Review of The Rosie Project
The Rosie Project
By: Graeme Simsion
The Rosie Project is a unique, cute, romantic comedy
about a Genetics Professor, Don Tillman, with Asperger’s Syndrome, who is
trying to find the perfect wife. Don
has specific criteria and creates a questionnaire for the women he meets. He wants a non-smoker, non-vegetarian, and a
moderate drinker. He also has questions about her habits and her physical
appearance on the questionnaire. In
comes Rosie. Rosie is a smoker, not very
punctual, and a vegetarian proving to be an unsuitable partner. But Rosie needs Don for his knowledge of
genetics, because she is looking for her biological father, and Don can help
her with the DNA testing. This begins an
experience that leaves a unique impression on Don Tillman that he’ll never
forget.
The
Rosie Project is a fast paced and an
entertaining read. The chapters were
only a few pages each and like most romantic comedy novels the writing style is
not overly descriptive. Since the protagonist has Asperger’s the writing also
involves listing things and explaining things in a logical fashion. It is also written very simply and not too
descriptive. Most of the characters are typical characters
in a romantic comedy. There’s the
ladies=man, the female character that puts up with her husband’s “flirtatious” behavior,
and a free-spirited love interest that has a completely opposite personality of
the male protagonist. The male protagonist,
Don Tillman, is different from most romantic leads, because he has Asperger’s
syndrome without being aware of it.
Asperger’s means Don is more logical in his thinking, does not
understand social cues, takes almost everything that is said literally, at
times seems self -absorbed, and struggles with having empathy. This is makes the romance between Don and
Rosie more complex and adds a layer to the story. The author demonstrates a good understanding
of Asperger’s Syndrome, and having a main character with this syndrome, not
only allows for something different, but also assures readers that there is
hope for those with this Syndrome at finding love. I rate this an A
Comments
Post a Comment