The Girls

I don't remember where I heard of this book, either on a podcast or I read about it, but I found The Girls by Lori Lansens to be wonderful!  It's an older book, written in 2005.


This novel is told by two girls, Ruby and Rose, who were twins co-joined at the side of their heads.  The book is primarily narrated by Rose, who was writing about their lives and hoped that the book would be published.  Ruby was a rather un-enthused participant in the book.

The two girls were very different from each other, both physically and intellectually, but their devotion and love for each other is touching.  Because they were joined at the sides of their heads, they had never been able to directly look at each other in the eyes.  They had been abandoned by their young, unwed mother after their birth.  The nurse attending the twins took them home with her, and so they lived with "Aunt Lovey" and "Uncle Stash" and were loved and cared for dearly.  Through-out their years, many people entered their lives and they strove for as much normalcy as possible. Rose was writing the book as she was dying. The twins managed to live until they were thirty years old and they were proud to hold that record.

The story is fascinating.  The author writes well and captivatingly.  The characters were all very well-developed and interesting.  This was a book that I could hardly put down, and once I finished it, thought about it for several days.  Good book!