The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue

I deeply enjoyed this audiobook. The narration was perfect for all of the interactions between characters. The descriptive writing style sets the scene wonderfully throughout, mentioning wind and rain quite a bit. I loved how complicated the relationships between characters were, and of course the references to different artists and famous people were fun Easter eggs as the story unfolded. This story complicates questions of what it means to love, whether freedom of time and place is a gift or a curse, and which evidences of existence ultimately matter. It also suggests that although Addie gained the experiences she so desperately wanted, she corrupted and lost parts of herself in order to gain them. The biggest question to me was whether Addie remained human after all of the change she experienced to her personality and outlook, and her untethered existence in the absence of true relationships and some typical human consequences. I believe she maintained her reactive emotional humanity but lost a degree of her empathy. She remained conflicted about Luc’s treatment of other people and cared about the people close to her, but gradually lost the ability to care for those beyond her when she wanted something. However, this trait appears the most human to me in reaction to her upbringing where her desires were unmet. Truly a thought-provoking read!

Strong female lead done right. Thank you for writing this- it’s such a rarity and I will always treasure it. This book is without a doubt a classic that will stick around on the bookshelves of humanity for generations to come.

Good read! I went through it quickly.