The Names

This might be one of the most beautiful books I have read in a long time. 3 separate story lines, all beginning with one choice - what will Cora name her son.

Will she go with what her daughter wants: Bear. How her abusive husband reacts and changes their fate forever.

Will she go with what she wants: Julian and see how to make this work in the midst of her changing safety.

Will she go with what her husband demands: Gordon - a family name. Continuing her life as is, enduring.

Each choice is displayed and laid out over the next couple decades. You get to see how one decision really can change your life. 

I don’t think any review could give it justice, but I’ll say the author wrote so beautifully. The characters come to life and there’s many moments where you feel the joy, heartbreak, and relationships in the book.

This book will touch your heart, and I’m going to start recommending it to everyone!

Thank you NetGalley, Florence Knapp and Penguin Random House Canada for the chance to read this advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Shakespeare wrote that a rose by any other name would smell as sweet, even if it was not called a rose. In Florence Knapp's provocative new novel "The Names', she examines whether or not that is true for people. How much does our name determine who we are, and who we becomes. It's interesting to note that historical studies have shown girls with unusual names seem to fare better than boys with unusual names. The boys are often bullied and judged. This study may be outdated as societies have become more diverse with people drawing names from a variety of cultures and languages. Still it remains a fact that since you carry your name forever, you also carry all its strengths, weaknesses, misconceptions, short forms and misspellings.

"The Names" tells the story of one family - father Gordon, wife Cora, daughter Maia and a new baby boy, whose name is yet to be determined. It imagines their lives unfolding, depending on what that little boy is called - whether he is named after his father and forebears as tradition dictates, whether he is given the name with special significance picked by his mother, or whether he is named in a joyful, slightly random way. Each of those parallel stories are told in seven-year increments. Each possibility is unique and believable and yet there are common moments, events, and people and they have tremendous impact.

The novel is not just about names and how people react to us baed on our name. It also weaves in themes of love, sacrifice, art, sexuality, intimate partner violence, and death,

Knapp has created a wonderful read. It is entertaining, emotional and thought-provoking. (I've been thinking about what we choose to call our children ever since I finished the book.) It is also a perfect book club discussion book because there is so much to dig into.

Thank you Florence Knapp for thinking up this story and NetGalley for the opportunity to read it.

This book was offered to me as an ARC from Netgalley. The premise hooked me immediately and the book did not disappoint. All three story lines were very interesting, and had me hooked from start to finish. This book is not fast moving but more a life journey. I very much enjoyed reading this book and rate it 4.5. In my mind, that is an amazing accomplishment for the author of a debut novel. This book would be great for book club reads as there are so many points that could be discussed. Some sample book club questions could be added at the end of the author thank you's.

Wow, what a cool and unique concept. This was such a quick and gripping read due to the format of following Bear/Julian/Gordon through his life(s). Loved and will be thinking about this for a while. i can’t wait to discuss!

The Names by Florence Knapp

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I loved it!

I feel so beyond lucky and grateful to have been sent an early copy of this novel by Penguin Random House and Florence Knapp in exchange for an honest review, because I think this will be one of my favourites for the year. This book was collectively heart-wrenching, heartbreaking and heartwarming.

I loved this Sliding doors/Maybe in Another Life type parallel life and the butterfly effect of how one decision, like what we might name our child, can change their life and others lives so completely and irrevocably. This novel highlights some serious and heavy topics and how they have a ripple effect on everyone they touch. It is so beautifully written and there’s so much thought and intention behind every event, character and name.

📖 This is the story of Cora, a mother of a daughter and an infant boy who walks to the registrar after a storm to register the birth of her baby, with the expectation from her domineering husband that their son be named after him and the horrible men of their family. The book splits into 3 different parallels for each name she considered: Bear (the name her daughter wants to name him), Julian (the name she wants to give him) and Gordon (the generational name she has been instructed to bestow on him). The 3 parallel lives of Cora and her children Maia and Bear/Julian/Gordon are all very different but all greatly influenced by the trauma Cora’s husband and the children’s father inflicts.

The story does have jumps in time, and they were really well done as to give you closure to unfinished conversations and cliffhangers. There are a few trigger warnings such as domestic violence, murder and sexual assault.

This felt like a mix of Sliding doors, Maybe in Another Life and The Great Alone and something so uniquely its own. I look forward to whatever Florence Knapp writes next.

The Names is a beautifully written and emotionally unsettling debut novel by Florence Knapp. The story opens with a mother’s decision to name her baby and then splits into three perspectives as a result of her choice. Each of these storylines shed a unique light on the family’s intricate dynamics. While the novel’s emotional depth is remarkable, the depictions of domestic violence made it hard to get through at times. However, the book’s unforgettable characters make it a powerful read and there are many heartfelt moments that bring back hope into the reader’s heart. If you can handle the heavier themes, it’s an incredibly moving story about resilience, identity, and the ties that bind us.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC. The Names is set to be published May 6, 2025.