Review: The Tiny Wife by Andrew Kaufman

The Friday Project, 2011.

A robber charges into a bank with a loaded gun, but instead of taking any money he steals an item of sentimental value from each person. Once he has made his escape, strange things start to happen to the victims.

A tattoo comes to life, a husband turns into a snowman, a baby starts to shit money. And Stacey Hinterland discovers that she’s shrinking, a little every day, and there is seemingly nothing that she or her husband can do to reverse the process.

The Tiny Wife is a weird and wonderful modern fable. Small, but perfectly formed, it will charm, delight and unnerve in equal measure.

The Tiny Wife is a short novella. It’s about ninety pages in length and so I read it in a couple of sittings (night shifts got in the way again,) so it’s great if you’re looking for something short to read. This book got recommended on You Tube so I thought I would give it a go. I chose the hardback version as I just thought the cover was beautiful. You can also get in paperback and on Kindle too. 

The story opens on a bank robbery but the thief doesn’t take money. Instead, he takes a sentimental item from each person. Soon after the robbery, each person goes through a different experience – some have a positive outcome and some don’t. The story is mostly told from the point of view of the husband of someone in the bank. Stacey begins to shrink soon after the robbery as a reflection of her own life. Another example is Dawn’s tattoo of a lion that comes to life and begins to chase her. 

This story makes you really think and the lesson is not to take your life for granted. It really made me reflect on my life. From the first page this book pulled me into everyone’s story. I wanted to know how it ended and it’s beautifully written. I loved the illustrations which are dotted throughout the book too. It made me think of what would happen to me. Even though I finished it a couple of days ago, I am still thinking about it. 

This was an original, magical story and well worth reading. I loved it. 

Buy from Amazon. 

by

Laura

I'm Laura. I started Novel Kicks back in 2009 as I wanted a place to discuss books and writing - two loves of my life. As someone who has anxiety, these two things give me, and I am sure countless others, a much needed escape.
There is a monthly book club, writing exercises, prompts, reviews, author interviews, competitions and guest posts. I cover many genres and I hope there is something for everyone.
I grew up by the sea in Dorset and currently live in Poole with my husband, Chris and three cats. I love writing and have a BA (Hons) in Creative Writing from Falmouth University. I am writing my first book. If only I could stop pressing delete. Chris has threatened to stop it from working. Haha.
I have always loved creative writing since I was in first school and would very much like to meet my teacher, Miss Sayers, to say thank you for all the encouragement she gave me then.
When not writing, I love reading, cats, Disney, singing (I can't sing but this doesn't stop me,) and falling into a good TV show or film. If I could step into any fictional world, it would be amongst the characters in ABC's Once Upon a Time.
I love reading many genres and discovering new authors.