Thanks so much to Harper 4th Estate for the opportunity to read this brilliant book.

I wasn’t expecting a family/relationship tale to make me laugh so much, yet still deal with some serious themes of individuality and personal interaction. I was transfixed by the characters from beginning to end, and the wonderful Audra in particular, of course. My opinion of her kept shifting - ditsy on the one hand, seemingly completely lacking a social filter, yet on the other hand a consummate multi-tasker and an astute networker, usually in the interests of her autistic son. The effect on the family of Matthew’s disability is sensitively handled - especially poignant are Audra and Graham’s hopes and fears for him as he takes tentative steps into independence. Such is the author’s skill that even those characters at the remotest edges of the main action make a vivid impact and the dialogue is spot on. A delightful book and a new favourite author for me - as a result I have ordered a copy of her collection of short stories published a couple of years ago, can’t wait to read it.

I loved this. Funny and observant.

A snapshot of family life, from​ the male perspective, 3 ½ stars 🌟 :

Ms Heiny has written a witty, humorous view of divorce, marriage, family life and relationships in general with sensitive references to raising a son on the asperger's spectrum and his love of origami.

We start the book 12 years into the main character Graham's second marriage to Audra and we follow their relationship over several eventful months where we are introduced to Graham's first wife Elspeth, a lawyer who likes order and quiet, the polar opposite to Audra who appears to have no filter on her thoughts and thinks nothing of inviting the doorman to stay with them. Having his first wife back in his life leads Graham to a crossroads in his marriage where the orderly life he had with Elspeth looks inviting or will Graham continue to enjoy the unpredictability of life with Audra and their son Matthew?

If you are looking for a character driven plot with a diverse collection of characters, (there is no-one like the older members of the origami club Clayton and Manny) peppered with witty day to day life which I think most couples can connect with in one way or another then I think you will really enjoy Ms Heiny debut novel.

Fyi I received my copy from NetGalley, although this does not influence my opinions.

There is an art to observing human behaviour, marriage and personalities and Katherine Heinz has this in spades in this book.
The story focuses around Graham who appears quite life weary due to the challenges of a wife who is a social butterfly to all waifs and strays and a son who has Asperger s but who is challenged by his own development.
It is insightful and at times funny. Sadly I also found it exasperating in places,the hint late on that Audra may be having an affair does not develop in to anything and leaves you hanging and as the work is written as a narrative when it finishes you are not sure it has.
I get the ending and why it is such but it just appeared to end suddenly.
I have mixed feelings about this book but would give it 3.5 stars.

Just not my kind of reading. It was a bit too fast paced and not relaxed reading. My personal preference and I'm sure others think differently. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to review.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It was such a lovely lighthearted read that was also quite funny. I devoured it in a couple of days as I couldn't put it down. I loved all the characters and the whole storyline. Would absolutely recommend this book,

I absolutely inhaled this story filled to bursting with individuals and groups and relationships and family and love; opposites attracting, couples coping and surviving, the behavior of exes, and so much other interesting social variance - all of it conveyed with humor and heart. The Daltry family lives in New York: Graham is as introverted as his second wife Audra is extroverted and they are equally devoted to their 10-yr old son Matthew, who is on the spectrum. Audra works in graphic design but is constantly collecting and trading information, gossip, and in a way actual people. It is amazing that Katherine Heiny is able to introduce all these super random minor characters (friends, acquaintances, strangers, invited guests, or random combinations of such) that seem real enough to remember, and even laugh out loud about in many cases. A lot of writers today can poke fun at dysfunctional families, but Heiny goes above and beyond - instead of explicitly spelling every bit of raunch out she tells a great story with talent, wit, and generous innuendo.

This was not the type of book I would typically pick up but I was intrigued and so glad I gave it a go. I couldn't put it down and absolutely loved it!

Audra is delightful and says some of the funniest things I have heard (so many people think them but don't voice them). Graham has the patience of a saint and while he could potentially be portrayed as a stuffy businessman, he was charming and generous having so many people move into his apartment.

I felt that the last chapter lost some of the fast-paced humour of the rest of the book but it finished with me wanting more. Any chance of a sequel?

Although well written, Standard Deviation left me feeling lonely, empty and sad for the life half lived by the main character, Graham. None of the characters had any likable qualities, except perhaps the son Matthew. I don't know what I expected from the book's description, but it wasn't this.

It’s not often that I feel so unstrongly about a book that I don’t know what to write. But that’s where I am with Standard Deviation.

Graham is an executive who lives in New York. He is married to Audra, but was once married to Elspeth. Audra is an uber-extrovert with no filter, Elspeth icy and reserved. Graham is somewhere in-between. When Elspeth comes back into this life he muses a lot on the nature of his relationships with the two women.

Later on the focus shifts more to his feelings for his young son who has Asperger’s and a passionate interest in origami. He worries that he will never make friends or feel secure in social settings. But when his son joins an origami club, it is suddenly he who belongs and his parents who feel excluded.

And so it goes on. There some amusing vignettes that are moderately thought-provoking. Where am I on the introvert-extrovert continuum? I never knew origami was so complicated. Would Graham really be attracted to two such different women when in real life people tend to recreate the same kind of relationship, for better or for worse, over and over again?

The structure of the book is slightly odd. It reads more like a series of connected stories. In fact what it feels most like is a TV sitcom, one where each episode has its arc and then everything goes back to pretty much where it was. The children are a little older, the annoying neighbour may have been written out, but the characters are fundamentally unaltered by events of the recent past.

It also has a lot of set-piece scenes which are similar – particularly the ones that involve a group of ill-matched people sitting down for a meal. Again, this is something that happens in TV (pretty much every episode of Gavin and Stacey was premised on the two families meeting for a party on a flimsy pretext) but this book is different from a TV comedy is that it’s not that funny. It’s more wry smile than belly laugh.

A novel needs narrative drive. Standard Deviation is well written, engaging and with some sharp observation but I’m afraid it dragged for me.

Standard Deviation is a term used in relation to how far from the normal and in this context it could relate to 10 year old Matthew Cavanaugh who has Asperger’s. The term could equally be applied to Audra (Matthew’s mother) who is open and friendly and will talk to and befriend absolutely anybody. Graham (Matthew’s father) is the narrator and through his eyes we witness the struggles of raising a child with issues and being married to a person who says the most inappropriate things at the most inappropriate time and seemingly totally unaware of the effect she is causing.

Amongst a large cast of other very interesting characters, there is Graham’s first wife, Elspeth who is completely the opposite of Audra, controlled and capable who Audra insists they should include in their social circle.

The time-line of the book is over a year or so, although through introspection and dialogue the past is revealed; not so much a plot – more of an unveiling.

This is an extremely humorous book which had me laughing out loud at some points and then reading the relevant part to my husband. Graham, ah Graham, you are just so nice. How you tolerate the constant stream of random people that Audra not only invites to dinner (that you cook) but also to come as house guests for prolonged visits. You are beset by introspection; worrying about your son; confused about how you feel about Elspeth; enchanted and exasperated by your wife.

Audra too is a fantastically drawn character, quite, quite bonkers but loveable. Who could not be enchanted by her random, scatter-brained utterances? I was thoroughly entranced by her even when I was a bit worried about Graham.

I thoroughly recommend this book. It is not a Bridget Jones Diary sort of humour, it feels a bit more sophisticated and funny than that.

Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for providing an ARC via my Kindle in return for an honest review.

A real page turner, love this type of hilarious feel good novel. Will definitely look out for this author in future

Graham starts to compare his first and second wife. He thinks of decisions he has made and how the two woman are totally different. It was an easy read but I kept expecting more from it.