Book Review: The Universe Versus Alex Woods

It's very rare that I fall in love with a novel from the opening couple of pages. From the narrator (who sounded a little like Hugh Grant) to being set in England, to a story that is both relatable and extraordinary all at the same time. The Universe Versus Alex Woods is everything I love about reading a novel. It's both deep and comical. It has a depth of understanding that most books only scratch the surface of. 

The novel is as you've probably guessed already, about Alex Woods. A young boy who is struck by a meteorite in his childhood and as you'd imagine his life is altered from that day forward. The book is about a kid growing up and about facing some of life's toughest questions. 

At this point if your interested I'd stop reading my review because I'll get into vague spoilers here. There is a point in the novel when suicide comes into play and the idea of choosing one's time to die. It's a topic that's been talked about a lot with Brittany Maynard in Oregon and I think The Universe Versus Alex Woods does a great job with it. For me I've got no idea why anyone would be against it, especially in the case of terminal illness. There is something kind of surreal about being able to choose your time to go. I know Jenn and I always joke that at 85 in Switzerland would be a nice way to close it out. 

But maybe that's for a different post. Regardless, The Universe Versus Alex Woods is one of my favorite novels in recent memory. It's not for everyone. But if you have an open mind and love a good coming of age story you can't go wrong with The Universe Versus Alex Woods. It will be a novel in contention for my favorite of 2015. 

“If you had to relive your life exactly as it was – same successes and failures, same happiness, same miseries, same mixture of comedy and tragedy – would you want to? Was it worth it?”