The Post-Birthday World

I could hardly wait to get this book home and start reading it. Lionel Shriver's last novel We Need To Talk About Kevin was brutal and disturbing but I couldn't put it down. This book offers two parallel versions of the same story told in alternating chapters, a device I found confusing at first. Irena is an illustrator of children's books who is in a contented long-term relationship with Lawrence, an expert in the field of international terrorism. One night Irena is tempted to kiss another man, Ramsay, a famous professional snooker player. To kiss or not to kiss? Irena is actually choosing to either continue her bland life with Lawrence or to follow her libido and an unpredictable life with the flamboyant Ramsay. Frankly, I wouldn't want to end up with either of these guys. Lawrence is prudish, boring and condescending. Ramsay seems to be interested only in snooker and sex. Granted, the sex is great but, after a while, will it be enough to sustain a relationship? In this novel Shriver asks the question, "What if?" and answers it in stories that are mirror images of one another. Ultimately what we learn is that we have choices and they are neither right nor wrong, just different scenarios. The book seems a bit long (probably because it's two books in one) and I found myself wanting to push the plot along, especially when there was lot of boring snooker talk but I'm glad I stuck with it. It's a book that would provide a book group with plenty of fodder.