I think I’ve found a new favorite author in Elizabeth McKenzie. This book made me laugh out loud (literally!) several times. Similar to The Portable Veblen, it follows a 30-something women who finds herself adrift. But Penny is a different heroine from Veblen and the cast of side characters here is delightful. Highly recommend!

Quirky and fun. Great characters!

Loved this book. The protagonist, Penny Rush, has left her husband after discovering his affair, her parents have been missing in Australia for five years, her sister has moved to Australia, she is trying to care for her grandmother who has dementia, her 93 year old grandfather was kicked out of the house by her step-grandmother, her biological father is stalking her, and so on. But Penny, she just keeps handling all that comes her way without any thought of what is best for her. A funny, touching story about one woman trying to survive through chaos.

3.5 - what a lovely little story!!

If you think your life is a struggle, meet Penny. She’s sort of homeless, has a crazy grandmother, and missing parents. This quirky romp is madcap but also poignant, portraying valuable lessons in learning who you can count on and when to let go. Recommended.

OK, it's not really a 5-star (i.e. profound and life-changing) book, but it IS very funny, and I really needed a laugh-out-loud book. Maybe we all do. Reading Part 1 I was laughing almost every page, including one very satisfying belly laugh. Parts 2 and 3 are just quirky and fun, not so much LOL, but my rating had already been set.

I really liked this, just didn't love it. It was funny, but it seemed like it was trying to be quirky and off-beat, and just missed the mark. I love a humorous travel narrative; however, this is not Anne Tyler. It was just okay.

Hmmmm, I was starting to make my way through the Women's Prize for Fiction long list and this was the second one I finished. I loved the first one I read, Trespasses, but the Dog of the North was not good and I am a bit skeptical on how it made it onto this list.

The main character, Penny, is suppose to be in her mid thirties but reads like she has the emotional capacity of a 16 year old. She's very immature as she navigates all of these farcical events that are too far fetched to make any sense.

What really tipped me over the edge was a scene in part 2 of the book. Penny is on a plane to Australia and her seat mate happens to be a medical student who believes Penny has sepsis (from being stabbed with her grandmother's pin in the leg). Then the flight attendant proceeds to ask if there are any doctors on the plane (there are 8 apparently) and the solution is to have her stand in her underwear in the airplane bathroom as each doctor opens the door to examine her standing there half naked (even a random ophthalmologist, who was just "hoping he could be helpful in anyway") examines her. THEN the last doctor to examine her in her underwear is just coincidentally her pediatrician from over 20 years ago... who happens to be flying to Australia on the same plane.

I am not sure if this is suppose to be funny - but as a representative novel for women's literature, it was sad to see this female character portrayed in this bumbling way, with no head on her shoulders, and weirdly exploited in an airplane bathroom.

I guess the title, A Series of Unfortunate Events, was already taken. This is a fast paced, unbelievable story. I enjoyed it.