Warning - you might tear up a little reading this. Homelessness, love, loss, grief, and spirits are all touched on in this book. We get to read from both Dan (possessed by Joe, so who're we really following?) and Natalie (Joe's widow). While I enjoyed two perspectives, I wish fewer chapters had covered the same ground over from the other perspective. (It gets a bit repetitive without enough changes to keep it interesting). Overall I enjoyed reading this, and it tugged at my heart a little. ( )

Nigel Jay Cooper's sophomore novel The Pursuit of Ordinary is an extraordinary (sorry ;)) work of fiction conveying a unique story about an atypical relationship (or more a relationship triangle?).
Dan, a homeless man, witnessed a car accident that killed Joe, Natalie's husband. Now Dan can't forget seeing Natalie cradle her dying husband, and there is this new voice in Dan's head. Natalie's dead husband, Joe? Dan has to get in touch with Natalie.
In this character-driven tale Nigel Jay Cooper explores pertinent topics relating to mental health, such as grief and loss, homelessness, relationships and abuse.
This author has a genuine talent for creating characters that feel like real people who could be living next door to you. They may not necessarily be characters you particularly like or whose actions you always understand and support, but they feel completely authentic. The dialogue is believable and the plot emotional; sometimes sad but also very funny in parts. It contained some good twists and turns that kept me turning the pages anxiously.
The story is told from three (or perhaps two?) perspectives and my main reason for deducting a star is the slightly repetitive nature of some of the chapters, where we hear Dan's perspective and then are told the same scenario again but from Natalie's point of view. Obviously there are differences in the way Dan and Natalie view their subjective reality, and I understand the different perspectives were required to show that, but it was frustrating reading at times.
I felt this book was way more positive than last year's debut Beat the Rain which floored me and left me shattered by the end of it. This was a lovely, heartfelt story that tackles difficult subjects with sensitivity and without being preachy, and it all leads to a very satisfactory ending. After two very special books, Nigel Jay Cooper is a must-read author for me.
I received an ARC for review purposes, thank you. ( )

Three and a half star rating.
A strange triangle, Natalie, dead husband Joe and homeless man Dan, with Brighton as a backdrop. To be honest I really did not like the first chapter at all because it was just so confusing, but decided to carry on a bit longer and am glad I did. Really got into it from the second chapter when it was easier to work out what was what and who was who. This is a complex and intriguing story with its share of flawed characters which certainly kept me gripped! ( )