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Ratings & Reviews for

The Rosie Project

Graeme Simsion

5 stars

177,976 (32%)

4 stars

232,479 (42%)

3 stars

102,799 (18%)

2 stars

21,081 (3%)

1 star

7,997 (1%)

Displaying 1 - 30 of 45,844 reviews

Richard

1,180 reviews34 followers

September 22, 2021

This does for Autism what Pretty Woman did for prostitutes. It uses it for entertainment, it plays on it for laughter. It's a 1970's sitcom of a book.

The character of (Shel)Don feels like little more that fan-fiction of The Big Bang Theory and Rosie seems like the perfect emulation of The Cool Girl as described in Gone Girl. She's too trite and quirky to be believable. Don himself is simply a figure of fun, he moves form scene to scene for our amusement in a "what will he do now?" manner as Julia Roberts did in Pretty Woman. The book groans plot wise, nothing is surprising and though it is an easy read it is an utterly underwhelming one.

I spent most of the book thinking of The Perks of Being a Wallflower, The Fault in our Stars or The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime, books with exceptional narrators that show rather than tell. At every stage Don tells. He is created simply to move thorough the scenery. Given the subject matter the book should have been more than a collection of "smirk at the autistic dude, it's ok cause the author had him say we could" sequences.

Tatiana

1,406 reviews11.7k followers

October 10, 2013

Sheldon in love.

Adorable and fun. Probably one of the most enjoyable chick lit books I've read, ironically, written by a man.

On the other hand, not nearly enough sex in it.

2013 chick-lit

ALPHAreader

1,153 reviews

December 4, 2013

‘The Rosie Project’ by Graeme Simsion is so wonderful.
I’m going to attempt to enumerate my enjoyment of the novel;

1. Don Tillman is an Associate Professor of genetics at the University of Melbourne. He has a black-belt in Akikido, and can cook a mean lobster salad. He also has Asperger syndrome – but he doesn’t know that. Don just thinks that there’s something missing that leaves him baffled by human behaviour and unappealing to other people (especially the opposite sex). But after his dear old neighbour tells him that he would make someone a good husband, Don decides to get married – and to limit the fallout of incompatibility and highly ineffective dating detection, Don decides to make a questionnaire to find himself the perfect wife. Thus, ‘The Wife Project’. This is not insane. It has actually happened, to Amy Webb from Baltimore who found her husband by using math and analytics to narrow the dating field.

2. Rosie Jarman is not a potential partner for Don’s Wife Project. She’s a barmaid who is perpetually late and vegetarian. But she is also beautiful and smart. And she’s on her own quest to find someone – her biological father. Rosie has bright red hair, dresses to impress no one but herself and calls em’ like she sees em’. But she is not a ‘Manic Pixie Dream Girl’. She does not want to ‘fix’ Don, she’s tough and imperfect and very aware of her failings. She is one of the best romantic-comedy heroines I've ever read.

3. This scene of Don speed-dating (which I read while on the train, and attracted many curious looks as I snorted my way through it);

‘I've sequenced the questions for maximum speed of elimination,’ I explained. ‘I believe I can eliminate most women in less than forty seconds. Then you can choose the topic of discussion for the remaining time.’
‘But then it won’t matter,’ said Frances. ‘I’ll have been eliminated.’
‘Only as a potential partner. We may still be able to have an interesting discussion.’
‘But I’ll have been eliminated.’
I nodded. ‘Do you smoke?’
‘Occasionally,’ she said.
I put the questionnaire away.
‘Excellent.’ I was pleased that my question sequencing was working so well. We could have wasted time talking about ice-cream flavours and make-up only to find that she smoked. Needless to say, smoking was not negotiable. ‘No more questions. What would you like to discuss?’

4. Don Tillman is described as being a dead-ringer for Gregory Peck, circa Atticus Finch. *le sigh*

5. ‘The Rosie Project’ started as a screenplay. Graeme Simsion then decided to turn it into a novel – but still used film-writing techniques and his writing partners were film-industry experts. This is why ‘The Rosie Project’ is destined for the big-screen. The dialogue is so tight and pitch-perfect, the lines just leap up at you and it’s as though characters are speaking from the page. I want to see this film adapted – move over Harry & Sally, it’s all about Don & Rosie!

6. At one point, Don and Rosie travel to New York where, Don says, “being weird is acceptable.” I am going to New York this year. I’m planning an entire day at the Natural History Museum, thanks to Don. I can’t wait!

7. The cover is in-your-face-magnificence. It called to me from the bookshelf, and loudly announced itself to fellow commuters as I read it on the train. I liked this. Very much.

8. Throughout the novel Don starts to question if it’s him that’s missing some vital human-connection component, or if maybe other people are the problem . . . this is encapsulated in the relationship Don has with his best friend and fellow teacher, Gene. Gene is fifty-six and happily married to a beautiful woman with whom he has two children. But Gene’s wife, Claudia, has agreed to an open-marriage and Gene is currently attempting to sleep with a woman from every country. Gene dispenses romantic advice to Don. This is not a good idea, and was a fantastic counter-point to Rosie and Don’s romantic shenanigans.

9. I would actually love a follow-up to ‘The Rosie Project’ because when I got to the last page I immediately missed Don Tillman and wanted him back! But whatever Graeme Simsion decides to write next, I’ll be reading because he’s now an automatic-buy author for me.

10. I could keep going and going and going because I adored ‘The Rosie Project’, but let’s agree that ‘10’ is a good place to stop espousing on all the reasons everyone should read this book.

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Angela

8 reviews8 followers

July 17, 2014

What a shame!
What a shame Graeme Simsion wrote this offering "quickly" and that he went with a "comedy rather than a drama".
What a shame that the opportunity to educate and illuminate was squandered and traded for gratuitous laughs ,extreme generalisations and blatant stereotyping.
My initial delight at realising the subject matter of this book meant I was immediately enrolled in ' the project'. A third of the way into the book, I became uncomfortable with the tenor and theme. The premise that higher functioning individuals on the Autistic Spectrum , or anyone for that matter who sits outside societies 'normal' framework accepts their position matter-of-factly is absurd.
Don knows he is 'weird' , inappropriate and that people make fun of him and the author suggests that Don is OK with it. So accepting of ridicule is he that he purposefully resorts to self-promotion as the class clown and nutty professor as a means of gaining some form of acceptance or acknowledgment. Don tells us that he is "an expert at being laughed at" , but Simsion never let him tell us how he felt about being so. Instead the author invites us to laugh along with an inexhaustable number of accounts of 'crazy' behaviours , thoughts and incidents throughout this 'comedy'. I waited and hoped for for the opportunity to feel Don's pain; but unfortunately his distress, sadness, vulnerability and loneliness if touched on were labels without feeling, what we regular people experience, but Asperger individuals ( according to Simsion) only know if they score highly on a questionnaire! The idea that the Don's of this world do not feel the aguish associated with isolation and rejection is no less inaccurate than they are incapable of feeling empathy or knowing how to show love.

In the 1997 movie "as Good As It Gets " ( mentioned in The Rosie Project), screenwriter Mark Andrus ensures that whilst revealing the prescriptive anxiety-provoking world of Obsessive- Compulsive Disorder , he never loses sight of the anguish and humanity that underscores the day to day reality of a person who fails to conform to societal norms. He offers the audience an opportunity to empathise as well as laugh at seemingly 'weird' behaviours of the main character Unfortunately, in his 'Rosie Project' , Simsion misses the opportunity to be a champion for his protagonist, failing to show that although Don is hard-wired neurologically to behave and respond in what makes make him a target for ridicule and isolation , that his acute awareness of how he is perceived comprimises his inner struggle and peace. Even at the end, when it seems Don has found happiness and acceptance, it was dependant on his adjustment and conformity to societies sensabilities.

Obviously I found some positives in this book. Well written, engaging and with plenty of local flavour being set in Melbourne , making for an enjoyable read. The insights offered about the inconsistencies of what society accepts of human behaviour depending on who you are or your position in life were welcomed. I also felt heartened that along with laughing at Don, the audience were also shown that if you move beyond the visible and audible irregularities of a person, we all have something to offer; that we all have value and strengths and all deserve respect and to be treated with dignity. I hope that maybe, some readers will also see beyond the comedy to the human side and perhaps even accept that maybe, we 'neurotypicals' all need to change a little , tolerate a little bit more and accept a different way of seeing things so that the marginalised in society can fit in a little bit more.
I share my life with a 'Don' and I think 'the Rosie Project' has not done his cause any favours and does not represent him faithfully, with respect or the humanity he deserves.
Again... What a shame!

Sam Quixote

4,543 reviews12.9k followers

July 25, 2016

Don Tillman is an Associate Professor of Genetics with (probably) Asperger’s Syndrome who has decided that, as he is nearing 40, he will solve “the wife problem” (ie. not being married) by creating a questionnaire that will ascertain, for him, the perfect wife and then marry her. That is until he meets Rosie, a grad student working part-time in a gay bar who’s looking for her biological father, and slowly Don’s “Wife Project” becomes “The Rosie Project” as he realises he’s falling in love with her.

I say that Don probably has Aspergers because it’s never explicitly stated but as he narrates the book in the first person, the reader is immediately aware that he sees the world differently than the rest of us. It’s kind of like having Sheldon Cooper from “The Big Bang Theory” talking to you - Don is a genius with no social skills who’s unable to read facial expressions and has a highly regimented lifestyle and peculiar way of speaking. Couple that with the opening scene where he gives a talk on Aspergers and it’s highly suggested that he has it. Not knowing anyone with Aspergers, I can’t tell whether he sounds convincingly like someone with it but what little I know of the condition suggests that his personality is unlikely to change as dramatically as Don’s does throughout the book. It’s almost like his meeting Rosie reverses the condition. I mean, he’s unable to feel love - but he can? He’s unable to read facial expressions or understand social conventions - but then he can?

Nevertheless I thought the first 200 pages of the book were charming. Don is a likeable guy whose eccentric lifestyle makes a change of pace to the usual rom-com formula and the different angle it gives to the genre made me interested in it even though romantic comedies aren’t usually my thing. There were also some excellent scenes that stuck out memorably like Don and Rosie’s first date, from using aikido on the waiters to altering time and having dinner on a whiteboard (not as surreal as it sounds but nice touches anyway), and Don and Rosie’s moonlighting as cocktail waiters and Don using his remarkable memory (eidetic?) to take complex drink orders for dozens of people at a time. I read the first two-thirds of the book in a couple days, smiling a lot throughout. And then I got to the final third which took me over a week and ruined the book for me.

The first 200 pages had been unique to the rom-com genre and felt highly original which is why I responded so well to it - it wasn’t going over the same ground countless other stories had gone over before. The final third is all about convention and it opens with a scene in New York. The story is set in Australia but because Don and Rosie are hell bent on finding Rosie’s biological father, their search takes them to two possible fathers in NY. This 50 page section felt completely contrived and could’ve been cut from the book entirely.

This book was originally a screenplay and these scenes felt very cinematic and included so that film backers would have recognisable locations for their film to make it easier to sell, rather than serving the story. Yes, the finding Rosie’s real dad storyline is in play but if you took those two people away from NY and cut it entirely, the book would’ve been snappier. As such it feels really contrived and dull, like the scene in the movie where the two romantic leads get to do a kind of montage sequence of things. It also constantly references other romantic comedy movies the entire time too, adding to the feeling that this is a homage to the genre and included because that’s what’s expected when you do something like this.

Then the final 70 or so pages are about Don winning Rosie back and it’s done in such a conventionally rom-com way that I totally lost interest. Worse, Don’s character didn’t seem consistent in this part either (see the criticisms in the Aspergers section above).

I’ve used the label “romantic-comedy” throughout because that’s what the marketing says it is but it’s not. It’s romantic, sure, but it’s not funny. I didn’t laugh once and didn’t think Don’s numerous social faux pas to be particularly funny either. Worse still are the scenes which are clumsily designed to be funny and feel very forced, like when Don is learning sexual positions from a book and uses a skeleton (he’s at the university for this scene so it’s not a Dahmer moment or anything) and the Dean walks in on him. It feels like the kind of scene in a sitcom where the canned laughter goes on and on as the camera switches from Don’s face to the Dean’s and back again while the audience begins to clap and laugh at the same time. It might as well be labelled “funny scene”. And it’s not.

Despite my criticisms, I was quite happy to give this book 3 stars - until I read the end. Now I know the ending shouldn’t have more importance over any other aspect of the story, whatever the genre, but the ending to this book is especially bad. So Rosie, at the very start when she’s introduced to Don, tells him about her dad Phil, a man who raised her alone after her mum died when Rosie was 12, who’s a person whom she doesn’t particularly get along with (largely because of a minor quibble which she’s unreasonably held against him for her entire life) - but no more so than any other person who doesn’t get along with their mum or dad for whatever reason. Except she’s convinced herself he can’t possibly be her real dad and that her real dad must be out there somewhere. This is basically the motivation for everything Don and Rosie do in this entire book and right off, I thought “I bet it turns out Phil IS her real dad after all”. Well... I won’t give it away but you can kind of guess what happens in the end. And I really, really hated that. Don all but says what I was feeling in the second-to-final sentence of the book and I immediately dropped the book down another star.

This book definitely has some good moments and Don is a memorable and oftentimes delightful character, but the final third of the book really frustrated me. If the book had been more tightly edited with the NY sequence thrown out and had had a less predictable ending, I would be enthusiastically recommending this novel. As it is, it is a flawed debut novel that’s well written but severely lacking in crucial parts of the story reducing it from a charmingly quirky romance story to yet another rom-com with no surprises and a sloppily rushed final act. Graeme Simsion can write and he might one day write a brilliant novel but sadly “The Rosie Project” is not that book.

This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.

Fabian

957 reviews1,623 followers

March 3, 2020

Ultracharming & very very, uh, cute. The singular voice of the main character is enough to convince the reader that a love story exists in anything. This rom-com takes some DNA from various films, especially, it seems, 1997's "As Good As it Gets." Worth a read, its very likely to become a film soon (the novel was originally written as a, yup, screenplay!).

Alienor ✘ French Frowner ✘

851 reviews3,882 followers

February 15, 2021

Actual rating : 3.5 stars

From the moment I finished it I knew I had one critical task to perform : To review this ~~project~~ book.

Although the timing is particularly annoying, I realized that the several options I faced made my choice incredibly clear.

➊ Not reviewing this book, resulting in damage to this book's fame, which would be appalling due to the fact that it's fucking awesome.

➋ Rescheduling this review to another time, resulting in loss of memories and leading to a probable abandonment of the task in the long term.

➌ Reviewing this book, resulting in loss of time to read others books, including Stolen Songbird which I already started (with good vibes), fact that increased my eagerness to resume it.

After a prompt analyze of this data, I take the decision to write this review which will be as evidence-based as possible, that is to say, close to none. ← Please refer to option #3 to understand why.

▧ Subject 1 : Don, narrator.
✔ Gender : Male
✔ Age : 39
✔ Appearance : Average, but the presence of a six-pack due to extreme Aikido training deserves to be mentioned. The clothing is practical, highly influenced by a) the weather, b) that's about it. Please don't talk about jacket if your meaning is limited to "conventional jacket", otherwise you would have to face an hilarious misunderstanding. Now that I think about it, please mislead us, that's too deliciously funny to forget.

"But why, why, why can't people just say what they mean?"

✔ Relationship status : After realizing that many women didn't get his over-organized way of living, Don decided to start the Wife Project, following the batshit crazy idea where women have to apply to a questionnaire - I KNOW!! - to decipher if a relationship would be sustainable.

▶ Sub-mentioned project will lead to :

a) Awkward and head-desk situations which still always remain smile-inducing and never maddening (it seems important to mention because the Wife Project can appear to objectify women (it does - but that's clear from the beginning that Don is wrong). Well, you'll probably be annoyed by him at some point, but don't worry, subject 2 is coming.

b) As previously mentioned, hilarious misunderstandings.

"I turned to see him - he was large and angry. In order to prevent further violence, I was forced to sit on him.
'Get the fuck off me. I'll fucking kill you,' he said.
On that basis, it seemed illogical to grant his request."

c) Adorable and swoon-worthy scenes from the moment subject 2 is introduced. Yes, because there is EVOLUTION in Don's character. I know, big word, right? Exciting.

▧ Subject 2 : Rosie, troublemaker.
✔ Gender : Female

Oh, FUCK THAT. I'm not a scientist by any means. You want to know who Rosie is?

▶ Let me tell you : she's an utterly likeable female lead who's going to bring the unexpected in Don's life, shatter his (numerous) believes and stereotypes, and make you love her in the process. Smart, strong-minded, sarcastic, sure of her value as a person, the madness she personifies stirs up the winds of freedom in Don's life and damn, I enjoyed that something fierce. Note that by madness I mean "not as overly strict as Don", so her description can be applied to any woman who doesn't want to be imprisoned in an artificial straightjacket, and loathes that some guys think that women are only good to cook and fuck. I say yes to this.

▧ Controversies : The Butterfly Problem.
At this point you might wonder why I'm only giving it 3.5 stars. The fact is, as awesome as I found the idea and the execution of it, I felt underwhelmed at times. In a word, it lacked feels for me. As it is, I'm able to point that's The Rosie Project is an original and cute read, but the butterflies were too rare, even if they were here for sure (note that several scenes will make you Awww out loud). What can I say? I need my shoot at butterflies. However, I can't deny that the character of Don, the fact that's his POV, drives this lack of feels so maybe that's the point, you know? That's why I rounded up my rating to a 4.

▧ Results : Why should you read this book?
Because The Rosie Project is a tale of metamorphose, by the acceptance of others for who they truly are and the acceptance of who WE are. Can I say? For all his awkwardness, and surely because of it, Don is an adorable and heartbreaking character whose desire to fit in moved me - because the world we're living in doesn't always accept differences and that's a shame in my opinion. A fucking huge one.

In a word? Such an originally written cute romance.

"I asked you here tonight because when you realise you want to spend the rest of your life with somebody, you want the rest of your life to start as soon as possible."

[ Last edited : June 2016 ]

For more of my reviews, please visit:

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Ruth

233 reviews21 followers

April 10, 2013

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It was very amusing and clever. The protagonist Don is definitely a clichéd version of someone with Asperger's, but I think he had to be for the purposes of the novel. He sits on the very end of the spectrum and embodies every single stereotypical attribute of an Aspie. At one point I cringed at the end of the book when he is struggling about whether he feels love or not. Not accurate for someone with Asperger's - they actually have intense emotions but are unable to express them very well. But the author redeems himself by communicating that in the end and adds a very insightful point which is that perhaps Rosie needs to also be more accepting and not expect Don to change his core being. Very much a neurodiversity message.

I absolutely LOVE Don's address to the parents of young Asperger's students. It is brilliant and very amusing.

And I knew I liked Don the moment he decided the following about Asperger's:

"I formed a provisional conclusion that most of these were simply variations in human brain function that had been inappropriately medicalised because they did not fit social norms - constructed social norms - that reflected the most common human configuration rather than the full range."

Ali Abdaal

Author 1 book34.7k followers

March 4, 2021

Absolutely incredible. Stayed up until 4am finishing the audiobook because I couldn’t put it down. Sleep deprived this morning. One of my favourite books in recent memory.

Baba

3,621 reviews986 followers

August 21, 2022

This big selling book, was all the rage when first published, an off-beat, quirky, yet delightfully alternate comedy about a tenured professor with a near extreme way of ordering and living his life and seeing the world, looking for love.

What this book does do exceptionally well, and is in my opinion why it stands out; it that it truly humanises the cast, they're not one-dimensional receptacles to generate humour; they are multi-faceted, complex human beings that when it came towards the fourth act, I was so involved and had emotive feelings about their journeys! Also another plus point this book, despite being written by a man, in no way tries to make comedy out of, or play-down toxic masculinity (= fragile ego masculinity). Personal I've found too many male written humour involving the degradation and/or objectification of woman as tools for comedy. Whoops, I digressed.. this book... read it! 8 out of 12.

2022 read; 2014 read

romantic-slurpy-slurps

Paula Weston

Author 8 books848 followers

January 30, 2013

How addictive was this book? I read it in a day - a day when I should have been doing other things.

It's a fun, quirky and erudite love story. It's laugh-out-loud funny and unexpectedly touching.

Don is a wonderfully offbeat narrative character and Rosie is his perfect foil. Graeme Simsion writes both characters pitch perfect.

I think one of the reasons the story is so appealing is that it's written by a man, from a man's perspective. And it's definitely not lad lit.

This book is going to be a huge hit and deservedly so. Highly recommended.

australian

B the BookAddict

300 reviews667 followers

September 12, 2014

My first note written about this novel is a 1 ★ intolerably woeful but a night's sleep has made me feel a little more generous so I've amended it to 2★it was ok. The whole premise felt predictable, horribly predictable, I found that main character incredibly annoying and the humor did not amuse me. I know I am swimming against the tide of most readers, especially my GR friends but it was just all very ho-hum for me. Sorry, folks. 2★

autumn-challenge

Ahmad Sharabiani

9,564 reviews35 followers

May 7, 2022

The Rosie Project (Don Tillman, #1), Graeme Simsion

Graeme C. Simsion is an Australian author, screenwriter, and playwright. 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-arrive. 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.

تاریخ نخستین خوانش: روز چهارم ماه سپتامبر سال2018میلادی

عنوان: پروژه‌ ی رزی؛ نویسنده: گریم‌ سیمسیون؛ مترجم: نرگس جلالتی؛ ویراستار: گودرز پایکوب؛ تهران، نشر کتابسرای تندیس‏‫، سال1395؛ در344ص؛ شابک9786001821851؛ چاپ دوم سال1396؛ موضوع داستانهای نویسندگان استرالیا - سده21م

عنوان: پروژه‌ ی رزی؛ نویسنده: گریم‌ سیمسیون؛ مترجم: مهدی نسرین؛ تهران، نشر مرکز‏‫، چاپهای سوم و چهارم سال1396؛ در302ص؛ شابک9789642133109؛ چاپ دیگر سال1398؛ چاپ هفتم سال1400؛‬

پروژه‌ ی رزی، در باره ی دانشمندی به نام «دان تیلمن» است، که برای یافتن همسری مناسب، با همکاری یکی از دوستانش، به نام «جین یکسری» اقدام به تهیه ی پرسشنامه ای میکند؛ او استاد یکی از دانشگاه‌های «ملبورن» است، و ��ر زندگی خصوصی‌ خویش، فردی مقرراتی و دارای انضباط است و کوشش دارد، همسری باب معیارهای خویش بیابد؛ اما در این میان، رخدادها و ماجراهای ناخواسته، و در عین حال جالبی بر خلاف انتظار «دان» پیش می‌آید، و او با دختری به نام «رزی» آشنا می‌گردد؛ داستان به گونه‌ ای پیش می‌رود، که این دانشمند سخت‌گیر عاشق «رزی» می‌شود؛ و ...؛

تاریخ بهنگام رسانی 17/03/1399هجری خورشیدی؛ 16/02/1401هجری خورشیدی؛ ا. شربیانی

♡ ⊱ Sonja ⊰ ♡

2,740 reviews449 followers

August 8, 2022

Und wieder ein Buch, das unnötig lange auf meinem SUB lag... 2016 gekauft, jetzt erst gelesen...
Dabei ist das Buch ein kleines Juwel. Ich habe diese Geschichte sehr geliebt. Warum trotzdem keine fünf Sterne? Es ist ein Bauchgefühl, aber es ist nahe an den fünf Sternen...
Don Tillman ist so wunderbar. Man wünscht sich direkt, ihn persönlich zu kennen. Auch Rosie mochte ich sehr!
Der Roman ist auf eine Art humorvoll, aber auch ernst und tiefgründig und voller Gefühl.

2022

Charmaine Clancy

Author 14 books58 followers

April 26, 2013

Read this over two very busy days. I fell in love with Don, the protagonist. I loved the ways he measured and evaluated life. I want to embrace his rigid meal plan and have lobster in my bathtub every Tuesday night.
Although Don is a highly esteemed genetics scientist, he views life with a beautiful naivety, he knows the workings and technicalities of people, but just can't grasp that element that makes us chaotic, individual works of art.
And I laughed! Yep, I finally came to understand the intent behind LOL. There is a particularly amusing dance scene. I also enjoyed the talk on Aspergers. Go Aspies!
Don is obviously bordering on being dysfunctional in life and yet, his idiosyncracies started to make sense to me. I found myself agreeing with his practical approach many times.
Now there needs to be a movie!
This has become a favourite, and I'd read it again.

matilda-should-read special

Tanu

355 reviews423 followers

August 21, 2023

“I asked you here tonight because when you realise you want to spend the rest of your life with somebody, you want the rest of your life to start as soon as possible."

"The Rosie Project" fits quite comfortably into the romantic comedy genre. A sparkling, laugh-out-loud novel. This is a story about a geneticist Don Tillman who lives a very very very organised life and is socially awkward. He meets Rosie. She on the other hand is exactly the opposite of Don. The best thing in the book is the progression of the main character's life and personality. The author Graeme Simsion says in an interview that he is "on a mission to make men read more novels", not sure how's that going but it definitely kept me glued till the end.

I had picked this book when I was looking for some light read which would help me to fall asleep, but Oh My God! once I started to read, it was really hard to stop. Throughout the read, it cracked me as well as compelled me to think about different perspectives.

It will always be one of my favourite reads and will re-read it at different stages of my life.

Grab your copy here or here.

mandatory my-view

Maureen

574 reviews4,185 followers

May 31, 2016

I actually ended up enjoying this book much more than I originally thought I would.
At the forefront it seems extremely sexist and not that great plot-wise, but it definitely addresses those issues and works through them with character development, which I found to be fantastic.
The only thing I'm not sure on is the depiction of Asperger's. I am not an expert in any way, so I'm not sure if this portrayal was accurate/correct/well done. If someone wants to tell me that would be awesome!
Overall enjoyable and pretty interesting romance.

Maria Espadinha

1,028 reviews373 followers

December 28, 2020

Um Nós de Opostos

Já certamente tiveram ocasião de observar casais em que:

Ela fala que se desunha e ele rasa o mutismo

Ele come alarvemente e ela jejua

Ela adora festas e ele só quer sofá e televisão

Etc, etc...

É de tal forma gritante o contraste entre ele e ela que só nos ocorre perguntar:
"Então essa separação? Deve estar para breve, não?!"
Mas eles parecem tão felizes juntos, que optamos por observá-los com um sorriso mudo 😉
Porém, não deixa de ser intrigante a junção de naturezas tão distintas!

Porque será???

Quanto a mim, há duas razões a considerar:
A primeira tem a ver com a condição humana; com a incessante busca de equilíbrio que por vezes se manifesta na união de dois seres que individualmente são desequilibrados, mas juntos, são capazes dum Nós harmonioso — o que é excessivo num, escasseia no outro!

A segunda tem tudo a ver com o Amor em si. Se num casal, os membros que o constituem, tiverem características demasiado próximas, é provável que cada um esteja a amar-se a si mesmo no outro. Se pelo contrário, funcionarem em campos opostos, então só o Amor será a Cola que mantém viva tal relação!

Don e Rosie enquadram-se neste tipo de casais.
Don é ultra-racional — com uma mente poderosamente matemática, ele é organizado, pontual, e planeia cada dia à escala do micro-segundo!
Rosie está nos antípodas — emotiva e naturalmente pouco matemática, não investe grandemente na organização e pontualidade que Don tanto enaltece!

Porém, algo irá juntar estes dois:
Rosie anda em busca do seu pai biológico, o que desperta o interesse de Don, cuja especialidade é a genética!
Ao ser o homem certo que surge no momento certo da vida de Rosie, Don vai-se aproximando e assim se vão conhecendo, descobrindo e apaixonando...
Para Don, em cujo curriculum amoroso, não constam mais que meia dúzia de relacionamentos, esta nova etapa da sua vida será como ir a Marte a bordo dum disco voador!...

Uma comédia bem simpática, onde mais uma vez somos confrontados com o poder desse mágico e estranho sentimento que dá pelo nome de Amor.
Vale a Pena!
A capa não será muito chamativa, mas o conteúdo compensa largamente!!
Leiam e divirtam-se!!! 😊👍

Mark Porton

418 reviews366 followers

August 11, 2023

The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion is an absolute gem.

Simsion is an Australian author who is also an IT consultant and data analyst, he is currently a Senior Research Fellow at Melbourne University, in 2007 he enrolled in a screenwriting course and now he has written several best-selling novels. This certainly won’t be the last book of his I’ll read. I’m making a MASSIVE assumption here but judging by the fact he’s an IT guy and a data analyst, he may have some direct experience of being on ‘the spectrum’ himself, or of working with others who are.

Truth is, most of us are on some sort of spectrum. Defining normal is fruitless. For example, when a pathology laboratory gives you a Serum Sodium result, we specify a range whereby 95% of the population can be found, but you may be in the 5% of people who are outside the so-called ‘normal range’ – and still be considered okay. Hence the more appropriate term ‘Reference Range’. What is normal?

To be sure, it must be enormously more complicated if measuring indices of psychological well-being. This is not a dry synopsis of psychological conditions, it is a rollicking, interesting, amusing and delightful love story.

Professor Don Tillman is a forty-something, Genetics Scientist and displays certain behaviours that are a little challenging to friends and associates. For example, he allocates specific days of the week for the same meal (thus achieving efficiencies in time and resources), he times his showers to the second and maps out every minute of every day for each activity and wears quick dry clothing. His personal activities are given titles and called projects such as ‘The Wife Project’, this is a well-developed questionnaire he has created to screen possible life-partners. He has never experienced a second date.

He meets the Beautiful Rosie, a bartender who smokes and is often late – thus not meeting some key criteria on his Wife-Project Questionnaire. They do become friends, in a sort of way, and this becomes a central theme of the story. Rosie also has an issue with her stepfather and wants to find out who her real father is, this is where Don’s expertise in genetics comes in handy and the so-called Father-Project comes to the fore.

I found Don’s interactions, and the situations he found himself in and the awkward exchanges and situations totally hilarious. The interplay between he and Rosie is fascinating, this is no ‘normal’ love story.

The author presents several study/discussion questions at the end of the story (maybe reinforcing an earlier assumption of mine) – one of these was:

”Does the humour in the novel come from Don’s awkward responses to social situations or the absurdity of falling in love in general? Do you feel as though you are laughing with Don or at Don?”.

My response to Q1 is: Both.
Response to Q2: I was laughing at Don, because Don wasn’t laughing.

I need to declare a conflict of interest here; I am not an objective observer. As a laboratory scientist of 35-plus years experiece, I myself have certain proclivities and work with some who also possess these ‘amusing’ behaviours. When I was a teenager (and still), I could say the entire English cricket team backwards (that is, each word backwards), have also spent considerable time counting my teeth with my tongue (guess what?......it really does as I get older) and I have worked with people who take 20 minutes to wash their hands and walk on one side of their hallway when walking one way, and the other side when walking back – so as to ensure an even wearing of the carpet. But, in exchange, you (as the public) get people who are meticulous when it comes to attention to detail, understand complexity, love patterns and thrive on working things out.

Perhaps, this is one of the best messages in this book. For all the social awkwardness – people who live on the autism spectrum exhibit, they possess other qualities, and for all the social awkwardness and other socially unusual behaviours – there are some aptitudes required in certain professions and endeavours.

This is a charming book about acceptance (a term that is better than tolerance) and understanding. It’s also funny.

5 Stars

5-stars australian-fiction funny

emma

1,869 reviews54.6k followers

October 21, 2020

Here's the thing: I am very tired.

Not sleepy, precisely. But fatigued. Overworked. Simply exhausted.

This is an important caveat because of what is to come in this review.

To put it simply, I do not have the energy to put up a front. No snarky persona will ensue. I will not be cracking jokes at the expense of this book or anything else.

And all that leaves is...gag...sincerity.

So I have to say my real and true thoughts about this book, and my real and true thoughts are that I read it nearly two months ago and took no notes and found it not particularly memorable, and so I only have one real monster of a cheesy thought to send your way:

This book is nice because it concludes there's someone for everyone. Even the world's most hard to like people can fall in love and go to New York and go on a quest and otherwise live out their best rom-com-y dreams.

And that's nice.

Bottom line: I need to go into a coma. Nothing extreme. Just like...two weeks of intense rest and no work.

-------------

i feel like the peak of human existence would be being a middle-aged woman in a suburban book club in the early 2010s.

this book gave me that experience.

review to come / 3.5 stars

-------------

do you ever find a book on your shelves and have absolutely no memory of reading it? to the point of questioning whether you even did?

yeah. that.

3-stars non-ya owned

Sam

537 reviews80 followers

September 1, 2014

This book made me laugh. Not many books can do that. This was a truly delightful book to read and I would never ask for a minute of the time spent reading it back.
Made all the more amazing by the fact that it is the first novel of Melbourne writer Graeme Simsion, The Rosie Project will rank highly amongst my 2013 reads.
Written from a unique perspective, this is one of the few, if not the only, romantic comedies with a male protagonist. And not only male, but autistic.
Don Tillman is a brilliant scientist, but a hapless socialist (I mean that with no political leanings, Don literally sucks at being social.)
Rosie is beautiful, smart and nowhere close to what Don sees as a perfect life partner.
This book is one of those rare gems that most people could relate to on some level. Does he love me? Does she love me? Can two people really be destined for one another? Is mankind meant for monogamy? Can anyone really love?

Written with a one of a kind voice, you experience all of Don's ups and downs as he over-analyses, fears and then embraces change and eventually learns how to love.

This is a beautiful love story.

♡Karlyn P♡

605 reviews1,221 followers

August 11, 2016

4.5 'Nerds Need Love Too' stars.

This wasn't a traditional romance novel, but I enjoyed the romantic aspect of this story quite a bit. There was also a fun and interesting journey with Don and Rosie gathering dozens of samples of DNA to determine who might be Rosie's biological father. It made me laugh quite a few times!

The hero, Don Tillman, is a 39 y/o socially inept scientist who lives his life based on strict rules. He never believed that love, romance and marriage was for him. But when a friend comments on his likeliness of being an excellent husband, he rethinks his possibilities.

Because of his lack of social awareness he reaches out to his friend and co-worker, a professor of psychology, who is experienced in human relationships. They devise a plan to help Don find a wife, and his buddy (along with his wife) advises Don nearly every step of the way.

In his quest to find the perfect wife, he creates an online dating profile with an extensive survey based on a wide range of desirable attributes, but in the meantime while he is waiting for Ms Perfect he devotes his time to helping a lady named Rosie find her biological father.

This story had a lot of fun twists and turns, and a few predictable parts. I thoroughly enjoyed the journey these two took that ultimately had them discovering more about themselves and what is truly important.

At first I couldn't imagine how the author was going to convince me that these two seemingly opposite types could fall in love and have a chance for happily-ever-after, but by the end I was a believer.

The Rosie Project is less of a romance and more of a tale of one mans journey to find love and discover some truths about himself.

By the way, I listened to this one on audiobook, and loved the narrator! I highly recommended the audio format.

audiobook genre-contemporary read-2014

Kat

Author 9 books405 followers

July 8, 2022

Oh gosh, I sure did like this book. Don Tillman, professor of genetics, who is on the autism spectrum, runs an experiment to determine if it is possible to find a romantic match for him through a questionnaire, as he’s never succeeded in the dating world before. Enter Rosie, a psychology student and colleague of Don’s friend, who needs Don’s help for a different project-discovering her bio father. They wind up spending lots of time together and of course as one can expect in any adorable romance, attraction forms. I LOVED the writing voice and warmed to both Don and Rosie and their intricacies and characters. The way the writer presented Don’s struggles with autism as both challenging, but also from a humorous and scientific perspective made for a fun read. This was such a cute book and I’m thrilled to see it’s a series and we get to see this story progress!

library-4

Ayesha

110 reviews340 followers

June 12, 2016

Don, If you were real I would marry you in a heartbeat.
♡♡♡♡

2016 chicklit contemporary

Diane

1,081 reviews2,720 followers

November 18, 2015

I was completely charmed by this novel. Sure, it's basically Sheldon Cooper Tries to Find a Wife, but I liked it.

Don Tillman is a genetics professor in his late 30s who sets out to find a spouse by devising an elaborate questionnaire. Don is very fussy and regimented in his life, and allusions are made to him having Asperger's. Don thinks he can weed out any unsuitable partners and find someone well-matched for him. Meanwhile, he bumps into a woman named Rosie, who Don agrees is totally unsuitable, but he likes spending time with her anyway.

This novel is essentially a romantic comedy, so if you like that genre, you will probably enjoy this. The writing is clever and amusing, and I frequently laughed out loud while reading. Of course Don makes social gaffes, but what I liked is how practical and resilient he was in such situations. He recognized his gifts, such as being smart, dedicated and having an excellent memory, and he used those talents to help him navigate this new world involving Rosie.

I was pleased to hear that a sequel was released earlier this year, and I look forward to reading more about Don and Rosie's adventures.

Favorite Quotes
"A questionnaire! Such an obvious solution. A purpose-built, scientifically valid instrument incorporating current best practice to filter out the time wasters, the disorganized, the ice-cream discriminators, the visual-harassment complainers, the crystal gazers, the horoscope readers, the fashion obsessives, the religious fanatics, the vegans, the sports watchers, the creationists, the smokers, the scientifically illiterate, the homeopaths, leaving, ideally, the perfect partner, or realistically, a manageable short list of candidates."

"Asperger's isn't a fault. It's a variant. It's potentially a major advantage. Asperger's syndrome is associated with organization, focus, innovative thinking, and rational detachment."

"Throughout my life I have been criticized for a perceived lack of emotion, as if this were some absolute fault. Interactions with psychiatrists and psychologists ... start from the premise that I should be more 'in touch' with my emotions. What they really mean is that I should give in to them. I am perfectly happy to detect, recognize, and analyze emotions. This is a useful skill and I would like to be better at it. Occasionally an emotion can be enjoyed — the gratitude I felt for my sister, who visited me even during the bad times, the primitive feeling of well-being after a glass of wine — but we need to be vigilant that emotions do not cripple us."

Idarah

464 reviews51 followers

June 13, 2022

I enjoyed every single minute of this book! I knew it'd be a favorite because I've lived it! There is a "Don" in my life, and I was very clearly put on the "unsuitable" list, but we've remained good friends. It's hard not to love these sort of characters (real or fictitious).

I wager that this will be a film in the not too distant future. Even though it's an Australian book, I can't help but peg Lizzy Caplan as Rosie.

*sigh* Just need a few more minutes to let it all sink in...

Adina

891 reviews3,545 followers

July 13, 2015

3.5*

A highly addictive, funny and heart-warming chick lit ( written by a man !!) . I enjoyed this book more than I expected. Such a pleasant surprise.

P.S. I found out that Bill Gates is a big fan of the book. It seems that he relates quite a bit with Don. Especially for his organized schedule. I wish I could learn something from it.

australia

Suz

1,158 reviews606 followers

March 23, 2017

This was a great read, really engaging, the characters were sweet and quirky, the main character is a good guy with various issues, he was so real though and was happy to be himself. I found myself really gunning for him! Rosie sweeps into his life which places him into a bit of a spin, life is about to change, and it's a fun ride whilst this happens. She was great too, just like in real life it's nice to meet people who buck the trend and don't have to be like 'everybody else'. I recommend this book, it's a charming story and I felt like I had a friend throughout.

This is an example of fine storytelling, and I honestly think it's a great book to recommend to anyone looking for an Aussie read with an amazing amount quirk and spirit. It has got both in abundance. This author knows what he's doing!

aussie-author favourites first-of-series

735 reviews785 followers

May 16, 2017

Το νόημα του βιβλίου ειναι σεβαστό καθώς και τα μηνύματα που περνάει με τροπο χιουμοριστικό και γνήσιο. Ως εδω ολα καλά. Η πλοκή,οι διάλογοι,οι αναφορές σε γεγονότα και καταστάσεις διαπροσωπικών σχέσεων και η επιρροή που φέρνουν στις ζωές των ανθρώπων που τα βίωσαν ειναι το λιγότερο επιφανειακά,κοινότοπα, φλύαρα,αδιάφορα και συμβαίνουν με τόση ευκολία και άνεση που μόνο στη σφαίρα της φαντασίας με μια καλή μαγισσουλα και το τσαντάκι του σπορ Μπιλι θα συνέβαιναν.

Μια φορά κι έναν καιρό ζούσε ένας πανέμορφος πανέξυπνος και αυτιστικός καθηγητής γενετικής που αφού δεν είχε καταφέρει να ξεπεράσει τα δικά του προβλήματα - αντικοινωνικής συμπεριφοράς, ιδεοψυχαναγκαστικα σύνδρομα ποικίλου τύπου, απουσία συναισθημάτων - εξακολουθεί να ζει αυτοματοποιημένα και προγραμματισμένα σε σημείο νοσηρό.
Αυτός ο κατα τα αλλα συμπαθητικός και αστείος καθηγητής φτιάχνει μια λίστα σύμφωνα με τα δικά του πρότυπα -πλήρης απουσια ενσυναίσθησης- και προσπαθεί να βρει τη γυναίκα που θα πληροί τις προϋποθέσεις ώστε να γίνουν δυο τα άτομα χωρις κοινωνικές δεξιότητες χωρις αυθορμητισμό χωρις ζωή.

Αναπάντεχα στην ζωή του μπαίνει η Ροζι, με την οποια ζουν μια περιπέτεια με σκοπό να ανακαλύψουν το βιολογικό της πατέρα. Η Ροζι με τα δικά της κατάλοιπα και βάρη όπως κάθε φυσιολογικός άνθρωπος καταφέρνει να κάνει τον καθηγητή μας να θέλει να μιμηθεί μια φυσιολογική συμπεριφορά κοινωνικού ατόμου. Βέβαια δεν πληροί τις προδιαγραφές της λίστας για την πολύφερνη νύφη και έτσι καταλήγουμε στο σπουδαίο συμπέρασμα ότι όσο κι αν ψάχνεις για τον έρωτα τελικά αυτός θα σε βρει εκεί που δεν το περιμένεις.

Και ζήσανε αυτοί καλά ....

Καλή ανάγνωση!!

κιλίκιο-cilicium-φραγγέλιο-flagell

Poonam

605 reviews506 followers

March 18, 2017

Buddy Read with Murugesh.

This book is Absolutely Adorable. I think I had a BIG GRIN the entire time I was reading this book.

Don Tillman at the start reminded me strongly of Sheldon Cooper from 'The Big Bang Theory', he has strong resemblance to Sheldon but still has characteristics of his own, and very cute ones I must say!

Don meets Rosie and his life changes for the best.
"In less than fifteen minutes, my entire schedule had been torn apart, shattered, rendered redundant. Rosie had taken over."

Rosie was a good character too but the STAR of this book was definitely Don.
Don was just soo naive, cute and adorable. Something serious said by him, had me laughing.
"We could not choose between two candidates shirts and bought both. My wardrobe would be overflowing."

If you are looking for a light fun-hearted read this is just the right book for you.

The ending is just soo perfect and even with the light tones the message in this book is apt.
"Claudia had told me I was being too picky but Rosie had demonstrated in New York that my assessment of what would make me happy was totally incorrect."

We aren't always happy with what we perceive will make us happy.True, Isn't it?

buddy-reads contemporary humour

Displaying 1 - 30 of 45,844 reviews

Ratings & Reviews for

The Rosie Project

Graeme Simsion

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