Aberrations
Penelope Przekop
Reviewed by Tina Avon
Although I had heard of Narcolepsy, I had never really given it more
than a passing concern Yet, it is one of the central themes
of the
novel Aberrations, written by Penelope Przekop. My first thought
was
that the author was choosing a very odd subject matter to base her
novel on. This disorder is, to many of us, somewhat of a
mystery.
However, after reading the first chapter, I was instantly hooked
and realized how cleverly the author uses the disorder as a catalyst
that propels our main character Angel into her almost obsessive quest
to discover the truth about her life - which she has come to
realize
is based on lies told to her by her father.
While narcolepsy
does occupy a lot of space in this story, the relationship between
father and daughter is really at the center of the novel. Angel
believes that her father has been lying to her about her mother.
In
her quest to find the truth, Angel will find herself in a very dark
place, which will include discovering substance abuse, which, of
course, does nothing to stabilize a now highly unstable Angel.
Przekop
has written her main character as entirely likable, even through her
constant haze of narcolepsy and substance abuse. Although Angel
finds
herself in a dark world, she has the ability to find people who truly
care about her and this will become her saving grace.
What I particularly liked about this novel was the subtle, but
obvious (to me anyway) comparisons that can be made between Angel's
disorder and her need to escape. While I don't know much about
Narcolepsy, I wondered, as I read further into this storyline, whether
Angel, on a subconscious level, used sleep as an escape
mechanism. I
understand that Narcolepsy is a medical condition, but so are eating
disorders and alcoholism which have been associated with addiction and
therefore a need to escape.
I enjoyed this novel immensely and found it a very satisfying read,
which is full of detours and hidden messages - just the kind of book I
love. A note on the cover - it was beautiful and a wonderful
choice.