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The Rosie Project
(Don Tillman #1)
by
An international sensation, this hilarious, feel-good novel is narrated by an oddly charming and socially challenged genetics professor on an unusual quest: to find out if he is capable of true love.
Don Tillman, professor of genetics, has never been on a second date. He is a man who can count all his friends on the fingers of one hand, whose lifelong difficulty with social ...more
Don Tillman, professor of genetics, has never been on a second date. He is a man who can count all his friends on the fingers of one hand, whose lifelong difficulty with social ...more
Audiobook, 8 pages
Published
January 1st 2015
by Bolinda/Audible Audio
(first published January 30th 2013)
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For both reasons. I would say the author was adding more humorous anecdotes.
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Community Reviews
Showing 1-30

Start your review of The Rosie Project (Don Tillman, #1)

Sheldon in love.
Adorable and fun. Probably one of the most enjoyable chick lit books I've read, ironically, written by a man.
On the other hand, not nearly enough sex in it.
...more
Adorable and fun. Probably one of the most enjoyable chick lit books I've read, ironically, written by a man.
On the other hand, not nearly enough sex in it.
...more

This does for Autism what Pretty Woman did for prostitutes. It uses it for entertainment, it plays on it for laughter. It's a 1970's sitcom of a book.
The character of (Shel)Don feels like little more that fan-fiction of The Big Bang Theory and Rosie seems like the perfect emulation of The Cool Girl as described in Gone Girl. She's too trite and quirky to be believable. Don himself is simply a figure of fun, he moves form scene to scene for our amusement in a "what will he do now?" manner as Juli ...more
The character of (Shel)Don feels like little more that fan-fiction of The Big Bang Theory and Rosie seems like the perfect emulation of The Cool Girl as described in Gone Girl. She's too trite and quirky to be believable. Don himself is simply a figure of fun, he moves form scene to scene for our amusement in a "what will he do now?" manner as Juli ...more

‘The Rosie Project’ by Graeme Simsion is so wonderful.
I’m going to attempt to enumerate my enjoyment of the novel;
1. Don Tillman is an Associate Professor of genetics at the University of Melbourne. He has a black-belt in Akikido, and can cook a mean lobster salad. He also has Asperger syndrome – but he doesn’t know that. Don just thinks that there’s something missing that leaves him baffled by human behaviour and unappealing to other people (especially the opposite sex). But after his dear ol ...more
I’m going to attempt to enumerate my enjoyment of the novel;
1. Don Tillman is an Associate Professor of genetics at the University of Melbourne. He has a black-belt in Akikido, and can cook a mean lobster salad. He also has Asperger syndrome – but he doesn’t know that. Don just thinks that there’s something missing that leaves him baffled by human behaviour and unappealing to other people (especially the opposite sex). But after his dear ol ...more

What a shame!
What a shame Graeme Simsion wrote this offering "quickly" and that he went with a "comedy rather than a drama".
What a shame that the opportunity to educate and illuminate was squandered and traded for gratuitous laughs ,extreme generalisations and blatant stereotyping.
My initial delight at realising the subject matter of this book meant I was immediately enrolled in ' the project'. A third of the way into the book, I became uncomfortable with the tenor and theme. The premise that hi ...more
What a shame Graeme Simsion wrote this offering "quickly" and that he went with a "comedy rather than a drama".
What a shame that the opportunity to educate and illuminate was squandered and traded for gratuitous laughs ,extreme generalisations and blatant stereotyping.
My initial delight at realising the subject matter of this book meant I was immediately enrolled in ' the project'. A third of the way into the book, I became uncomfortable with the tenor and theme. The premise that hi ...more

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.

Ultracharming & very very, uh, cute. The singular voice of the main character is enough to convince the reader that a love story exists in anything. This rom-com takes some DNA from various films, especially, it seems, 1997's "As Good As it Gets." Worth a read, its very likely to become a film soon (the novel was originally written as a, yup, screenplay!).
...more

Mar 16, 2015
Alienor ✘ French Frowner ✘
rated it
really liked it
·
review of another edition
Recommended to Alienor ✘ French Frowner ✘ by:
Melwasul

Actual rating : 3.5 stars
From the moment I finished it I knew I had one critical task to perform : To review this

Although the timing is particularly annoying, I realized that the several options I faced made my choice incredibly clear.
➊ Not reviewing this book, resulting in damage to this book's fame, which would be appalling due to the fact that it's fucking awesome.
➋ Rescheduling this review to another time, resulting in loss of memories and leading to a probable abandonment o ...more

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It was very amusing and clever. The protagonist Don is definitely a clichéd version of someone with Asperger's, but I think he had to be for the purposes of the novel. He sits on the very end of the spectrum and embodies every single stereotypical attribute of an Aspie. At one point I cringed at the end of the book when he is struggling about whether he feels love or not. Not accurate for someone with Asperger's - they actually have intense emotions but are unable
...more

How addictive was this book? I read it in a day - a day when I should have been doing other things.
It's a fun, quirky and erudite love story. It's laugh-out-loud funny and unexpectedly touching.
Don is a wonderfully offbeat narrative character and Rosie is his perfect foil. Graeme Simsion writes both characters pitch perfect.
I think one of the reasons the story is so appealing is that it's written by a man, from a man's perspective. And it's definitely not lad lit.
This book is going to be a huge ...more
It's a fun, quirky and erudite love story. It's laugh-out-loud funny and unexpectedly touching.
Don is a wonderfully offbeat narrative character and Rosie is his perfect foil. Graeme Simsion writes both characters pitch perfect.
I think one of the reasons the story is so appealing is that it's written by a man, from a man's perspective. And it's definitely not lad lit.
This book is going to be a huge ...more

Feb 25, 2014
B the BookAddict
rated it
it was ok
·
review of another edition
Recommended to B the BookAddict by:
GR
Shelves:
autumn-challenge
My first note written about this novel is a 1 ★ intolerably woeful but a night's sleep has made me feel a little more generous so I've amended it to 2★it was ok. The whole premise felt predictable, horribly predictable, I found that main character incredibly annoying and the humor did not amuse me. I know I am swimming against the tide of most readers, especially my GR friends but it was just all very ho-hum for me. Sorry, folks. 2★ ...more

I actually ended up enjoying this book much more than I originally thought I would.
At the forefront it seems extremely sexist and not that great plot-wise, but it definitely addresses those issues and works through them with character development, which I found to be fantastic.
The only thing I'm not sure on is the depiction of Asperger's. I am not an expert in any way, so I'm not sure if this portrayal was accurate/correct/well done. If someone wants to tell me that would be awesome!
Overall enj ...more
At the forefront it seems extremely sexist and not that great plot-wise, but it definitely addresses those issues and works through them with character development, which I found to be fantastic.
The only thing I'm not sure on is the depiction of Asperger's. I am not an expert in any way, so I'm not sure if this portrayal was accurate/correct/well done. If someone wants to tell me that would be awesome!
Overall enj ...more

Read this over two very busy days. I fell in love with Don, the protagonist. I loved the ways he measured and evaluated life. I want to embrace his rigid meal plan and have lobster in my bathtub every Tuesday night.
Although Don is a highly esteemed genetics scientist, he views life with a beautiful naivety, he knows the workings and technicalities of people, but just can't grasp that element that makes us chaotic, individual works of art.
And I laughed! Yep, I finally came to understand the inte ...more
Although Don is a highly esteemed genetics scientist, he views life with a beautiful naivety, he knows the workings and technicalities of people, but just can't grasp that element that makes us chaotic, individual works of art.
And I laughed! Yep, I finally came to understand the inte ...more

The Rosie Project (Don Tillman, #1), Graeme Simsion
An international sensation, this hilarious, feel-good novel is narrated by an oddly charming and socially challenged genetics professor on an unusual quest: to find out if he is capable of true love.
Don Tillman, professor of genetics, has never been on a second date. He is a man who can count all his friends on the fingers of one hand, whose lifelong difficulty with social rituals has convinced him that he is simply not wired for romance.
So wh ...more
An international sensation, this hilarious, feel-good novel is narrated by an oddly charming and socially challenged genetics professor on an unusual quest: to find out if he is capable of true love.
Don Tillman, professor of genetics, has never been on a second date. He is a man who can count all his friends on the fingers of one hand, whose lifelong difficulty with social rituals has convinced him that he is simply not wired for romance.
So wh ...more

Here's the thing: I am very tired.
Not sleepy, precisely. But fatigued. Overworked. Simply exhausted.
This is an important caveat because of what is to come in this review.
To put it simply, I do not have the energy to put up a front. No snarky persona will ensue. I will not be cracking jokes at the expense of this book or anything else.
And all that leaves is...gag...sincerity.
So I have to say my real and true thoughts about this book, and my real and true thoughts are that I read it nearly two mon ...more
Not sleepy, precisely. But fatigued. Overworked. Simply exhausted.
This is an important caveat because of what is to come in this review.
To put it simply, I do not have the energy to put up a front. No snarky persona will ensue. I will not be cracking jokes at the expense of this book or anything else.
And all that leaves is...gag...sincerity.
So I have to say my real and true thoughts about this book, and my real and true thoughts are that I read it nearly two mon ...more

This book started out really great. For the first 100 pages I was entertained and even got a kick out of the quirky narration. Then I sat back and thought about who I was reading into the mind of. Don is a sort of disturbed man. I was very uncomfortable throughout the last half of this book because he needed serious help dealing with the world that he wasn't receiving. Rather, people-- his friends-- would watch his actions and laugh. Don was such an unreliable narrator and what was an attempt at
...more

This book made me laugh. Not many books can do that. This was a truly delightful book to read and I would never ask for a minute of the time spent reading it back.
Made all the more amazing by the fact that it is the first novel of Melbourne writer Graeme Simsion, The Rosie Project will rank highly amongst my 2013 reads.
Written from a unique perspective, this is one of the few, if not the only, romantic comedies with a male protagonist. And not only male, but autistic.
Don Tillman is a brillian ...more
Made all the more amazing by the fact that it is the first novel of Melbourne writer Graeme Simsion, The Rosie Project will rank highly amongst my 2013 reads.
Written from a unique perspective, this is one of the few, if not the only, romantic comedies with a male protagonist. And not only male, but autistic.
Don Tillman is a brillian ...more

I was completely charmed by this novel. Sure, it's basically Sheldon Cooper Tries to Find a Wife, but I liked it.
Don Tillman is a genetics professor in his late 30s who sets out to find a spouse by devising an elaborate questionnaire. Don is very fussy and regimented in his life, and allusions are made to him having Asperger's. Don thinks he can weed out any unsuitable partners and find someone well-matched for him. Meanwhile, he bumps into a woman named Rosie, who Don agrees is totally unsuitab ...more
Don Tillman is a genetics professor in his late 30s who sets out to find a spouse by devising an elaborate questionnaire. Don is very fussy and regimented in his life, and allusions are made to him having Asperger's. Don thinks he can weed out any unsuitable partners and find someone well-matched for him. Meanwhile, he bumps into a woman named Rosie, who Don agrees is totally unsuitab ...more

4.5 'Nerds Need Love Too' stars.
This wasn't a traditional romance novel, but I enjoyed the romantic aspect of this story quite a bit. There was also a fun and interesting journey with Don and Rosie gathering dozens of samples of DNA to determine who might be Rosie's biological father. It made me laugh quite a few times!

The hero, Don Tillman, is a 39 y/o socially inept scientist who lives his life based on strict rules. He never believed that love, romance and marriage was for him. But when a f ...more

I enjoyed every single minute of this book! I knew it'd be a favorite because I've lived it! There is a "Don" in my life, and I was very clearly put on the "unsuitable" list, but we've remained good friends. It's hard not to love these sort of characters (real or fictitious).
I wager that this will be a film in the not too distant future. Even though it's an Australian book, I can't help but peg Lizzy Caplan as Rosie.
*sigh* Just need a few more minutes to let it all sink in... ...more
I wager that this will be a film in the not too distant future. Even though it's an Australian book, I can't help but peg Lizzy Caplan as Rosie.
*sigh* Just need a few more minutes to let it all sink in... ...more

Nov 07, 2015
Ayesha
rated it
really liked it
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Dolphins,Justin Timberlake,The guy who put chili in my corn,Tamtool basically every earthen.
Don, If you were real I would marry you in a heartbeat. ♡♡♡♡...more![]()

Buddy Read with Murugesh.
This book is Absolutely Adorable. I think I had a BIG GRIN the entire time I was reading this book.
Don Tillman at the start reminded me strongly of Sheldon Cooper from 'The Big Bang Theory', he has strong resemblance to Sheldon but still has characteristics of his own, and very cute ones I must say!
Don meets Rosie and his life changes for the best.
"In less than fifteen minutes, my entire schedule had been torn apart, shattered, rendered redundant. Rosie had taken over ...more
This book is Absolutely Adorable. I think I had a BIG GRIN the entire time I was reading this book.
Don Tillman at the start reminded me strongly of Sheldon Cooper from 'The Big Bang Theory', he has strong resemblance to Sheldon but still has characteristics of his own, and very cute ones I must say!
Don meets Rosie and his life changes for the best.
"In less than fifteen minutes, my entire schedule had been torn apart, shattered, rendered redundant. Rosie had taken over ...more

The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion is an absolute gem.
Simsion is an Australian author who is also an IT consultant and data analyst, he is currently a Senior Research Fellow at Melbourne University, in 2007 he enrolled in a screenwriting course and now he has written several best-selling novels. This certainly won’t be the last book of his I’ll read. I’m making a MASSIVE assumption here but judging by the fact he’s an IT guy and a data analyst, he may have some direct experience of being on ‘th ...more
Simsion is an Australian author who is also an IT consultant and data analyst, he is currently a Senior Research Fellow at Melbourne University, in 2007 he enrolled in a screenwriting course and now he has written several best-selling novels. This certainly won’t be the last book of his I’ll read. I’m making a MASSIVE assumption here but judging by the fact he’s an IT guy and a data analyst, he may have some direct experience of being on ‘th ...more

Oct 19, 2018
L A i N E Y ~back in a bit~
rated it
really liked it
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Cyndi, Holly, Jessica, Rachelle
I would never, in a million years, imagine that one day I would cheer and laugh out loud at a room full of children chanting for someone to “kill the baby!”, but that was before I picked this book up. Because in reality that scene was so hilarious and entertaining!
I was utterly elated: I laughed, I smiled and I “Awww Don” and “Oh Don” through the whole thing. All in all, I had a beatific couple of days reading this book.
It is a smart book with smart characters doing intelligent things thinking ...more
I was utterly elated: I laughed, I smiled and I “Awww Don” and “Oh Don” through the whole thing. All in all, I had a beatific couple of days reading this book.
It is a smart book with smart characters doing intelligent things thinking ...more

Don Tillman is an absolute hoot! I loved his odd, technical way of speaking. Don is a professor of genetics and he's looking for someone to share his life with. He's socially-awkward, lonely, and over- analytical to a fault. He's pushing 40 and he's had a difficult time in the romance department. One day, he decides to start a project - which he hilariously calls, "The Wife Project". It's basically a detailed, yet rambling questionnaire of the requirements/preferences he's searching for in a lon
...more

I loved this romantic comedy and it's main character, Don Tillman, a socially inept genetics professor. Deciding he would like a wife he devises a questionnaire for his "wife project". He filters out all the unsuitable candidates through an extensive list of questions. Just hilarious. His best and only friend, Gene, another professor, sends Rosie his way although unbeknown to Don is totally unsuitable according to his criteria. There friendship starts a wonderful and charming set of events.
I lis ...more
I lis ...more

Jul 30, 2014
Rowena
rated it
really liked it
·
review of another edition
Recommended to Rowena by:
Idarah
Shelves:
humour
4.5 stars
I went through a fluffy novel/chick lit phase during my late teens and early twenties and vowed I would never pick up such a book again. However, this book came highly recommended so I decided to give it a go.
I was pleasantly surprised by this book. Don Tillman is a socially inept university professor, with very few friends and an extremely rigid lifestyle. He has designed a questionnaire, "The Wife Project", to find himself a wife. Unfortunately his standards are incredibly high. Howev ...more
I went through a fluffy novel/chick lit phase during my late teens and early twenties and vowed I would never pick up such a book again. However, this book came highly recommended so I decided to give it a go.
I was pleasantly surprised by this book. Don Tillman is a socially inept university professor, with very few friends and an extremely rigid lifestyle. He has designed a questionnaire, "The Wife Project", to find himself a wife. Unfortunately his standards are incredibly high. Howev ...more

Jan 23, 2014
Suzanne
rated it
it was amazing
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
library-penrith,
signed-copy,
owned,
favourites,
aussie-author,
lent,
first-of-series,
have-met-the-author
This was a great read, really engaging, the characters were sweet and quirky, the main character is a good guy with various issues, he was so real though and was happy to be himself. I found myself really gunning for him! Rosie sweeps into his life which places him into a bit of a spin, life is about to change, and it's a fun ride whilst this happens. She was great too, just like in real life it's nice to meet people who buck the trend and don't have to be like 'everybody else'. I recommend this
...more

Nov 10, 2014
Sandy *The world could end while I was reading and I would never notice*
rated it
it was amazing
·
review of another edition
EXCERPT: I may have found a solution to the Wife Problem. As with so many scientific breakthroughs, the answer was obvious in retrospect. But had it not been for a series of unscheduled events, it is unlikely I would have discovered it.
The sequence was initiated by Gene's insisting I give a lecture on Asperger's syndrome that he had previously agreed to deliver himself. The timing was extremely annoying. The preparation could be time-shared with lunch consumption, but on the designated evening I ...more
The sequence was initiated by Gene's insisting I give a lecture on Asperger's syndrome that he had previously agreed to deliver himself. The timing was extremely annoying. The preparation could be time-shared with lunch consumption, but on the designated evening I ...more

An unconventional take on the Rom-Com genre, but with the same tropes.

Here we have Don Tillman (view spoiler) , a genetics researcher who has his life organized to the last minute and finally decides to take a wife. In order to do so, he creates a questionnaire in order to filter out all unsuitable women. (Why he doesn’ ...more

Here we have Don Tillman (view spoiler) , a genetics researcher who has his life organized to the last minute and finally decides to take a wife. In order to do so, he creates a questionnaire in order to filter out all unsuitable women. (Why he doesn’ ...more

Oct 09, 2013
Kelly (and the Book Boar)
rated it
really liked it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
read-in-2013
Find all of my reviews at: http://52bookminimum.blogspot.com/
a/k/a “Sheldon Cooper Finds a Wife”
Don is a creature of habit. His work, exercise, dinner, clothes, well …. EVERYTHING is scheduled to the second with zero variation. The only time Don has really ventured out of his comfort zone was when he befriended Daphne – a lonely elderly neighbor whose husband had been put in a nursing home. Before Daphne’s own health declines, she proclaims what a wonderful husband Don will be to some lucky gir ...more
a/k/a “Sheldon Cooper Finds a Wife”
Don is a creature of habit. His work, exercise, dinner, clothes, well …. EVERYTHING is scheduled to the second with zero variation. The only time Don has really ventured out of his comfort zone was when he befriended Daphne – a lonely elderly neighbor whose husband had been put in a nursing home. Before Daphne’s own health declines, she proclaims what a wonderful husband Don will be to some lucky gir ...more
topics | posts | views | last activity | |
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Play Book Tag: The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion 3 stars (play and persue it) | 2 | 9 | Jan 14, 2021 11:45AM | |
YA Buddy Readers'...: The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion - Restarting September 17th 2020 | 121 | 280 | Sep 26, 2020 06:29AM | |
Goodreads Librari...: Please combine | 2 | 13 | Jul 26, 2020 11:35PM | |
Play Book Tag: [+Poll Ballot] The Rosie Project / Graeme Simsion. 4.33 stars (average) | 1 | 6 | Jun 06, 2020 11:38PM |
Graeme Simsion is a former IT consultant and the author of two nonfiction books on database design who decided, at the age of fifty, to turn his hand to fiction. His first novel, The Rosie Project, was published in 2013 and translation rights have been sold in forty languages. Movie rights have been optioned to Sony Pictures. The sequels, The Rosie Effect, and The Rosie Result, were also bestselle
...more
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“But why, why, why can't people just say what they mean?”
—
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“I asked you here tonight because when you realise you want to spend the rest of your life with somebody, you want the rest of your life to start as soon as possible.”
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