BOOK REVIEW: The Artificial Anatomy of Parks  

by Kat Gordon
Published by Legend Press

At 21, Tallulah Park lives alone in a grimy bedsit. There’s a sink in her room and a strange damp smell that means she wakes up wheezing. Then she gets the call that her father has had a heart attack. And so begins a story so richly woven it’s hard to believe that it’s a debut novel. Over the course of 400 pages, Kat Gordon lays bare Tallulah’s world – her dysfunctional family and her journey to grow into her own woman.

Already estranged from her family when Tallie visits her father in hospital, she is then drawn back into their world which, in turn, brings back memories of her childhood. Tallie then decides to find out what happened the day her mother died and how her mysterious Uncle Jack was involved.

Gordon’s writing style is a sheer pleasure to read. Flowing text, with an exceptional eye for characterisation, the pages skip by in this fast-paced psychological drama. Her development of the complex characters involved, particularly Tallie, draw a vivid picture of how desperately dangerous it is to keep secrets within a family.

The Artificial Anatomy of Parks alternates between the younger and older Tallie’s perspectives and there is a real sense of character progression. The story takes place over one week but it is a week that the reader won’t forget in a hurry!

Review by Dawn Hopley