The Other Half of Augusta Hope: The best-selling, heart-warming debut novel shortlisted for the Costa First Novel Award

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When her life changes forever she escapes to a new life in Spain which feels more like home. Her mother and father follow her to deliver her a present even though they are out of their comfort zone. Augusta Hope has always been different. Different from her Mum and Dad and different from her twin sister,her neighbours and friends. She enjoys words and Burundi and she doesn't like the small town she lives in finding it very parochial. I loved this book. A wonderful debut from Joanna Glen. There are really two stories here, one told by Augusta and the other by Parfait. The threads of this book weave in and out of time, place and experience. Its about family of whatever type and learning from others.

This book, for me, was all kind of wonderful. Through Augusta I learned a bunch of new facts, some of which I have already used myself! I kinda see a bit of me in her and that's always a good start when you get to know a new character. Julia and Augusta are the Hope twins - bought up in an ordinary place by ordinary parents who are of their time. Parfait is the same age as Augusta, but lives in a completely different world: war-torn Burundi. Having seen many of his family killed in the bloody civil war, he decides to leave, aged 14, taking his younger brother with him. This book is a split perspective novel, telling the stories of Augusta, a British woman who wants to travel the world to escape her home life and Parfait, a man from Burundi who decides to make a break for it to avoid the ongoing civil war.

I enjoyed the book. The lead character-Augusta-was convincing and engaging and I found I was drawn into her story and that of Parfait. Thanks is extended to HarperCollins Publishers Australia for providing me with a copy of The Other Half of Augusta Hope for review.

Gradually, Augusta Hope worked her way under my skin, there was a lot to love about her and I think that I wanted to be her friend. Another book that made me feel like this was Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine and I am sure that Augusta Hope will get compared to Eleanor Oliphant, as they both feature a quirky main character who is isolated and considered strange by many around them. I really hope that the books don’t get compared though, as that would be doing both a disservice. This beautiful novel is told alternately by Augusta Hope, living in England, and Parfait from Burundi.Joanna Glen’s writing style is lyrical and poetical, she shows great understanding of the emotions and lives of her characters and is able to write about them in a beautiful way so the reader can feel and live those emotions with the characters. The two parallel story lines are a stark contrast to each other but show that no matter where we are in the world we all share the same expectations from life, and that we all have to deal with death, love, loss and tragedy. It is these themes that resonated with me and underpin the narrative of this book. Yes, there are some difficult issues raised during the book, but ultimately I found this to be an uplifting read about the importance of family, love, and following your heart.