James Scudamore’s book The Amnesia Clinic explores the values of friendship, the power of lies and grief with the assistance of Fabian and Anti who decide to explore the truth of The Amnesia Clinic in Pedruscada. The whole story is set in beautiful Ecuador with rich cultural components. Even though I did not choose to read this book myself, because I had to read it in my English class, I found this book interesting and I was looking forward to reading it most of the time. I was not too excited about the story in the beginning which was in my opinion too long and descriptive but when more and more things started happening The Amnesia Clinic became more engaging. That is why I would rate the book 4 out of 5 stars. Both Fabian, Anti and their unique friendship were interesting to read about but even the other characters were not plain and had their own personal experiences and stories. I especially enjoyed analyzing and questioning everything told since not all characters are always telling the truth. That is why The Amnesia Clinic is engaging and impactful. I would recommend reading it because it will make you think about friendship values, how different people deal with grief, the effect of upbringing and the power of lies.

Metaphor and symbolism is being used throughout The Amnesia Clinic, by James Scudamore. The fact that the context of the symbols is not immediately introduced, makes you curious to read more. Essential symbols in this story, you need to read, are the tsanta carrying a curse as well as the princess exposed to Fabian during the carnival. A strong and deliberately confusing psychological symbol is when Anti fabricates a story about the Amnesia clinic making Fabian believe his mother may still be alive. You can find this and more examples of great psychology in the book.

Two friends, one without parents and the other with distant parents. It is questionable which one of the main characters is better off. Missing care and guidance leads the two teens to rather live in their imagination than face ugly truth. James Scudamore’s novel The Amnesia Clinic addresses the process of grief mixed with self-delusion. Hiding from reality as a mechanism to maintain hope and not show emotions. The friendship between Anti and Fabian relies on lies, driving them to drift apart and become more extreme throughout the story. While the ending of the story is revealed in the beginning, the novel is everything other than predictable. Narrated by Anti in retrospect the reader is being kept in suspense until receiving closure at the end. The setting includes a country many readers are unfamiliar with. The mysteries of Ecuador make this a novel I would recommend to any age group looking to take on “A complex and beautifully crafted piece of storytelling about storytelling itself”.