★★★★★—The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion

"An international sensation, this hilarious, feel-good novel is narrated by an oddly charming and socially challenged genetics professor on an unusual quest: to find out if he is capable of true love.Don Tillman, professor of genetics, has never been on a second date. He is a man who can count all his friends on the fingers of one hand, whose lifelong difficulty with social rituals has convinced him that he is simply not wired for romance. So when an acquaintance informs him that he would make a "wonderful" husband, his first reaction is shock. Yet he must concede to the statistical probability that there is someone for everyone, and he embarks upon The Wife Project. In the orderly, evidence-based manner with which he approaches all things, Don sets out to find the perfect partner. She will be punctual and logical--most definitely not a barmaid, a smoker, a drinker, or a late-arriver.

Yet Rosie Jarman is all these things. She is also beguiling, fiery, intelligent--and on a quest of her own. She is looking for her biological father, a search that a certain DNA expert might be able to help her with. Don's Wife Project takes a back burner to the Father Project and an unlikely relationship blooms, forcing the scientifically minded geneticist to confront the spontaneous whirlwind that is Rosie--and the realization that love is not always what looks good on paper.

"The Rosie Project" is a moving and hilarious novel for anyone who has ever tenaciously gone after life or love in the face of overwhelming challenges." (Goodreads) (read on January 25, 2015)

My Review:
★★★★★

Every so often, you want to curl up with a book that doesn't depress the shit out of you. The Rosie Project is one of those books. While the secondhand embarrassment is strong with this one, it is a feel-good story about two people who are, in Rosie's words, "fucked-up", but who learn to find comfort in each other while growing more in tune with themselves. Were there sad points? Yes. Were there parts that were frustrating beyond belief? Hell yes. But I liked it. I thought it addressed mental illness well, especially told from someone with aspergers' eyes. It's a great book. Read most of it on the plane. Quick, easy, pleasant read, not terribly emotionally draining but I got very very invested in these characters.