Customer Reviews

Twinship: A Novel by the Author of Ex Utero

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Laurie Foos is a magician. There are scenes in "Twinship" that leave you dazzled, and wondering, "How did she pull that off?" Her vision is unique and exciting, and every sentence is clearly the work of a writer who's an artist. When a woman gives birth to a baby who turns out to be a clone, the plot takes off into territory most writers would not dare enter, but Foos goes in with courage and daring. Underneath the sometimes wild momentum of the plot are deeply realized, very human experiences, especially when Foos turns her attention to the layers and layers of a mother-child relationship that's comic and profound. Reading this novel is that rare thing: an excellent adventure.

Laurie Foos delivers a howlingly funny send-up of ravenous research hospitals, overbearing mothers, and Royal groupies. Maxi is in her mid-thirties, unmarried, and desperate to please her mother, Minnie. With no spouse on the horizon, Maxi enlists the aid of her friend, Jerry--who may or may not be gay--to help "father" a child. Maxi and Minnie savor the gestation of "their baby," and eagerly await its delivery. But something goes wrong. Maxi gives birth to herself--a clone. Maxi goes into shock, Minnie goes into spasms of joy, and the frenzied medical community goes after the clone. Unfortunately for the research doctors, Minnie is faster, smarter, and more motivated than are they. Despite draconian security measures, she kidnaps the rapidly-growing Middle and disappears into the night. Will Maxi be able to recover from the shock and exhaustion of birthing herself to find Minnie and Maxi? What else will she discover along the way? Come along for the chase--by bus, by car, and by foot!

I loved this story. It is smart, funny, and ultimately thought-provoking. American women of all ages and gestational-status will laugh with, worry about, and cheer for Maxi and Middle. Grab a cup of coffee, settle into a comfortable chair, and prepare yourself for a great read.

Somehow, Maxi-the heroine of Laurie Foos' brilliant and hilarious novel-gives birth to herself. The reader follows Maxi's zany fortunes as she tries to find her clone/baby who has been kidnapped at birth by her mother. Along the way, she meets a power-crazed doctor desperate to win a Nobel prize for delivering the world's first clone, a therapist who impersonates Princess Fergie, identical twins Candy and Sandy, and a slew of Persian cats that have been overbred to prize-winning perfection. Sound crazy? It is, unforgettably so.

Foos' cast of characters are pulled straight from the pages of the National Enquirer and yet deliver heartbreaking truths about what it takes to birth an authentic self, and the spontaneous love and hate that can exist between oneself and one's mother, lovers, friends, and therapists.

A memorable, funny read. Brava!