Connor’s Brain

Connor Markham is a fifteen-year-old boy who, following a virus that leads to the removal of his temporal lobe, is left having to learn how to do everything all over again. Although he has no memory of his past life, other people do, and their intentions aren’t so pure. This is a book imbued with gentle humour throughout, with vivacious characters such as Connor himself, depraved nightclub owner GG, and Connor’s distraught girlfriend, Hattie. However, it does not shy from more sinister themes, such as child sex trafficking, robbery, and manipulation. Connor himself is a deeply likeable character who has invented new words for things he cannot remember, such as eel for finger and volcano for flower. His interactions with other characters make for hilarious and at times moving reading.

Connor’s Brain is hard to pin down to one genre. It is both a-coming-of-age story, a thriller, and a crime novel. It makes for compulsive reading and is a perfect book for slightly older teenagers. Readers will find themselves rolling around with tears of laughter, and at times sobbing with tears of empathy for Connor, who is determined not to let a brain defect get in the way of a rich life. Overall, this was a highly entertaining read that keeps one guessing. Rather than making Connor a victim, writer Malcolm Rose has created an effervescent character still totally in charge of his own destiny. The only downside was that the book wasn’t longer.

Caitríona O’Malley