I want to thank Dorothyanne Brown for her Must Read rating with five stars and review of Clifford’s Spiral on the Reedsy Discovery book-fan website @reedsydiscovery She’s not an acquaintance of mine (unlike some of my diligent beta reviewers), but no doubt from her observations she is a kindred soul. Her bio states that she is a retired nurse. She’s currently writing a fiction trilogy as well as a self-help book for people with multiple sclerosis and other brain conditions. I’m sure her insights on the clinical aspects informed her review of Clifford Klovis’s struggle to make sense of reality after he’s had a major stroke.
She also appreciated the humor in it. #booklovers #litfic #newrelease
Dorothyanne wonders:
Where would your mind go, if you were trapped after a stroke? Would you find happy memories? Regrets? Or philosophic meanderings?
And here’s her conclusion:
Despite Clifford’s grumpy uncooperative self, the reader can’t help but cheer for him, hope he will release his chosen silence, and be able to speak again. Clifford is so well-drawn, and his life stories capture the reader so completely that you forgive him his vanity and selfishness, and wish the book was longer so you could hang out with him longer. Highly recommended. You will want to read this more than once.
You can read the full review here on Reedsy Discovery.
If you like this review and the book please click the Upvote button at the top of the review to recommend Clifford’s Spiral to fans of literary fiction.
SYNOPSIS
Clifford’s Spiral is a quirkily comic literary novel. Its sardonic tone recalls the wry wisdom of Kurt Vonnegut, and its preoccupation with male centeredness is reminiscent of Philip Roth. Stroke survivor Clifford Klovis tries to piece together the colorful fragments of his memories. He fusses over his lifelong curiosities about astrophysics and metaphysics, Christian faith and New Age philosophy, and why the spiral shape appears in bathtub drains and at the centers of galaxies. He has imaginary conversations and arguments with wives and lovers, as well as with Hypatia of Alexandria, René Descartes, his old mentor Reverend Thurston, and Stephen Hawking. Clifford’s best teacher turns out to be his paraplegic son Jeremy, who has found his father’s old letters and journals. Jeremy also wonders: Who was Clifford Olmstead Klovis?