Raquel Says (Something Entirely Unexpected) by Mois Benarroch

Do you love to read novels about a parallel universe? If so, then you will want to read Mois Benarroch's 164-page novel Raquel Says (Something Entirely Unexpected). This book was published in August of 2017 by Babelcube Inc. This book was translated by Sally Seward.

Mois Benarroch was in Morocco in the year 1959. He can write in three languages. He is a best selling writer and poet in Israel and a novelist in Spain. He was awarded the prestigious Amichay Poet Prize in 2012. He has published 30 books.

In the beginning of the book, the narrator wants to die and the world doesn't interest him anymore. This man is depressed and you can see this as he compares himself to his fellow writers, Kafka and Kerouac, who died at 40 the same age as himself. He writes in Hebrew but is told to write in Spanish. When you read further in this parallel world, you see that his wife has left him. We learn that he created this woman, Raquel in a parallel world. She is a writer in Madrid. They communicate through email where we learn that they are soul mates. As the book goes on, the narrator doesn't want to die anymore.

The narrator is looking for love. Someone who knows how to love him and not just say the words. How would you react if writing just appeared on your computer screen? That is what happened to the narrator. Suddenly words appeared on his screen that said,

"Well, we can't give you what you want. But we can give you the possibility to create."

"Today, and only today, you may create a person."

"A person that you may choose yourself."

"The only condition is that the person must have been born in the same year you were born and in the same city."

Then the words disappear.

"I understand that I will now have to create a person. Not a fictitious one, a person. What she thinks only now become a reality" (Raquel Says (Something Entirely Unexpected by Mois Benarroch, page 8). It's like he pulled Raquel's name out of thin air and now she is a person from a parallel world. We do learn that he created Raquel to save his books.

This book was written in 1st person which I don't care for. I usually don't read books that are written in this kind of style but I had already made a promise to read this book. I found that I could understand the book better towards the end. As I read the book, it was easier to read and follow.

The one thing that I didn't like was the cover of the book. I don't think that the picture on the cover goes with the book. This book was well written with few grammar mistakes. This is a slow and steady type of book.

I would recommend this book to readers who love novels that have to do with parallel universes. Readers need to have an open mind when reading this.