The Universe Versus Alex Woods Paperback – January 14, 2014 by Gavin Extence (Redhook)

I finished reading this novel not 30 minutes ago, and I probably should have waited a day or two before writing this review, simply to have a better opportunity to think about it and the best way to review it. But the fact that the book is still so very much with me--such that I feel an urgency to write about it--is probably the single best recommendation I can make. Or maybe I should just put it this way: It's been a long time since I've read a book that has made me feel like I do now after finishing this one. The plot is simple, if far-fetched: Alex Woods is hit by a meteorite as a ten year old but miraculously survives, albeit with complications (epilepsy). Seeking refuge from some bullies later on in high school, he befriends a cantankerous Vietnam veteran, Mr. Peterson, who introduces him to Kurt Vonnegut and other classics of secular humanism.

I don't wish to divulge other aspects of the plot, but suffice to say that the characters (and the reader) soon find themselves grappling with important philosophical questions, perhaps the MOST important philosophical questions, including what makes life worth living, the nature and value of friendship, and what we are able to teach and do for one another.

The writing is excellent, and the characterization even better. There's not a 'normal' person among the main characters, yet they all ring true. And while I don't normally highlight passages on my Kindle (sorry, amazon; e-books are just clunkier that way), there were so many passages that struck me with their perceptiveness and wit that I took the time and effort to do so. This is a difficult novel to pigeon-hole, but if I had to, I'd say that this book reminds me most of Mark Haddon's "The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time," another novel that also lingered with me long after I finished reading it.

This is Gavin Extence's first novel, and that utterance alone blinds me with optimism, because it leads me to hope that he might write other books even better in my lifetime. I look forward to reading them.