The Baby

“Today of all days, right here in my mother’s kitchen,she gave me the news. ‘I think I might be pregnant,’ she said, as I tried to butter a piece of underdone toast. Six little words. Nothing to worry about. She just thinks she may be pregnant, that’s all. It’s not even as if she’s sure. That was the first thing I checked when consciousness returned to me on the cold stone tiles.”

Hence begins a journey through pregnancy.. but not told from the woman’s point of view, but rather the man’s. The male protagonist of this book isn’t sure he’s ready to face father-hood, in the same way that he’s not quite ready for marriage, a job, or even life without alcohol!

Over the course of roughly 9 months, the unnamed male faces up to various addictions, attempts to find a job, and generally tries to deal with life in a different country to the one he was born in. We discover how he met his girlfriend and moved from London to France, and are given an insight to life there, both good and bad. We meet various friends and family, and learn about their affects on his lifestyle.

Most importantly though, the book is a very honest journey into his thoughts and feelings, from birth to death, with just about everything inbetween. Despite his faults, the protagonist is actually a likeable man, and it’s easy to get caught up in his journey, hoping that he’ll make it in the end.

I think most of this likeability comes from both the openess, but also the humour.. there is a wit within the writing which makes the book a joy to read, and rather addictive itself.

I won’t tell you how the book or the journey ends, but the last few pages are incredibly touching.

This was a surprisingly good read, and is highly recommended.

Published by BeautifulBooks
Sept 2008 £7.99

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