I spent most of my time reading this book wondering about the title. Who was the evil genius? Surely not Celia, this nineteen year old woman with a horrible job, an abusive husband, and a controlling mother. If her life is this awful, she's no genius, evil or otherwise. On the other hand, maybe she's not the most reliable of narrators?
If I was believe Celia's account of her life, all kinds of coincidences continually happened to her. She is a runaway train, jumping the tracks of her boring life and gas lighting husband. Her job (dealing with late payments at the phone company) leads to some odd situations, which feel real enough if you've ever worked in the service industry. (I worked a telephone job for a while and was propositioned regularly by the guys who phoned.) There's the Sock Man who repeatedly phones to ask her to put a sock on his willy. The evening out with the girls that results in being propositioned by a well tailored man (her mother was a seamstress, she recognizes a well fitted suit). Finding dog poo all over his house and finding that he is an inferior fondler. It all just rolls along organically.
By the book's end, I was doubting my interpretation of events. Had Celia actually masterminded everyone's reactions to a tee? Maybe she was an evil genius? I still haven't decided and maybe I'm not meant to.
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