Fishbowl

I loved this story, my favourite read of the year so far.

Ian the goldfish is plummeting to earth from an apartment on the 27th floor of the Seville building on Roxy. As he rushes past he catches glimpses of the residents’ lives through the windows. And what a fascinating and diverse lot they are.

There is the villain Conrad, with a messy love life involving three women, including the pretty and vulnerable Katie. Claire, an acrophobic and obsessive compulsive earning her living listening on the phone to lonely men acting out their fantasies. Then there’s Petunia Delilah, very pregnant, hot and bothered and lusting after ice cream sandwiches. Herman, a young boy who has been traumatised in the past and now believes he can travel through time. Not forgetting my favourite character, Jimenez, the lonely caretaker who looks after the apartments but goes unnoticed by all the residents.

Original, funny and touching; can’t wait for the Bradley Somer’s next book.

very well written, complex, a book to keep you on edge waiting to see what happens next to the many characters, who are all beautifully made real. and a brilliant ending.

Members of Plaistow Library Reading Group very much enjoyed reading Fishbowl and would definitely recommend it to others. We found it refreshingly original, cleverly constructed and a page turner, but some of us had some queries. Here are some of our comments:

It was an enjoyable read after a very bizarre introductory chapter.

I found myself hooked, (by a fish of all things!), and turning the pages. Enjoyed it but not convinced by the philosophy, difficult for a fish with no memory to reflect on what it had just seen. I liked the character portrayals and the detail about what affects people, such as the way Garth is affected by the cut of his dress.

I enjoyed Fishbowl! My favourite characters were Garth and the caretaker, Jimenez. I liked the kindly way all the characters were portrayed.

I really quite liked it. I thought Fishbowl employed a very clever device, I was hooked and on the edge of my seat wanting to know how Ian had got into freefall and was convinced he'd die - and hope he doesn't go through all that just to be swallowed!
But I do have some queries - how did the housebound woman get rid of her rubbish if she couldn't leave the flat and how was her food delivered if she couldn't open the door? The birthing scene was just fascinating - but slightly too graphic perhaps.

I really enjoyed Fishbowl, but also had some reservations about the fish's thought processes. Nevertheless it kept me gripped enough to accept this. I hadn't picked up on the issues with the housebound woman until they were pointed out - and I usually notice details like that! Proof it was an absorbing read! It left me wanting to know more about all the characters, including Ian.

Once I got started I am enjoying Fishbowl, turning pages as fast as I can, as if I want to reach the end before Ian meets his fate! Very ingenious structure.

Auckley WI Readers' Group (Doncaster) read this book and offered the following comments:

An easy to ready story, the fish's descent linking the various storylines. The chapters were short and the recap of the events at the beginning of each helped the flow. Thought provoking in the way people's lives were interwoven and the way 'fate' intervened. Although the situations were over exaggerated it outlines true life and how little we know about people we live alongside. Highlighting how much we need other people to enhance our own excellence. - 3/5

A well-written biook with an interesting group of characters living in a block of flats. But they were observed, bizarrely, by Ian, a goldfish. The inhabitants were unconventional and their lives were mostly gruesome and squalid. - 2/5

The thing I liked best about the book is it is brand new and I am reading in pristine condition. Secondly, I like quirky in books and particularly like the little fish (Ian) gradually going further and further down the edge of each chapter to end up in a bottle of water and probably died of asphyxiation. Not a memorable book. I can't remember much about it, skipped the boring parts. - 2/5

Found very boring. - 1/5

It was different to what I've read before. I enjoyed it thank you. - 2/5

I really enjoyed this book. It was quirky and it gave an insight into what could go on behind closed doors. There were just enough characters to follow without having that thought of who is this again and they all had a pretty interesting story. What was in Garth's parcel? I would never have guessed. I like the idea that we were getting this snapshot into people's lives from the eyes of a goldfish. I won't spoil the ending (is it an ending?) but I was delighted with Ian's final appearance in the story.