When I was a teenager my family took a trip up to Quebec on vacation one year. I came back home with a t-shirt that I often wore for many years that bore the province's motto - "Je me souviens", meaning "I remember". A touch ironic for me, not only because I refused to use any of my embarrassing high school level French while we were there, but also because I did not remember those French speaking Acadian ancestors of mine who were expelled from Canada after the British conquest in the 18th century and who were forced to flee to Louisiana. I found that history out later.

It's also ironic for one of the main characters in this fantastic debut novel. Lilia was abducted by her father from his ex-wife when she was seven. She does not remember her life in the small Quebec town near the American border before the abduction. She does not remember why she has these scars on her arms. She does not remember her mother. She does not remember why her half-brother tells her "never come home". She and her father spend the next nine years fleeing from Quebec - always traveling, changing names, hiding from discovery. It's an anxious way to live and grow up.

But she never felt at ease in the world. It couldn't be claimed that she was really a part of it, and from the specific night when her memories began (ice against window, lost bunny, snow), the traditions of the world were foreign to her. She picked up what she could from books and television shows, noting carefully the existence of two-parent families, houses, schools, family dogs, memorizing intriguingly home-specific phrases like latchkey kid and back garden and state-of-the-art kitchen appliances and basement. She moved over the surface of life the way figure skaters move, fast and choreographed, but she never broke through the ice, she never pierced the surface and descended into those awful beautiful waters, she was never submerged and she never learned to swim in those currents, these currents: all the shadows and light and splendorous horrors that make up the riptides of life on earth.

Then as a young woman she receives a letter from Montreal - come and I will tell you what you don't remember. It's information wanted for information to give. There will be remembering and wishing for never knowing. One person will emerge okay. One person will not. One person will be spun out by the chaotic turbulence unleashed.

Ultimately for me it's a sad novel, but well worth reading. I really felt for all of the characters in these pages; add to that success the wonderful writing and I was completely hooked into this one. ( )

Whew. Mandel is so magical with language. Very compelling and slightly surreal in a very good way. ( )

The author's first book, but for some reason I'd missed it until now, having read everything else she's written. I'm glad to be caught up - this one is also a great read, if deeply sad on a whole host of levels. ( )

I read this back when it debuted at the suggestion of a friend of mine who worked in publishing. St. John Mandel wasn't as known then as she is now, but this novel drew me in. Here we find mystery interlaced with a smidge of obsession, things I now know to refer to as "attachment style theory," and then the differences of perspectives depending on the characters' life situations. Yes, there is also some "manic pixie dreamgirl" trope displayed here, but it's done well and not in a style that makes fun, but rather highlights how men can see young women. This is a book that affected me when I read it and I've enjoyed the evolution of St. John Mandel's writing over the years. ( )

For me, this book reads like an extended short story in the sense that it is very interesting, but at the end, not every i is dotted, not every t is crossed. As a reader who likes short stories, I often enjoy some ambivalence . . .but for many, the ending just won't be satisfactory.

The crux of the book is a young girl, Lilia, is kidnapped by her own father, John, who stays on the move with her. Lilia's path crosses with three other main characters, Christopher, Michaela, and Eli. Unfortunately, to elaborate on their roles would remove much of the suspense of the book . . .a lot of Mandel's prowess is storytelling, and how she unveils the details in a way that leaves readers wanting more.

All in all, I really enjoyed the writing. It's hard to believe it's a debut. But the motivations of the characters seem fuzzy and incompletely formed, and for that reason, I can't dole out that fifth star, and I think other readers may be completely dissatisfied. Short story lovers should pick this one up. If you don't like short stories, I doubt this one is for you. ( )