Pros: Annie Jones from the From the Front Porch podcast gave this book five stars, and that was all the encouragement I needed to read it. This is a coming-of-age story about friendship set in post-WWII France and England. I appreciated this book’s examination of how friendships change as people grow up. This is a book I would love to discuss with my book club because there is a lot of depth to it.

I listened to this book on audio and thought the narrator’s accent enhanced the reading experience. It felt like the main character was telling the reader about her adolescence and her most meaningful friendship.

Cons: This is not a con but is more a note to help readers know if this book is for them— I think fans of the Neapolitan Novels will love this book. In the same way, I think readers who did not enjoy My Brilliant Friend might not enjoy this book.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the opportunity to read this book.

One afternoon, I was scrolling through the "available titles" on Netgalley, and this cover caught my eye. I knew nothing of the author, Yiyun Li, but I loved the cover and the title. So I made my request... and fortune smiled on me with the audio-version of this compelling little story.

The story opens in America, where Agnés is reading a letter from her mother about the death of her friend, Fabienne.

And from there a story of memory, the deep bonds of friendship, art, writing, exploitation, and life in the countryside of Saint Remy France after the war.

The memories flow from Agnés and it feels a bit like a dam has broken... things she had kept bottled inside could no longer be contained. It was a book I could not set down, even though parts were uncomfortable...

Li's writing is really incredible. And the narration... it was perfect! This won't be the last of Li's books I read. If you are looking for a beautifully told story, this is exactly the book you need! I highly recommend. I had originally given this book 4-stars, but I have not stopped thinking about Agnés and Fabienne and realized that this is absolutely a 5-star book!

I would like to thank Macmillan Audio and Netgalley for the audio-copy of this book.

I had high hopes for this book, having read multiple comparisons to Elena Ferrante, whose Neapolitan series I loved. This book is definitely not that. While I appreciated the portrayal of a complex female friendship, I wanted and expected more from both the plot and the exploration of the two female characters. Overall, I was underwhelmed.

Thanks to @netgalley and @macmillanaudio for the advance copy of the audiobook.

The Book of Goose is difficult to sum up and review. It’s original and beautifully written, but still, I didn’t fully enjoy reading it.

Narrator Agnes opens the Book of Goose by telling us that her childhood friend, Fabienne, has died. The rest of the story is told through a flashback to the girls’ childhoods in a rural French town, post WWII. Agnes and Fabienne were bright, precocious best friends, who decided to write a book together for fun. From there it becomes a coming of age story exploring friendship, fame, creativity, poverty, and expectations.

The writing is very strong and the characters were interesting and unique. I was impressed with the author’s ability to make me feel so uneasy about the girls and their friendship. However, that is the only emotion that I felt reading this book. Sad things would happen, but it was written with such emotional distance that I didn’t feel connected to the characters.

Overall, I recognize that The Book of Goose is objectively good. But, for me, it wasn’t a big hit.
3.5 stars

I was very intrigued by the premise and setting of this book. However, I did not find the narrative or characters attractive. The two friends in the story have an unhealthy attachment to each other, and continually harm others for no apparent reason. Their book writing game ends in two published novels, a short stint in an English boarding school, and the end of their friendship. I was quite confused by their friendship. For much of the book it appeared that the friendship may turn into something more, going from obsession to perhaps romance- but at the end it just fizzles out- much like the novel.. I am not too sure what the point of the novel was. Unfortunately, this one didi not work for me.

Sometimes in between all the thrillers and fast paced reads, I find myself craving a calm read and The Book Of Goose by Yiyun Li really hit that spot.

Agnes and Fabienne are two peasant best friends in a post war French rural French town. Fabienne has always been the ring leader, coming up with games for them to play, games that she dictates the rules of. Agnes, will follow her no matter what. Then Fabienne finds a new game, one where they would write a book about their lives and the game puts Agnes is a finishing school in London. Only after Fabienne's passing, Agnes tells the story of their friendship.

I'm in awe of the way Li approaches things in her work and this one was questioning writing and storytelling with the backdrop of an intense childhood friendship in a beautiful, lyrical way. Agnes and Fabienne's personalities were so distinct from each other and that made them approach their friendship so differently even though they both loved each other so much. Between the French setting and the games they played, i couldn't help but think of the movie Jeux d'enfants. I also absolutely loved the narration for the audiobook. The French accent of the narrator felt really true to the story.

Thank you MacMillan Audio for the ALC and Yiyun Li for writing this beautiful, thought provoking novel.

Beginning with Fabienne’s death in childbirth the majority of the story is a flashback to Agnes and Fabienne’s girlhood in France.

Growing up in post World War Two France, Agnes and Fabienne are the closest of friends. They live in their own world and hold every other person at arms length as they are unnecessary.

Fabienne is a powerful force and Agnes is more than happy to be her faithful follower. They use their power and will to manipulate those around them-sometimes fantastically and sometimes harmfully.

However Fabienne is able to see some aspects of their relationship more clearly then Agnes which leads to a rift in the friendship that never fully heals.

The story is intriguing but what really pulls you in are the words used to tell the story. They’re like a sharp edged fairytale.

This is one of those books that sticks with you. Definitely going to be a future book club suggestion and if it is part of the readers choice awards in a couple months, it will have my vote.

Two girls decide to play a game. One girl narrates a book to the other. The book is published under the name of the transcriber. The writing and cadence is hauntingly beautiful.

Favorite quotes:
"Some people need to figure out what they want from a life, before they commit to that life. Some, like me, can commit to anything. Which is like committing to nothing. Perhaps that is why my American relatives call me passive. Often I imagine that living is a game of Rock, Paper, Scissors. Fate beats Hope, Hope beats Ignorance, and Ignorance beats Fate."

"you're too silly by half"

The narrator Caroline Hewitt did an amazing job. Almost the entire book has a French lilt (as it should) and then there is a quote from an American girl towards the end of the book. What! Was that the same narrator?!?!? just that sentence was amazing!

Thank you to NetGalley ... especially for introducing me to (yet again!) a "new to me" author, Yiyun Li and narrator, Caroline Hewitt. (I'm definitely keeping my eye out for future books by BOTH the author or narrator!) And also thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to review the advance listen copy of The Book of Goose in exchange for an honest review! And also thank you to Macmillan Audio for granting my NetGalley ARC request.

I received an ARC of this audiobook from NetGalley in exchange for a review. It is the story of Agnes and Fabienne, two young girls from a small French town. Fabienne decides to write a story with the help of an older man who recently widowed. However, she only wants Agnes to show as the writer. This leads Agnes to leave the town and travel to Paris. She also gets an opportunity to attend an English finishing school for a year. There is a second book published by Agnes and then she falls into obscurity. A number of circumstances lead Agnes to a quiet life in the US with her American husband.

I really enjoyed this novel. It is a book about friendship and its triumphs and pitfalls. I would like to read more work by Yiyun Li. Her writing style is just perfect.

I don't care.
I just couldn't care less about Agnes' hero worship of that horrid, cruel Fabienne
I cannot continue hearing about this toxic friendship.
Fabienne is awful, which is fine, but Agnes is the WORST type of person

First of all, I need to thank both Yiyun Li and Macmillan Audio for granting me an Advanced Listener Copy of this highly-anticipated Coming of Age tale about two friends who stuck by each other's sides, through poorness and wealth, across jurisdictional borders and limits, until the very end. Two poor, french countryside girls find themselves in the pit of poverty, looking after livestock and moping around in a post-WWII state.

After a local linguist becomes a widow, Fabienne and Agnes take it upon themselves, or rather Fabienne takes the lead with Agnes in tow, taking on the guidance of this widower to help them get their stories published. After much deliberation and fabrication, Agnes takes on the role of "Girl Author" penning down Fabienne's tales on paper, and publishing them as her own, for Fabienne has no interest in becoming an author, and solely wants that success for her poor friend.

Fame meets Agnes and she's shoved into the literary elite, accepting offers from publishing houses and finishing schools, seeking to further her educational success. Although, this is not what Agnes wanted... She'd much rather have experienced the bright lights of Paris and London alongside her best friend and soul sister, but was forced to do it on her own, and also expected to produce another book after some time. Without Fabienne, she felt no purpose and longed to go home to the countryside and be with her soulmate.

Though I did feel at some times this plot dragged on, I think this was a very well-done tale of how TRUE friends always seem to find each other in the end and have each other's best interests in mind, no matter what.

The Book of Goose was the first book that I had the pleasure of reading by Yiyun Li. I was very impressed by her beautiful writing and her unique gift for storytelling. The Book of Goose was most definitely a character driven, coming of age book with a captivating and compelling storyline. I listened to the audiobook that was performed very well by Caroline Hewitt.

A young woman, now married and living in Philadelphia could be seen reading a letter from her mother. In the letter, the woman’s mother informed her daughter that Fabienne had died in childbirth. Receiving this news sparked a long ago memory in Agnes of two young girls that grew up together as inseparable friends in Saint Remy, France.

Two young French girls, Fabienne and Agnes, were inseparable friends during the post war years in their countryside village of Saint Remy, France. As in most childhood relationships, one child was generally the leader and one was generally the follower. In Fabienne’s and Agnes’s case, Fabienne was the leader and Agnes followed her lead. Agnes was obsessed with Fabienne and she was rarely out of Agnes’s thought for any length of time. Agnes went to school each day while Fabienne was made to help at home since her mother and older sister had died. Fabienne was Agnes’s one and only friend. Girls at school tried to befriend her but Agnes’s loyalty remained with Fabienne. As soon as Agnes got home from school, she ran to meet up with Fabienne. The two girls ran in the fields, climbed trees, invented games and often went to the village cemetery where they would lie on graves and ponder about ghosts and death.

One day, Fabienne decided that she and Agnes should write a book. The ideas for the book came from Fabienne and Agnes scribed them. Fabienne wove a story that was quite dark and even a big sinister. Fabienne enlisted the help of the local postman to aid them edit their book. It was Fabienne’s idea that Agnes’s name should appear on the book cover as the author. Even though the story was all Fabienne’s creation, she convinced Agnes that she would be better suited to handle all the aspects expected of an author. Agnes being Agnes, agreed to Fabienne’s plan. The creation of the book served as the catalyst that would forever change the relationship between Agnes and Fabienne.

Overall I enjoyed listening to the audiobook of The Book of Goose by Yiyun Li. I found parts of the story disturbing. After I finished listening to the audiobook, I wondered if Agnes and Fabienne had had more parental involvement and guidance during their childhood if their fates might have been different. Both girls were allowed a great deal of freedom with little accountability for their activities or whereabouts. The Book of Goose explored friendships, loyalty, devotion and how opportunities could change the dynamics of a once treasured friendship. I look forward to reading more books by Yiyun Li. I highly recommend this book.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio for allowing me to listen to this audiobook through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. Publication is set for September 20, 2022.

3 stars

Well, this is sure a sinister friendship for the ages!

Agnes, the m.c., and her friend/conspirator in codependency Fabienne, have a friendship in their youth that is...unique. It doesn't feel enough to say that it's all-consuming: obsessive, perhaps. The intensity of this relationship is both disturbing and remarkably readable, especially as their imaginations and actions reveal a sinister undercurrent that is steadily rising to the surface.

When Agnes moves, for me, the pacing slows dramatically. The forthcoming events feel predictable in a somewhat disappointing way. What did surprise me was the lack of growth. The combination of an obsessive little girl and her adult self as a less-than-redeemable person who longs for those old days just plays in to too many of the representations of women that, well, irk me.

I have enjoyed Li's writing for a long time and opted to teach it at different points, but this one just didn't work for me. A woman character who is somehow perpetually stuck in creepy childhood patterns... I know the reasons. I'm just not sure it's what I want to read about at this stage.