Nigel Jay Cooper
Författare till Beat the Rain
Om författaren
Foto taget av: Amanda Benson, Cheese Scientist.
Verk av Nigel Jay Cooper
Taggad
Allmänna fakta
- Vedertaget namn
- Cooper, Nigel Jay
- Kön
- male
- Nationalitet
- England
UK - Land (för karta)
- England, UK
- Födelseort
- London, England, UK
- Bostadsorter
- Brighton, Sussex, England, UK
- Kort biografi
- Author, father, businessman, runner, ginger-dog owner. Not always in that order.
Medlemmar
Recensioner
The Pursuit of Ordinary av Nigel Jay Cooper
Warning - you might tear up a little reading this. Homelessness, love, loss, grief, and spirits are all touched on in this book. We get to read from both Dan (possessed by Joe, so who're we really following?) and Natalie (Joe's widow). While I enjoyed two perspectives, I wish fewer chapters had covered the same ground over from the other perspective. (It gets a bit repetitive without enough changes to keep it interesting). Overall I enjoyed reading this, and it tugged at my heart a little.
Nigel Jay Cooper's sophomore novel The Pursuit of Ordinary is an extraordinary (sorry ;)) work of fiction conveying a unique story about an atypical relationship (or more a relationship triangle?).
Dan, a homeless man, witnessed a car accident that killed Joe, Natalie's husband. Now Dan can't forget seeing Natalie cradle her dying husband, and there is this new voice in Dan's head. Natalie's dead husband, Joe? Dan has to get in touch with Natalie.
In this character-driven tale Nigel Jay Cooper explores pertinent topics relating to mental health, such as grief and loss, homelessness, relationships and abuse.
This author has a genuine talent for creating characters that feel like real people who could be living next door to you. They may not necessarily be characters you particularly like or whose actions you always understand and support, but they feel completely authentic. The dialogue is believable and the plot emotional; sometimes sad but also very funny in parts. It contained some good twists and turns that kept me turning the pages anxiously.
The story is told from three (or perhaps two?) perspectives and my main reason for deducting a star is the slightly repetitive nature of some of the chapters, where we hear Dan's perspective and then are told the same scenario again but from Natalie's point of view. Obviously there are differences in the way Dan and Natalie view their subjective reality, and I understand the different perspectives were required to show that, but it was frustrating reading at times.
I felt this book was way more positive than last year's debut Beat the Rain which floored me and left me shattered by the end of it. This was a lovely, heartfelt story that tackles difficult subjects with sensitivity and without being preachy, and it all leads to a very satisfactory ending. After two very special books, Nigel Jay Cooper is a must-read author for me.
I received an ARC for review purposes, thank you.… (mer)
Dan, a homeless man, witnessed a car accident that killed Joe, Natalie's husband. Now Dan can't forget seeing Natalie cradle her dying husband, and there is this new voice in Dan's head. Natalie's dead husband, Joe? Dan has to get in touch with Natalie.
In this character-driven tale Nigel Jay Cooper explores pertinent topics relating to mental health, such as grief and loss, homelessness, relationships and abuse.
This author has a genuine talent for creating characters that feel like real people who could be living next door to you. They may not necessarily be characters you particularly like or whose actions you always understand and support, but they feel completely authentic. The dialogue is believable and the plot emotional; sometimes sad but also very funny in parts. It contained some good twists and turns that kept me turning the pages anxiously.
The story is told from three (or perhaps two?) perspectives and my main reason for deducting a star is the slightly repetitive nature of some of the chapters, where we hear Dan's perspective and then are told the same scenario again but from Natalie's point of view. Obviously there are differences in the way Dan and Natalie view their subjective reality, and I understand the different perspectives were required to show that, but it was frustrating reading at times.
I felt this book was way more positive than last year's debut Beat the Rain which floored me and left me shattered by the end of it. This was a lovely, heartfelt story that tackles difficult subjects with sensitivity and without being preachy, and it all leads to a very satisfactory ending. After two very special books, Nigel Jay Cooper is a must-read author for me.
I received an ARC for review purposes, thank you.… (mer)
Three and a half star rating.
A strange triangle, Natalie, dead husband Joe and homeless man Dan, with Brighton as a backdrop. To be honest I really did not like the first chapter at all because it was just so confusing, but decided to carry on a bit longer and am glad I did. Really got into it from the second chapter when it was easier to work out what was what and who was who. This is a complex and intriguing story with its share of flawed characters which certainly kept me gripped!
A strange triangle, Natalie, dead husband Joe and homeless man Dan, with Brighton as a backdrop. To be honest I really did not like the first chapter at all because it was just so confusing, but decided to carry on a bit longer and am glad I did. Really got into it from the second chapter when it was easier to work out what was what and who was who. This is a complex and intriguing story with its share of flawed characters which certainly kept me gripped!
I would love to use something better than this worn-out cliché, but I'm tired today because of this book. So here goes, this really was an "emotional rollercoaster". One moment I was thinking things are picking up for the protagonists, perhaps this won't all go down the drain, the next moment it felt like I was being crushed, despairing, at the bleak bottom. And then there would be these really humorous scenes. That dinner party was hilarious.
Beat The Rain is the story of a relationship that is gradually degenerating. Told from Louise's and Adam's perspectives, we learn right at the start that Louise's boyfriend, Tom, has died. Tom was Adam's twin brother. Louise and Adam get married. Not a spoiler, it's in the book's blurb. No further summary from me because the rest you will enjoy much more if you start reading this without knowing too much. 'Enjoy' may actually be the wrong word. This isn't the light reading you want to pick up for leisurely days on a sun lounger. In fact, if you're feeling sad or discontent with life, this may not be the best book to pick up at that moment. Also, if you need likable characters, forget it. Now I'm making this sound as if I wouldn't recommend this book. Not at all. This book is going to stay with me. The amazing thing is when I started this, I was expecting to read something different. To be honest, there were moments in the first half of the book when I thought about throwing in the towel and moving on. But this is a book you need to stick with. By the time Jarvis was introduced, about halfway through the book, I knew I couldn't put it down. Hence, feeling slightly tired today.
This is a wonderfully insightful look at relationships covering themes such as loss and grief, parenthood, mental health and our preconceived ideas about what should and what shouldn't.
I really loved the way how the author showed by means of the male and the female perspectives that two people can experience the same thing in completely different ways, thus creating two different versions of the truth. It was so frustrating. I don't know how many times I shouted at these characters to start bl**dy listening and to talk to each other.
There were several times when I thought I could predict what Louise or Adam were going to do, and each time, Mr. Cooper surprised me. The ending didn't go the way I wanted it to. Usually, I would whine about that. In this case, it was actually the icing on the cake.
Even taking into account my struggle with the first half of this book, which jumped about too much for me, I'm going to have to give this the full stars. This is a debut novel. Nigel Jay Cooper is a writer to keep on your radar. He is extremely perceptive and knows how to create a unique and painfully honest story.
Thanks to John Hunt Publishing for granting me access to an ARC via NetGalley.… (mer)
Beat The Rain is the story of a relationship that is gradually degenerating. Told from Louise's and Adam's perspectives, we learn right at the start that Louise's boyfriend, Tom, has died. Tom was Adam's twin brother. Louise and Adam get married. Not a spoiler, it's in the book's blurb. No further summary from me because the rest you will enjoy much more if you start reading this without knowing too much. 'Enjoy' may actually be the wrong word. This isn't the light reading you want to pick up for leisurely days on a sun lounger. In fact, if you're feeling sad or discontent with life, this may not be the best book to pick up at that moment. Also, if you need likable characters, forget it. Now I'm making this sound as if I wouldn't recommend this book. Not at all. This book is going to stay with me. The amazing thing is when I started this, I was expecting to read something different. To be honest, there were moments in the first half of the book when I thought about throwing in the towel and moving on. But this is a book you need to stick with. By the time Jarvis was introduced, about halfway through the book, I knew I couldn't put it down. Hence, feeling slightly tired today.
This is a wonderfully insightful look at relationships covering themes such as loss and grief, parenthood, mental health and our preconceived ideas about what should and what shouldn't.
I really loved the way how the author showed by means of the male and the female perspectives that two people can experience the same thing in completely different ways, thus creating two different versions of the truth. It was so frustrating. I don't know how many times I shouted at these characters to start bl**dy listening and to talk to each other.
There were several times when I thought I could predict what Louise or Adam were going to do, and each time, Mr. Cooper surprised me. The ending didn't go the way I wanted it to. Usually, I would whine about that. In this case, it was actually the icing on the cake.
Even taking into account my struggle with the first half of this book, which jumped about too much for me, I'm going to have to give this the full stars. This is a debut novel. Nigel Jay Cooper is a writer to keep on your radar. He is extremely perceptive and knows how to create a unique and painfully honest story.
Thanks to John Hunt Publishing for granting me access to an ARC via NetGalley.… (mer)
1 
Pet12 | 1 annan recension | Jul 21, 2016 |
Pet12 | 1 annan recension | Jul 21, 2016 | Priser
Statistik
- Verk
- 4
- Medlemmar
- 22
- Popularitet
- #553,378
- Betyg
- 4.0
- Recensioner
- 5
- ISBN
- 6
