A unique read by author Kevin Chong. In the Double Life of Benson Yu, Benson, a successful graphic novel artist, writes a story of a young boy, Benny, growing up in Chinatown with his ailing grandma. When tragedy strikes his small family, Benny is taken in by his strange neighbour, Constantine. Much of this story that Benson writes is similar to his past. Suddenly Benson is faced with reflecting on his childhood when his seemingly fictional character comes to life.

I could follow and love the story up until the time travel aspect. That was a little confusing. At that point, the story kept losing me… I also didn’t understand why older Benson had to die to get Benny back to his reality.. ? Really enjoyed the first half and the strong writing. The second half was quite confusing.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the e-galley!

I received an e-galley of The Double Life of Benson Yu by Kevin Chong from Simon and Schuster Canada via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Metafiction is not usually what I tend to read but I was intrigued by the concept and story of The Double Life of Benson Yu. I found the characters quite amusing, interesting, and complicated. I would find myself completely absorbed into the story and then be thrown off in a fun and confusing way as the storylines blended and I started losing track of what was real in the story. Overall, The Double Life of Benson Yu was a fun and amusing read.

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Good book, unique characters. Quick read.

This story within a story debut gave me a lot of Interior Chinatown vibes. I liked parts of this but I did find it a bit hard to follow as the timelines and POVs switch around a lot in a confusing way. This one might be better read as a physical book. I'd definitely give it a second chance because I'm sure I'd pick up more of the nuances that I likely missed listening to it on audio. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review!

Delighted to include this title in the April edition of Novel Encounters, my regular column highlighting the month’s most anticipated fiction, for the Books section of Zoomer magazine. (see column and mini-review at link)

An interesting and unique way to talk about childhood trauma, however I found it missed the mark a little bit. The concept is overly complicated and confusing, with little explanation offered. What could have been a heartfelt, honest piece of auto fiction was bogged down by plot twists and weird meta narratives.
I found the characters interesting and some elements of the plot enticing, however this felt more like a therapeutic writing exercise for the author, not a finished piece of fiction.

Didn't really enjoy the meta of this book, maybe it just wasn't for me. The way it was written was too matter of fact for me to fully get into.

This book ripped my heart out and served it on a platter, where the author then devoured it in front og me. The Double Life of Benson Yu is a "meta-narrative" of a graphic novelist named Yu writing a story based in his own childhood experience that takes form as an awkward child named Benny who lives a quiet life with his Poh-Poh in Chinatown until she falls ill and Benny has to find ways to fend for himself. The parallels between their stories warp until the lines between autohr and character are blurred, forcing us to consider if Yu is writing Benny's story, or if Benny is playing the part written by Yu.

This story deals with hard topics like family death and abandonment, child grooming and abuse. It is emotional and harrowing, but still finds moments to be humorous and charming. As we get to know Benny, we see the ways in which he is vulnerable and can be taken advantage of, scenarios foreshadowed by Yu's past. A child in need of help, I watched his author be so calloused and cruel towards him, it angered me. It made me consider responses to trauma and how we cope with it, and how those aren't always healthy or "right".