I Am Homeless If This Is Not My Home – Lorrie Moore

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Chosen by Jo

A tragic-comic ghost story set in the 19th and 21st centuries. I Am Homeless If This Is Not My Home is a story of death and passion via characters who are haunted by the past and history and their loves. They are a man who takes a road trip with the zombie corpse of his ex, and a boarding house ma’am in Post Civil war times writing letters to her sister about a shady character.

The whole Enterprise of Life was snooty and didn’t really want that much to do with death. Death made Life look bad.

● This book initially drew me in with great lines and poignant scenes, especially when Finn was visiting his dying brother Max. I loved the following quote: “Death made Life look bad”. However, the following section, where Finn is on a road trip with his ex’s ghost, became tedious, with endless nonsensical exchanges between the two characters. A lot of emphasis was placed on her decay and I felt like exclaiming “she’s dead! I get it!” The link between this narrative and the other, set in the 19th century, was not obvious and seemed pointless even after researching it further. This was a short book that felt long. – Jo

● It is hard to write up my thoughts on a book that I didn’t really understand. I could explain parts of the book, but in terms of the general storyline I am lost. It’s been a while since I’ve been this bamboozled (and disappointed) by a novel. The one thing that did really stand out is that the main character is a not-particularly-interesting man and constantly hearing about his uninspired musings was tiring. – Suzy

● I Am Homeless If This Is Not My Home is a novel that I just couldn’t connect with. Its themes are of a dark nature – death, grief, mental illness and suicide – and Moore’s attempts at humour in parts didn’t do it for me. I was waiting for the two narratives to come together, which they did at one point, but it was such a small connection it could have been easily missed by the reader. I did enjoy the beginning of the novel but all in all it felt disjointed, lacking in plot and characterisation. – Jodie

● Typically I like unusual/absurdist fiction but it’s fair to say I didn’t know what was going on for much of this book. The brothers reliving moments in a hospital room was sweet; the same brother on a roadie with a decaying, talking corpse was darkly funny; the letters from Eliza to her sister were interesting. But I was constantly trying to find the links between all these parts and wondering ‘what is this book about?’ And I don’t know if my questions were completely answered by the end. – Rachel

Published 2023
Knopf
208 pages