you really want from a book besides that?
April 25, 2015
Ian the goldfish lives in a bowl on the 27th floor of the Seville on Roxy. He shares his bowl with Troy the snail, a constant but not very exciting companion. One afternoon, Ian is given the chance to leap for freedom and as he plummets down the 27 floors, the life of the building unfolds before his eye.
I have to say straightaway that I loved this book. It was a little bit slow to start, particularly the opening chapter which sets the tone of the writing and is slightly confusing because you aren't really used to the writing style, but after that, I found it absolutely brilliant.
The Seville is a block of flats and Ian's plummet allows the author to introduce and return to the stories of some of the inhabitants. The titles of the chapters allude to what is going to happen and I really recommend reading those too as they are equally clever. The way that the stories overlap and interweave and go back and forth from each other is completely absorbing and I felt as though I was inside the mind of every one of them. It reminded me quite a lot of the Armistead Maupin "Tales of the City" but updated and taken beyond even those brilliant stories.
All in all, this is a brilliant book which will engage you, make you laugh and cry and want to turn the last few pages really slowly so that it doesn't end. Highly original and definitely highly recommended.
I have to say straightaway that I loved this book. It was a little bit slow to start, particularly the opening chapter which sets the tone of the writing and is slightly confusing because you aren't really used to the writing style, but after that, I found it absolutely brilliant.
The Seville is a block of flats and Ian's plummet allows the author to introduce and return to the stories of some of the inhabitants. The titles of the chapters allude to what is going to happen and I really recommend reading those too as they are equally clever. The way that the stories overlap and interweave and go back and forth from each other is completely absorbing and I felt as though I was inside the mind of every one of them. It reminded me quite a lot of the Armistead Maupin "Tales of the City" but updated and taken beyond even those brilliant stories.
All in all, this is a brilliant book which will engage you, make you laugh and cry and want to turn the last few pages really slowly so that it doesn't end. Highly original and definitely highly recommended.
August 15, 2015
I LOVE THIS BOOK. The entire book takes place in about 30 minutes, giving us a peek into the lives of a few residents of a high rise apartment building. The narration is fantastic - like the book equivalent of going for a walk in the evening and getting a small glipse into people's houses as you pass by. Love, heartbreak, life, death - this book has it all. SO GOOD.
May 31, 2015
This is such a wonderfully off the beaten path read. The exploration of life's quirky interconnectedness as seen through the lives of 8 people and one very adventurous fish!
This is by far one of the best books of 2015!
Full review and author interview to come!
This is by far one of the best books of 2015!
Full review and author interview to come!
January 13, 2022
Drop everything (except the baby) and read this.
June 19, 2019
The cover of "Fishbowl" by Bradley Somer says, "An irrepressible novel--breezy, funny, sexy, and bursting with life." And it is actually and undeniably all of that. Perhaps that is enough said, but I do want to add a few thoughts, largely because of my experience with reading other goodreads reviews and also because, like some others, I believe this book deserves wider promotion and more readers.
Even though I dislike giving 5 star ratings, I gave Fishbowl that rating because it is so original, so well crafted and so enjoyable. While so many authors are trying things like abandoning punctuation, following multiple timelines, eschewing capital letters and a lot of other malarky, Somer rose above that nonsense and delivered an innovative and creative text. Creativity and innovation always baffles many people at first, and it is no surprise that it happened here.
The goodreads reviews of this book I looked at before starting it seemed to either entirely like or dislike the book and many reviews focused on the story thread being tied to the fall of the goldfish from the 27th floor.
Several people did not like the goldfish element. I did, though not as a part of the plot, but rather, as a part of the tone and general feel of the book.
The meat of the novel has little to do with the goldfish and in fact, I think the novel could be read as a series of flash-fiction stories without the goldfish angle at all. But the goldfish element adds a tone of play, fun, humor and lightheartedness that makes the various stories, some quite tragic, easier to digest. In fact, there are parts of the book that a would seem didactic and preachy were it not for the tone established by the goldfish story. This is particularly true of the last chapter which is thoughtful and even almost profound, but would be heavy-handed in a more serious presentation of the book.
I think Somer has also hit upon a very important fact by using this format in which actions are obversed in the flash of a second and then are unremembered by the observer. The fact is that life happens in flashes, in small bits most of which are unplanned and usually unremembered, but each of these nanoseconds of reality is absolutely critical to the whole. Sometimes lives change in the nanosecond of tragedy: a car wreck, a gunshot, a heart attack. Other times, the changes are not as directly or easily seen as in those profound moments, but each second is nevertheless a vital building block of all of the others. This book captures that entire idea, yet the author's insight is palatable, presented in a frame that also makes it memorable. Moreover, Fishbowl actually reflects the belief observed by many philosophers: The only moment we truly have is this moment, the now. The past is gone and even the memories of it are inaccurate and the future has not arrived. The future that will arrive is the result of all of these unremembered second of the "now".
The book will cause readers to chuckle or even laugh in many places, but in the end, it makes a serious and profound insight into life.
Even though I dislike giving 5 star ratings, I gave Fishbowl that rating because it is so original, so well crafted and so enjoyable. While so many authors are trying things like abandoning punctuation, following multiple timelines, eschewing capital letters and a lot of other malarky, Somer rose above that nonsense and delivered an innovative and creative text. Creativity and innovation always baffles many people at first, and it is no surprise that it happened here.
The goodreads reviews of this book I looked at before starting it seemed to either entirely like or dislike the book and many reviews focused on the story thread being tied to the fall of the goldfish from the 27th floor.
Several people did not like the goldfish element. I did, though not as a part of the plot, but rather, as a part of the tone and general feel of the book.
The meat of the novel has little to do with the goldfish and in fact, I think the novel could be read as a series of flash-fiction stories without the goldfish angle at all. But the goldfish element adds a tone of play, fun, humor and lightheartedness that makes the various stories, some quite tragic, easier to digest. In fact, there are parts of the book that a would seem didactic and preachy were it not for the tone established by the goldfish story. This is particularly true of the last chapter which is thoughtful and even almost profound, but would be heavy-handed in a more serious presentation of the book.
I think Somer has also hit upon a very important fact by using this format in which actions are obversed in the flash of a second and then are unremembered by the observer. The fact is that life happens in flashes, in small bits most of which are unplanned and usually unremembered, but each of these nanoseconds of reality is absolutely critical to the whole. Sometimes lives change in the nanosecond of tragedy: a car wreck, a gunshot, a heart attack. Other times, the changes are not as directly or easily seen as in those profound moments, but each second is nevertheless a vital building block of all of the others. This book captures that entire idea, yet the author's insight is palatable, presented in a frame that also makes it memorable. Moreover, Fishbowl actually reflects the belief observed by many philosophers: The only moment we truly have is this moment, the now. The past is gone and even the memories of it are inaccurate and the future has not arrived. The future that will arrive is the result of all of these unremembered second of the "now".
The book will cause readers to chuckle or even laugh in many places, but in the end, it makes a serious and profound insight into life.
June 4, 2023
this was a fun, quick read that did the trick of getting me out of my slump. I really enjoyed the characters and overlapping storylines, but I honestly felt the “fishbowl” subplot was pretty unnecessary for it being the title of the book?
December 7, 2015
From my book review blog at https://themoustachioedreader.wordpre...
This book exudes joy, life, resilience and hope
Everything, from the gorgeous cover, bright orange and with terrific typography and evocative artwork, to the wonderful fish cartoon that tumbles down the pages as they are flicked, is beautifully presented. And the important thing, the story on the pages contained within, is just as wonderfully fabulous.
I’m a little unsure how to categorize this book or how best to concisely describe the plot. The subtitle of “Fishbowl” is “what the goldfish saw as he fell from the 27th floor” and that, pretty much, is it in a nutshell. Or, in this case, that should be “in a bowl”. Oh, and what a brilliant bowl Somer has created.
The goldfish, Ian, glimpses brief snatches and moments in the lives of the occupants of the Seville on Roxy as he undertakes his terrifying fall from the 27th floor of the building. The residents, each living separate lives removed from that of their immediate neighbours and often in complete isolation, are drawn together as the novel progresses. Bradley Somer, has created a memorable cast of characters in this whimsical, warm and funny, moving and beautifully crafted book that delights and charms in abundance.
The chapter titles are magnificent in their own little way, each one a tantalizing and charming prelude to the joys that lie ahead. The writing is crisp and sharp, eloquent and provocative, funny and sad. This book is a delight to read.
It is a book to enjoy; I implore you to do just that.
The-Mustachioed-Reader
My Rating: 5.0* out of 5.0*
ANTICIPATED PUBLICATION DATE: August 4th 2015
This book exudes joy, life, resilience and hope
Everything, from the gorgeous cover, bright orange and with terrific typography and evocative artwork, to the wonderful fish cartoon that tumbles down the pages as they are flicked, is beautifully presented. And the important thing, the story on the pages contained within, is just as wonderfully fabulous.
I’m a little unsure how to categorize this book or how best to concisely describe the plot. The subtitle of “Fishbowl” is “what the goldfish saw as he fell from the 27th floor” and that, pretty much, is it in a nutshell. Or, in this case, that should be “in a bowl”. Oh, and what a brilliant bowl Somer has created.
The goldfish, Ian, glimpses brief snatches and moments in the lives of the occupants of the Seville on Roxy as he undertakes his terrifying fall from the 27th floor of the building. The residents, each living separate lives removed from that of their immediate neighbours and often in complete isolation, are drawn together as the novel progresses. Bradley Somer, has created a memorable cast of characters in this whimsical, warm and funny, moving and beautifully crafted book that delights and charms in abundance.
The chapter titles are magnificent in their own little way, each one a tantalizing and charming prelude to the joys that lie ahead. The writing is crisp and sharp, eloquent and provocative, funny and sad. This book is a delight to read.
It is a book to enjoy; I implore you to do just that.
The-Mustachioed-Reader
My Rating: 5.0* out of 5.0*
ANTICIPATED PUBLICATION DATE: August 4th 2015
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