The Car Share ⭑⭑⭑⭑
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
US Publication: March 25, 2021
Print: 336 pages
Audio: N/A (TBD?)
Confetti Rating: 4 stars
REVIEW:
Everyone knows the old saying - life is a journey, not a destination. That’s certainly true in Zoe Brisby’s uplifting novel, The Car Share.
Doesn’t the setup sound like the book would be bit of a downer? A 20-something man with depression (Alex) and a 90-something woman with early signs of dementia (Maxine) sign up via an online car-sharing service to travel together from France to Belgium. Well, it’s not a downer at all. In fact, the word that continually sprang to mind while I was reading it was “romp.” Romp (noun): a high-spirited, carefree, and boisterous play.
Other apt descriptors would be madcap, zany, and over-the-top. The Car Share may actually be one of the least subtle stories I’ve read in awhile. As the characters make their way through France, their various stops include a Pretty Woman-esque shopping trip, a holdup, and a trust fall exercise gone awry.
The novel is translated from French, which made Maxine’s frequent malapropisms interesting. It took me a few chapters to realize that the numerous misused words were Maxine’s errors and not the translators.
The end of the book includes Maxine and Alex’s Playlist, and the songs really help convey the overall vibe: Aretha Franklin’s “Respect,” Roy Orbison’s “Pretty Woman,” and Gloria Gaynor’s “I Will Survive” are just a few. There’s also an Author’s Note with a little Easter egg for those who wish to find it.
My thanks go to Zoe Brisby and Hodder & Stoughton for providing me with a gifted copy to review via NetGalley. The Car Share is now available.
PUBLISHER SYNOPSIS:
A ninety-year-old woman with Alzheimer's and a heartbroken young man end up sharing a ride to Brussels that changes their lives forever.
When Alex pulls up to meet "Max", he expects everything but a ninety-year-old lady who has her heart set on getting to Brussels by carpool. As for 'Max,’ who is actually called Maxine, she could not be more ill at ease when settling into the seat next to this young man with bloodshot eyes. God help her if he turned out to be a drug addict who hasn't slept in days!
When it becomes clear that Maxine is suffering from Alzheimer's and wants to take matters in her own hands while she still can, and that Alex battles severe depression, a wonderful friendship starts to form between the unlikely pair. Before long, their travel plans take an unexpected turn...