Have I mentioned before how much fun it is to just plunge into a book and/or author (in this case, both) I haven’t come across before?
Hummingbird tells the story of a man named Felix. He lives alone (at least, at first, he seems to). He spends too much time on the internet visiting live porn sites, and becomes enamored of one woman in particular. (“Whether she knew it or not, we had a relationship, and it bound us together as surely as a solemn vow.”) Things get creepy, but only up to a point, and then they get confusing. Felix wakes up one day to find himself with a girlfriend he doesn’t remember, no cigarettes in his pocket (or desire for a cigarette), and no memory of how to interact with the computer.
Things feel off with Felix from the very first page. He’s upset that no one informed him that the Connors are moving out of the apartment building, even though they didn’t know each other in the “traditional sense”.
For the first time in my adult life, I was almost happy. I had a book in print. A place of my own. A growing family to vicariously enjoy. From my balcony I could almost see the ocean.The disorder in the apartment was useful, or familiar at least.I was accustomed to the dishes in the sink and the empty liquor bottles on the counters. I didn’t mind navigating towers of second-hand paperbacks or kicking through piles of old shirts and underwear on my way to the bathroom… As for all the neighbours, I appreciated the sounds of them going about their lives – a spoon rapping against a pot, a body shifting in a bathtub, a vacuum cleaner grinding. People shouting, laughing, fucking all around me. I might not have spoken to any of them directly, but we communicated in other, more subtle ways, and I took comfort from the notion that we were part of the same community.
Feelings of doubt and paranoia intrude on his thoughts. Can he time-travel, or is he just crazy? Is the world trying to tell him something, or is it just his imagination? Is he a good person, or is he capable of acting on the sadistic thoughts that run through his head?
I could see from their faces that I’d transformed into something terrifying, an animal on whom clothing would have looked absurd. A wild shriek tore its way out of my throat, flattening them against the walls. Then, hunched like a troll, genitals swinging, I gripped the handle of the front door and stepped out into the crowded street.
Pity becomes an overriding emotion. Just a guy, trying to live his life, but having a rough time of it. Mentally ill, a disappointment to his family. He needs help, but doesn’t really know how to get it. And how do you find help for yourself and then make sure you follow through on your own? What will become of him?
… the world had gradually forced me out, the way the skin forces out a sliver of wood. And now that I’ve been rejected, I had no way of finding my way back.
Perplexed, paranoid, pitied.
Is there hope of love and companionship in his future? What would that look like? Does he even deserve it?
Possibly. Precariously.
Hummingbird reminded me of Bellevue Square by Michael Redhill. I thought I knew what was going on until I realized I didn’t. And from that point on, I questioned everything I read (I was as confounded as Felix). If you don’t like being confused or not knowing how things stand in your fiction, you might want to avoid this book. But, for me, it was a pleasure.
Be sure to check out Buried in Print’s review of Hummingbird (and lonely characters): “It’s lonely, it’s disorienting, but it’s also consistent and credible and crafty.”
Thank you to the folks at Freehand Books for sending me a copy of this book!
Consumed by Ink 
Ah, you got me with your comparison to Redhill Square which I admired for its cleverness. It sounds very enticing.
This one is clever as well, but I’d say it’s darker.
Hmm, interesting concept
Exactly. 🙂
This sounds right up my street – I love a novel where the reader isn’t quite sure what is real and what isn’t and this seems particularly well done.
You sound like a perfect reader for this book! 🙂
I quite enjoy not knowing or being proven wrong when I think I do know where things are going… those are usually my favourite types of books.
It sounds like a sad book given how destructive paranoia can be and how lonely the main character seems. I am really intrigued as such stream of conscious writing really appeals to me. Thanks for bringing Hummingbird to me attention.
From what you’ve said, this sounds like something you might like! Thanks for reading!
I’m intrigued. I enjoyed Bellevue Square so I might have to search this one out too!
If you do, I hope you like it!
Oohh this sounds like a good one. I think I remember reading BIP’s review and thinking the same thing. And of course, I love to support my hometown publisher of Freehand!
Of course!
I really like the sound of this, it sounds clever but without losing sight of the characters and story.
Its great when you discover a new author in that way!
Near the beginning, when he’s describing his solitary life in his apartment, I actually thought of The Pigeon, but then the subject matter became darker than just being deathly afraid of pigeons. 🙂
It’s always fun to try a new author! I’m glad this one was a winner for you, Naomi. He sounds like a challenging character to empathize with but it sounds like the author was skilled enough to make you do so anyway.
That’s true! At times I felt creeped out, then I felt sorry for him. And there were even times I liked him.
Heheh And I can hear you smiling. 🙂
Was it confusing and then by the end you figured it out? Or it does make itself clear after awhile? The guy sounds a bit creepy.
He does, right? But then, you wonder and, yes, you eventually understand (mostly) what’s going on.
I like the way you ease into discussion of this one. By focussing on your response to the first interactions we have with him. What a ride! I’m definitely curious what his next book will be like. (Thanks very much for the shout-out to my post on it. Much appreciated.)
Thank you and you’re welcome! 🙂