About.com Rating

• Perfect by Rachel Joyce was published in January 2014 in the U.S.A.
• Publisher: Random House
• 400 Pages

I did not read Rachel Joyce's first novel, The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry, but I was drawn to her second, Perfect, when it landed on my doorstep. I tend to like British literature and stories told from the perspective of a child or young adult, so I hoped to find an underrated gem in Perfect. In fact, I wanted to read Perfect every night, but in the end I'll donate my copy to the library -- it did not earn a place on my permanent shelf.

Perfect combines two stories in two different times told in alternating chapters. The first is the story of eleven-year-old Byron, who lives in the British countryside in the 1960s, attends private school and only sees his father on weekends. When Byron's friend, James, tells him that the government has decided to add two seconds to the clock that year, both boys become obsessed with the idea and what consequences it may hold. After Byron's mother is involved in an accident involving a child on a bike, we see, through Byron's eyes, how his mother and family start to unwind.

The second narrative is the story of Jim, a 50-something year old man in the present day who was recently released from Besley Hill, a mental hospital where he spent most of his life since he was sixteen. Jim has no family or friends and struggles to adapt to life on the outside world. He has trouble talking to other people and must perform a series of obsessive compulsive rituals each day. Still, he finds some hope in his new job in a grocery store.

To me, some of the ways in which Jim's narrative were connected to Byron's were obvious from early on. Joyce does not make these connections explicit until the end, and I was concerned that they would be revealed as a bombshell or twist and I would be disappointed that I was expected to be surprised by the obvious. Fortunately, the novel does not hinge on this revelation, and I think Joyce expects readers to connect some of the dots early on.

That's not to say the novel does not have surprises. When Byron's mother is involved in an accident, I expected the plot to go a certain way. In fact, what happens to the characters and how they unravel is completely different than I thought it would be. At its heart, Perfect is about mental illness and control. Other issues are raised -- social class, women's roles, family relationships -- but these are more like scenery than central plot points.

I wanted to keep reading Perfect, but it was sort of like watching a train wreck. This is a sad story, and I wished there were more redemption at the end. I think there is supposed to be some, but it is a redemption as fragile as the characters in the story, most of whom you realize are doomed from the start.

I also wish the relationships between characters were deeper and more believable. There is so much happening in this novel that it keeps the pages turning, but in the end I am not sure I would believe these people were real.

In some ways, Perfect reminded me of When We Were Romans by Matthew Kneale, another British novel about mental illness told from a child's perspective. While I think Joyce accomplished more by moving between two worlds in Perfect, I would actually recommend When We Were Romans as a better read. Or, if you want an excellent novel from an eleven year old's perspective that was released in recent years, I would try The Age of Miracles by Karen Thompson Walker. The Age of Miracles is not about mental illness, but it does a great job of delving into family dynamics and what it means to grow up.

In the end I don't regret reading Perfect. It was entertaining, and I think a book club could have a good discussion after reading it. There are, however, too many excellent books in the world for me to pass this one on to any friends.