The Lemon Jell-O Syndrome

by Man Martin

A comic novel about the stresses in a small college linguist's personal and professional life. As he loses his wife then his job, Bone King begins suffering a mysterious ailment that prevents him from going through doors. His only hope is renowned neurologist Arthur Limongello.

Sometimes Bone King cannot go through doors. He has no physical impairment, but at times his brain and muscles simply can't recall how to walk him through them. Perhaps it has something to do with his being distracted thinking about grammar and etymology all the time, or maybe it's anxiety that his wife is having an affair with the yardman.

But then renowned neurologist Arthur Limongello offers a diagnosis as peculiar as the ailment: Bone's self is starting to dislodge from his brain. The treatment is a series of therapeutic tasks; Bone must compliment a stranger each day, do good deeds without being asked, and remind himself each morning that "Today is a good day!"

But first, as a temporary measure, he also suggests Bone simply try to dance through the doorways. And for a time, Bone's square dancing, the only kind of dance he knows how to do, seems to more or less work.

Bone's condition begins to improve, but then his wife leaves him, and after a harrowing ordeal during which he nearly loses his life, Bone makes an astounding discovery about the man who has been calling himself Dr. Limongello.

Is Limongello's remedy the product of a deranged imagination or the cure for a modern epidemic threatening the very self?

Genres: Contemporary, Fiction

304 pages, Paperback

First published April 17, 2017

Reviews

[Noel]

Neuroscience and etymology: my two favorite subjects in one book?? Add the charming humor and pop-off-the-page characters and it's a perfect recipe for a Noel read. I admit, I didn't love how flat his wife's portrayal was and her callousness towards him, but I overlooked it for the rest of the story. I also think we might have an unreliable narrator on our hands. But as a whole, excellent book.

[Angela]

Loved it! Reminded me of a cross between A Man Called Ove and something from Tom Robbins.

[Gaele]

AudioBook Review:
Stars: Overall 3.5 Narration 4 Story 3

I’ve never read a story that features a protagonist who is so restrained and constrained by his personality. Bone King is a linguist, a major grammar nerd with social issues, a tendency to overthink words and their use, and a marriage on the rocks. It wasn’t that Bone was quirky: I appreciate quirky, but his iron-clad grip on doing things his way often fought with his ‘therapy’ and there felt as if there was an underlying need for Bone to feel set-apart. Perhaps some of this is intellectual snobbery, perhaps it truly is a touch of self-centered focus as he easily gets into navel gazing about a word, its origin or use far more frequently than one would expect. But, taking moments to laugh (and visualize his struggles with the tasks set out before him by the ‘therapist’ Arthur Limongello.

See, Bone has an inability to walk through doors –taking that into a psychoanalysis point of view (the kings of navel gazing) one could think of the fear of change, new situations, even new circumstances. In Limongello-speak, his self (including self-determination and movement) are dislodging – and he must work to reattach them. Here is where the story starts to pick up in many ways: the imagery of a grown man square dancing through doorways, fighting to care about greeting new people each day or following his assignments as his mind is constantly and consistently mulling over words, his personal life, his wife and her affair with the gardener. But as things start to move in directions unknown, and Arthur Limongello’s past comes forward with a big secret and all may not be what it seems: Bone’s quandary (and the small improvements he has made in his life with this help, become a story that alternates between quirky fun and deeper thoughts about self, self-image, relating to the world and even recovering from dramatic events.

Narration for this story is provided by David Aaron Baker and he had that I’m here but not here sort of impact that I expected from Bone: he’s never truly focused on just one thing and that touch of remove was clearly present in this performance. Limongello’s presence was far different in audible effect: he appeared confident, calm and knowing and just the person you’d want for therapy. Clear enunciation, easy to distinguish character voices with nuanced pace, tone and delivery, the narration kept me engaged and involved in the story.

I received an AudioBook copy of the title from Recorded Books for purpose of honest review. I was not compensated for this review: all conclusions are my own responsibility.

Review first appeared at I am, Indeed

[Calvin]

Man Martin's new novel is stylish, not so serious that it stops being funny, not so funny that it can't deal with something serious, deeply interesting, and entertainingly structured. The familiar theme of a somewhat self-possessed man having marital troubles is given a quirky spin by the addition of strange psychological disorders, mistaken identity, sentence diagramming, and entertaining etymologies. I previously read and enjoyed Martin's "Paradise Dogs," but this time "The Lemon Jell-O Syndrome" blew me away with how well put together it is, and how multi-layered and interesting the author's style and plotting has become. I had thoughts of Joseph Heller as the interesting characters combined being absolutely themselves and interacting unapologetically with each other to move the plot along in unexpected ways. And although much more conclusive a plot than David Foster Wallace's "Infinite Jest" (not to mention greatly shorter!), the story still left plenty of fun room for speculation after the last page is turned. I am very happy, and feel honored, to have read this excellent story.

[Susan]

This was a delightful read to start off my summer! It is a funny and touching story.

[Melissa Lee-Tammeus]

I thought this was a super fun, quirky book but I think it may take a certain type to fully appreciate this book. It is from the viewpoint of a grammar professor who is writing a book called "Words" in which he explores the beginnings of the alphabet in many cultures. He is a bit of a fuddy duddy and has social issues. His marriage is mediocre and his job is on the line due to the social awkwardness. Thus, he gets a psychosomatic disorder (or is it?) in which he cannot walk through doors. He meets a doctor (or is it?) who doesn't believe in medication but rather dancing and doing good deeds, thus to get through a door he prescribes square dancing and helping neighbors. I know, it sounds silly, but I promise it is heartbreaking, quirky, and heartwarming. It reminded me a bit of the television series Arrested Development in that there are very serious issues going on, but it is dealt with with a weird twist of humor. Loved it. Kudos, Mr. Martin. Your other books are on my list.

[Mikkee]

I didn't finish this book. I got frustrated with both main characters and couldn't read anymore.

[Sunshine Moore]

Very funny, light hearted. My first story with a grammarian for a protagonist.

[Deb]

A quirky, enjoyable read!

[Madeleine]

Very clever. Very quirky. Thoroughly enjoyable.

[Kara]

I did not understand what this book was trying to do. It was obnoxious.

[Sharla Desy]

Two and a half-stars. Books with adulterous characters never seem to impress me, and this one is no exception. I spent more time feeling disgusted with the wife who cheats on the husband than I did feeling sympathetic toward the husband with the mysterious, debilitating illness.
I suspect that this book was meant to be humorous in its absurdity, and that I was not tuned in to that style of humor. I also wonder where some of the blurbs on the back cover came from. I have never heard of any of the commentors, except possibly for the last one, Dinty W. Moore. I only know Dinty Moore as a brand of canned stew, so maybe the entire book is a joke.
Every chapter began with a section on a letter from, I think, the Hebrew alphabet; the relationship of that letter to letters in our modern English alphabet; and commentary on words related to that letter. I found these sections dense and uninteresting and began skipping them midway through the book.
I considered abandoning this book at several points; I finished it more out of stubbornness than any care or compassion for the characters.

[Susan]

I like a good oddball character but sometimes I just can't make any connection to them. That was the case with Bone King, a man who finds that in times of extreme stress he can not walk through doorways. In addition, the man is very book smart but has no social skills. He can't have a conversation with someone without bringing up word origins or correcting their grammar. I thought I would find this more clever but instead it quickly became grating. On top of that, I immediately surmised a major plot point and that increased my dislike of Mr. King.

[Dawn]

This hilarious book was bought on a whim during a trip to a used book store while looking for my son's summer reading choice. While the summer reading was unavailable, this book stuck out on the shelf, not only because of the title, but also because of the Georgia author. I'm so glad I didn't pass it up. It is the story of the inner journey of Dr. Bone King from academia-absorbed social outcast to benevolent neighbor and friend, and I really enjoyed it.

[Linda]

The beginning and end of the book are really enjoyable, but I thought it was a tad draggy in the middle. Interesting protagonist, the grammarian, and interesting notations on words at the beginning of every chapter. English majors, grammar lovers, and those who like a quirky read would be interested.

[Myra]

I'm sort of ashamed that I finished reading this. But every once in a while, it would start to get interesting, so I'd get drawn back in. But then the main character would do something like diagram sentences or poop in a box and I'd be wondering about my sanity again. I've experienced worse books, and the concept of this was intriguing, but overall it's just not good.

[Elephantom]

I listened to the audio book and struggled with the etymology introductions of the chapters. In spite of that I really enjoyed the first half of the story. I loved the prescribed therapy and the experiences . From when Bone ended up in hospital, though, it changed a bit. He has to face reality and the levity disappears from the story. The ending left me unsatisfied.

[Sara]

This book kept my interest except for the lengthy word discussions. It fits with the main character's position as a grammar professor so it does make sense with the book. Some of the book is a little too predictable and some of it is too unbelievable, but it wraps neatly into this quirky book.

[Sami Jo]

So funny! I need to chat with the author about how he came up with this idea - I don't often laugh out loud, but this totally did the trick!

[Audra]

I absolutely adore Man Martin's writing style!

[Brenda]

Quirky book which was a delight! I heard Man Martin interviewed on NPR and was intrigued. So glad I read this book. Also, you don’t see many diagramed sentences in a book. ;)

[Marci]

This is the FIRST book I have ever read that made me want to square dance. It's good.
That said, its beat runs a bit slow throughout the book, a slow dance rather than a promenade.

[Kierra]

A sweet, thoughtful, and charming story with a main character so endearingly pitiful and clueless you can't help but love him and root for him.

[P.]

Main character is pretty pathetic so far. Stopped after 1st visit to Dr. Was only reading for bookclub and they postponed it.

[Meredith]

1) I bought this for Ross as a present and then he put it on my stack of books, thinking that I'd gotten it for myself. This is similar to the time when I got my mom a Josh Groban Christmas CD and she re-gifted me the exact same CD the following Christmas. I'm still pretty annoyed by both situations. Nevertheless, I persisted and read my re-gifted book from myself.
2) I didn't realize it fit into my "book by a local author" book list category until I got into it. Kind of cool to imagine one of the characters these characters down the road from us at Northside, Fernbank, Oglethorpe, etc.
3) The characters seem more like people out of a rom com than real life, but the story is engaging and sweet and the way the author cleverly includes nods to etymology and the quirks of words really makes this book, especially for the grammar nerds among us.

[Chris Vinsonhaler]

A comic study of humanity in the highest tradition. Flannery O'Connor writes about the absurdity and necessity of evil. Man Martin writes about the absurdity and necessity of goodness.