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There are currently 26 member reviews
for Fishbowl
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Leslie G. (Peabody, MA)
Engaging and Poignant
The novel is able to explore the profundities of the human condition, yet the author does so in a witty and, at times, even comical manner. By delineating the lives of diverse residents of an apartment building, Somer describes each individual's concern with loneliness. Despite the residents' seeming initial anonymity, they ultimately find the beauty of interconnections with others. I became totally caught up in the situations of the many characters and their predicaments. Fishbowl is an engaging and poignant book.
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Beth B. (New Wilmington, PA)
Fishbowl -- or Ian Coming In For a Landing
What a delightful book!! Wise, insightful, whimsical, fanciful --- all due to the writing skill of Bradley Somer. All activity occurs in and directly outside a twenty-seven floor high rise, the Seville on Roxy. The reader meets its residents who travel up and down in its elevator and stairwell. And central to it all is a 99-cent goldfish named Ian who escapes from his glass home and witnesses brief glimpses of LIFE as he plunges to the pavement below. If this isn't a unique storyline, then what is?
The writing is amazing – prose that is imaginative and awe-inspiring and similes so fresh they jump off the page. I underlined passages and made so many marginal notations that my pencil ran out of lead!!
Treat yourself to a one-of-a-kind experience in reading. It's many plusses beyond five stars.
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Mary Ellen N. (Ogden Dunes, IN)
Fishbowl
I enjoyed this book -- a bittersweet story. I found the characters to be interesting and very resourceful people -- true survivors. Most of the characters were living a single life with some experiencing loneliness and struggles with their relationships. You get an ongoing glimpse of the characters lives and their issues as Ian the goldfish makes his descent from the 27th floor to the ground while glancing into their apartments. The format reminded me of the film "Rear Window" (minus the murder). I loved the little goldfish decending in the right page margin as you read through the book - clever touch! I recommend this book.
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Debrah H. (Columbia, IL)
Good story
What a great new idea for a book. Really enjoyed reading it. Hope author continues to write.
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Barbara G. (Acworth, GA)
Ian's Plunge
This book was written from quite a different point of view than any I had read before...a fish as he plunges 27 floors of an apartment building. The author does an amazing job of describing the building and all the tenants as Ian has a glimpse of each of the lives as he plunges to what was sure to be his death.
This was not a book that I couldn't put down, but each time I picked it back up I became more engrossed in the story line.
What I found most enjoyable was the final chapter where the characters are all summed up even into what was to happen in the future. It was nice to enjoy full closure. The only part that was a little odd was that of Ian the fishes outcome.
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Laurin B. (Appleton, WI)
Like "Rear Window" As a Free Fall
What a clever work of fiction with lovely attention to detail - right down to the visual descent of Ian along the edge of the printed pages as you thumb quickly through the book. Somehow being a fish makes voyeurism okay and I was more than willing to go along for the ride. Poignant, funny, lovely and sad - all of the secret lives we live and try to hide in the boxes we inhabit are suddenly laid bare but in such a tender and reverent way. Individual stories are woven together masterfully into a storyline that makes sense, leads to a logical culmination and neatly mirrors how our own closely-knit communities are intertwined. Loved it!
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Ann D. (Clearfield, PA)
Fishbowl
Ian shows us what living in a fishbowl is truly like as he briefly views the residents' stories unfolding on the 27 floors of the Seville on Roxie. I found this to be a great story which made me laugh out loud and wipe a few tears from my eyes.
Complete with a flip book...can't sat I've seen one of those in a while...Brandley Somer hooked me from page one. His book is well written. The characters are well developed. I will be recommending this to my friends as soon as it is available to them,
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