When Amazon gave this ebook away for World Book Day, I snatched it up because it sounded intriguing. That might be the biggest understatement I've ever made. The Gray House is both challenging and enchanting. Did you notice that I spent more than a month with it? I did, and now I feel so....alone. Almost bereft.

I would certainly classify this tome as magical realism. It is also nonlinear and narrated by several characters, all of them unreliable. They live in a boarding school for children with disabilities, and we only know them by their "nicks." And over time, these might change. You the reader will be given no help with that. Not to worry, just pay attention... I cherish books that make me feel that I've accomplished something just by doing that.

Grasshopper, Stinker, Humpback, Noble, Blind, Smoker, Vulture, Black, Ancient, Sphinx, Tabaqui the Jackal, Tubby, Alexander... at a certain age, these boys start to talk to girls Ginger, Rat, Needle, Mermaid... these kids have actively invented themselves. Most of the time, we are not let in on the reason behind the nicks, but they all have an interesting backstory, and the way such strong personalities develop hierarchies and live together is fascinating in itself.

The plot is not only nonlinear but circular as well. I'm still puzzling over it, and will meander off to read others' theories. Pick this up at your own risk: we might not see you again for awhile.