Review: Big story packed into a small novella
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 03 25, 2014
I received an advance reader edition of this book from Atavist Books and Net Galley for the purpose of providing an honest review.4 StarsThis was an enjoyable novella. This novella has an interesting and unique premise. The loved the writing. This is the first time that I have read any of Karen Russell's work and I was quite impressed. It is really quite amazing that so much story fit into this short novella. The author created wonderful characters to tell her story and a whole culture regarding an insomnia plague.Trish works for the Slumber Corps. The organization that collects donations of sleep that will be passed along to save people dying due to insomnia. Trish lost her sister Dori to the epidemic and uses her story to help enlist donors. Trish is excellent at her job and is the person responsible for finding "Baby A". Baby A is the only known universal donor and her father is quite protective. The Slumber Corps must also deal with the problem caused by "Donor Y" which is now plaguing sleep donation. Trish starts to question everything Slumber Corps stands for by the end of the book.I loved the world created within this novella. This was such an interesting concept. A plague of insomnia that can be cured by a donation of sleep. It was unique and very well done. I did feel that the end was a bit abrupt and would have liked to know just a bit more.I would recommend this novella for anyone looking for a unique story to fill an evening. The story is about 110 pages so it can easily be read in one sitting. I plan to read other works by Karen Russell. I also plan to keep my eyes open for future works published by Atavist Books since this is the first work from a brand new publisher.