Mini Review | The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion

Cute but feels a little dated for 2023 – ⭐️⭐️⭐️ 3/5 Stars

Format: Audio

Read: October 2023

After I blew through the available good Lisa Jewells I was struggling to find an audiobook to settle on through my library app. I started and quickly abandoned a couple of others before I decided to stick with The Rosie Project. Starting the new job has been a strain on my brain so I needed something light and frothy, and this had the bonus of an Australian narrator!

The Rosie Project is cute, and honestly I’m going to struggle to say too much more about it!

I liked

– The novelty of a romantic comedy written by a man from the male point of view. This was surprising refreshing, despite some rather outdated stereotyping and chauvinist attitudes. Mainly these are from the influence of the questionable Gene on our protagonist Don.

– It is also interesting to experience a romantic-comedy from the point of view of someone on the autistic spectrum. I always enjoy an “outsider” perspective on social norms. Although I felt some of the attitudes towards autism were also a little outdated in the end I found it an effective exploration of what it really means to love another person.

– There are lots of cute and funny moments, and Don’s voice often made me chuckle. The Australian narrator was great too.

I didn’t like

– I’ve already mentioned some of the slightly dated attitudes (this was written in 2013) which really come through in how most of the characters a stereotypes. Rosie in particular is thin on characterisation beyond “daddy issues.”

– There are a lot of hijinks and a surprising amount of slap stick, and there were times it just went to far for me (scaling buildings in NYC!).

– It did start to drag in the latter half. At one point I put it on and fell asleep and felt no need to go back and see what I missed.

All in its fun enough if you want something light and you can just enjoy it as a product of its time, like watching a rom-com movie from a decade ago!