This novel is told from the perspective of Enid, who is a mentally unwell neurodivergent woman in her 20s who is also a lesbian and deaf in one ear, as she navigates - or more stumbles through - life with a depressive mother, relationship issues, paranoia including a bizarre phobia of bald me , trying to establish a relationship with the half-sisters she has only recently met after the death of the father that abandoned her, and more.

So as you can tell from that description, there was A LOT going on in this book. Maybe I need to stop reading these character novels featuring characters who are neurodivergent and/or have mental health issues - for each one that I enjoy, there are at least two others like this that just do not work for me. The publisher and other readers allude to quirky charm and humor, but often as with this book, I instead find the book depressing/upsetting/disturbing. Being inside Enid’s head was just such a deeply unpleasant place to be, and while I was glad she finally sought help at the end of the book, the ending revelations just were not satisfying at all.

2.5 stars

Emily continues to be one of my favourite modern authors. Deftly tackling heavy themes without ever swerving into after school special territory. Another banger!

I think that, in the way that listening to true crime podcasts brings Enid comfort, reading books about people who are quite a bit not right in the head brings me comfort. It gives credence to the odd and irrational things I think and makes me feel like I’m not so crazy after all. Emily Austin is amazingly talented at coming up with these sorts of neurotic characters and making them inexplicably likable. I can’t wait for her next book.

Having read the first Emily Austen novel a while back, there’s definitely a notable improvement in terms of the writing quality. The characters in this novel were a lot more fleshed out, especially the main character and her mother, whose relationship was probably my favourite part of this book. The pacing of this book was also really strong, which is particularly impressive given how much it was trying to do. However, that’s where my main issue with this book comes in: the author was simply trying to do way too much given the scope of the book, and it led to some of the plots not really hitting the mark. Throughout a lot of the book, it was somewhat unclear what tone the author was going for, and so when we got to the resolution it felt as if it came out of nowhere. In particular, the way most of the conflicts were set up was interesting, but many of the conclusions felt unearned - though her relationship with her mother remained a solid plot point from start to finish. I would still read the author’s next book, as she tends to have interesting ideas and characters, this one was just somewhat underwhelming by the end.

I went on a ride with "Interesting Facts about Space". At first, I found Enid to be annoying, the worst person you've ever met. Something about her increased phobia seemed to be able to let more people in and put her in a better place at the end of the book. It was refreshing to feel like she was in a better spot than where she started. The lesson learned is that everyone has a parasite and we are all better if we acknowledge and understand that side of ourselves.

Interesting Facts About Space by Emily Austin (she/her) is one of my new favorite books. Within the first few pages, Austin personified a tampon box, lamented the indignity of celebrating baby genitals (read: gender reveals), and made the astute, albeit morbid, observation that one of the perks of being a lesbian is that it’s less critical to vet whether your date will kill you. I was so intrigued and entertained, I couldn’t wait to keep reading.

If Austin’s name sounds familiar to you, you may have heard of her debut novel, Everyone in This Room Will Someday Be Dead, which followed a twentysomething atheist lesbian who could not stop ruminating about death. The book was long listed for The Stephen Leacock Memorial Medal for Humour, shortlisted for the Amazon First Novel Award, and a finalist for the Ottawa Book Awards.

Austin’s sophomore novel follows another endearing and unique protagonist: space-obsessed and true-crime-loving Enid, a twenty-six-year-old neurodivergent lesbian who is deaf in one ear. When she is not working at the Space Agency or listening to a seemingly endless loop of true crime podcasts, Enid is going out with a steady rotation of women/non-binary people from dating apps. She has it down to a science. She has never dated anyone exclusively and is quick to cut people off before things get too serious.

Enid’s most important relationship is the one she has with her mother. When she was young, her father cheated on her mother and started a new family. At the start of the novel, he has recently passed away and Enid is trying to cultivate a relationship with her two half-sisters while maintaining loyalty to her mother, who she lovingly peppers with interesting facts about space to show she cares.

Early on, it is clear that Enid has some unresolved trauma. She is inexplicably terrified of bald men. She has trouble accessing and trusting her memories. She is convinced that she is being followed. She believes she may have a parasite, that she is a shell for something bad. In the midst of all this, Enid meets Polly, who bypasses Enid’s carefully constructed emotional safeguards and makes her start wondering if she wants more.

Austin does a masterful job of working through Enid’s issues with humor and empathy. While Interesting Facts About Space has several engaging sub-plots, the most engrossing aspect of the novel is Enid’s journey of self-discovery. Part of what endeared me to Enid was that I felt like I bore witness to her reckoning. I watched her grapple with questions like “Am I a good person?” and “Do I deserve love?” – questions I have asked myself. The ability to explore such emotional depth in a book without sounding contrived is a skill. Austin made me feel so connected to Enid that I wished I could continue following her journey.

If you read and love this book like me, check out Austin’s backlist, which includes Oh Honey (a novella) and Everyone in This Room Will Someday Be Dead (her debut novel). Austin’s third novel, We Could Be Rats, is expected in January 2025.

Trigger warnings for discussions of mental health issues, including hypervigilance, PTSD, dissociation, hyperarousal, depression, anxiety, and self-harm; and graphic descriptions of true crime scenarios.

I'm not really sure this was for me. I didn't really understand it, but I'm sure other people will really like it.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for granting me free access to the advanced digital copy of this book.

Thank you NetGalley for an opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

4.5 stars. I thoroughly enjoyed this book! I read it for my town's local sapphic book club. I loved the wit, humor, LGBTQIA+ representation, mental health representation, and touch of mystery. The book was incredibly easy to read and fast-paced. I was instantly drawn into the main character and her struggles. It was an added bonus that the main character shared my obsession with true crime podcasts.

Emily Austin just really seems to be able to capture a vibe that resonates on a deep level with me personally. My instinct is to say not a lot happened, but that’s not really true. Enid did a lot of work on herself. She was a different person by the end of the book. I think the true strength of Austin is the character study and development. The plot beats don’t necessarily stick with me, but the sense of relatability and love for the characters always remains.

oh my goodness this was amazing. congratulations emily r austin you have become one of my favorite authors of all time, welcome to the alex hall of fame. i am so emotional from feeling so understood. the katie gavin and boygenius name drops in the acknowledgements didn't hurt either.

Genre: Contemporary Fiction

Format: Audio/E-book

5🌟 - I loved it!

Thank you @atriabooks and @simon.audio for the #gifted physical copy and audiobook!

I devoured this book in less than 24 hours! It had the humor, quirkiness, inner monologue, complex relationships, neurodiverse rep, LGBTQIA rep, and mental health rep!

I love books that feel like a slice of life, and this one truly fits the bill. You couldn’t help but root for Enid and wish the best for her!

I loved listening to the first part of it, but I couldn’t get enough so I finished physically reading.

Outrageous, tender, messy, and loud-out-loud funny!

“Sometimes you have to joke about things like pickling murdered teenagers. It’s a coping mechanism. It takes the darkness out at the knees.”

Enid is a young, queer, neurodivergent woman who is deaf in one ear, terrified of bald men, obsessed with space and true crime, and convinced that someone is following her. She is both a mess of a character and a deeply lovable and relatable one.

Over the span of this story, Enid is worrying about her depressed mother, trying to succeed at work despite needing to collaborate with a bald collegue, finding her place amongst her late father’s “other family,” and trying to figure out who might be lurking around her apartment and why—all while navigating the complexities and nuances of her hearing loss and mental health.

“Whenever I see my mom watching her food cook in the oven, I sit next to her and look in. You can’t kill yourself in modern ovens. Well, I’m sure you coud. You could kill yourself with anything if you tried hard enough. When we sit there, though, I feel like we are moths drawn to the memory of what an oven can do to sad women.”

Emily Austin is somehow able to balance humor and deep feeling in the most perfectly compelling way. I laughed, I got teary, I felt seen and comforted. I wanted to hug this book to my chest when I finished it. I’m already eagerly anticipating whatever Austin writes next.

Absolutely a favorite of 2024!

Interesting Facts about Space is tender. It's about the tendrils we extend to connect with others. Our insecurities which force us to hide ourselves away. It's about the ways sometimes saying, "are you wearing lipstick today"? is our way of saying, "I love you, I'm worried about you". These shorthand in the way we can only figure out how do. For Enid and her mother, their love language at the beginning of the book is interesting facts about space. But throughout, Enid has to figure out if this is how she wants her relationships to go.

This book hooks you in from the OMG opening scene. With unique characters and wonderful LGBTQ+ and neurodiverse representation, this fun and quirky story also has surprising depth to it. A quick read that's well worth your time!

Thanks to NetGalley and Atria for the copy to review.

I had a hard time getting into this book. The heroine was someone I have zero in common with, and I had no interest in hearing about her lesbian love life. I put it down for about two months but decided to open my mind and give it another go.
The main character, Enid, is a young anxiety ridden woman with a lot of issues. She has family issues, dating issues, issues with her mom, and thru it all, she spouts unrelated but interesting facts about space. Enid is working for NASA and trying to come to terms with her deceased father’s other family. All the while she listens ( is obsessed with) true crime podcasts and is convinced she is being stalked by a bald man. Whew. I didn’t really know what to make of it or where it was headed. But lo and behold, I actually ended up really liking the book. It was a both quirky and heart wrenching. There was a lot to unpack here about mental illness and trying to make sense of things when you realize you have misremembered things from your past. Enid turned out to be a troubled young girl but very endearing heroine.
Well written. Very entertaining I’m glad I decided to read it and I would recommend it.

I had a hard time getting into this book. The heroine was someone I have zero in common with, and I had no interest in hearing about her lesbian love life. I put it down for about two months but decided to open my mind and give it another go.
The main character, Enid, is a young anxiety ridden woman with a lot of issues. She has family issues, dating issues, issues with her mom, and thru it all, she spouts unrelated but interesting facts about space. Enid is working for NASA and trying to come to terms with her deceased father’s other family. All the while she listens ( is obsessed with) true crime podcasts and is convinced she is being stalked by a bald man. Whew. I didn’t really know what to make of it or where it was headed. But lo and behold, I actually ended up really liking the book. It was a both quirky and heart wrenching. There was a lot to unpack here about mental illness and trying to make sense of things when you realize you have misremembered things from your past. Enid turned out to be a troubled young girl but very endearing heroine.
Well written. Very entertaining I’m glad I decided to read it and I would recommend it.

This is my favorite book of 2024 so far. I loved the neurodiverse, queer narrator, who is unique but also so so easy to relate to. I loved her struggle to relate to her half sisters, her desire to be accepted, her insights on herself and the people around her. I love her best friend, whom she hasn't quite realized she has. I love the phobia of bald men, the space facts. I love the beautiful, sad relationship with her mom, how they never really tell each other things, but how they're always thinking about each other. I love the subtle things that go unsaid, the miscommunications that could be so easily resolved. I loved the "parenting your parents" theme, the frustration and guilt at just being a human.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC. I purchased a copy for my library and must go back and read the previous title from the author.

I really loved Everyone in This Room Will Someday Be Dead, so I jumped at the chance to read this follow-up. While I think Interesting Facts about Space lacked some of the humor and sparkle of the other book (I mean, it IS a different book, soooo...valid? I'm not suggesting Austin has to always be sparkly and funny) I still really thought this was a worthwhile read. I highlighted it to death. It's going to be very difficult to narrow down which quotes I'm going to include here. Anyway, I just remember laughing a lot more at EITRWSBD (and I'm a sucker for dark religion-centered humor). IFAS, for me at least, was a much starker view into the mind of a (again, in my opinion) heavily Autistic-coded MC. I saw someone describe this books as "heady and intense" and I think that's a perfect word choice, especially if you want to make "heady" a pun.

This is another one of those books that people are going to complain about because the MC isn't likable or they couldn't relate or blah blah blah and I'm here, one again, to shout from the rooftops that there are people in the world that have brains that work exactly like Enid's and it is WORTH IT TO READ ABOUT IT even if you can't relate. This book feels like a fever dream of weirdness and bizarre stream of consciousness at times and it made me a little zany to read it but also I just loved it. I hope other people feel seen reading it.

A few quotes that I didn't necessarily relate to (seriously when I'm on a soapbox I am ON A SOAPBOX) but had writing that I really loved:

"'I wonder why some people are like her, and why some people are like me. She’s able to make offhand soppy comments without cringing because she is mentally healthy, well-adjusted, and normal. I can’t tell people things like, It’s always so nice to see you, let alone say something like, I love you, without feeling my insides curdle.'"

"When I was a kid, I would run to my bed after flushing the toilet. I told myself that some toilet monster was awakened when I flushed, and that he would snatch me if I didn’t move. I imagined him chasing me as I flew to my mattress, my pants rarely ever fully pulled up. I thought of his knobbly, green monster fingers reaching for me as I dove into my mattress. I believed the second I was under the covers he would return to the pipes."

"I hate my voice. I hate the words I choose. I hate my instincts and the way I think. I hate that I am self-absorbed enough to hate myself in detail. I think I am a bad person. I feel self-loathing so deeply I think if I cracked myself open, I would see the physical manifestation of it calcified in my bones like a geode."

Content Warnings: Hyper fixations / Obsessive Thoughts; Paranoia; Phobias; PTSD; Ableism; Self-Harm (Minor)

The book’s first-person narrator, Enid, is a lesbian, unilaterally deaf, neurodivergent, and has untreated paranoia, PTSD, and a phobia (of bald men). Each of these identities plays a significant role in how she views and describes the world. The book is a character study, with readers following her mindset as she navigates daily tasks from her work as an information specialist at a space agency to her intimate relationships with family, friends, and lovers. There is no strong “plot,” per say, other than Enid’s navigating her identities and seeking control over her life, but Enid is a strong enough narrator to make that journey interesting.

Some might feel the ending comes too abruptly or feels incomplete, but for me it was perfect. It mirrored Enid’s greater understanding of herself and resolving tensions around her as she recognizes and tends to her unique needs. Rather than trying up with a neat, saccharine bow, the happy ending feels like a Enid’s journey is still a work-in-progress, but one in which she has finally gained some of the control she has previously sought.