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Review: Andy's Gift by Michel Faber

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Review: Andy's Gift by Michel Faber
Andy’s Gift

The short story Andy’s Gift written by Michel Faber revolves around a man named Andrew. One morning he wakes up at a nursing home after five years as a “drooling imbecile”, because of a rare disease he had survived and made him loose his mind. The short story is about how he is reunited with his wife and children after he got his mind back, the changes and the things that had not changed in their everyday lives. Andy’s Gift shows how losing five years can influence one’s family, relationship and life. Andy’s Gift is written by a third person limited narrator. The short story is seen from Andrew’s perspective, where the story follows his actions and shares some of his thoughts. The very first sentence of the short story says, “HE WOKE UP one morning to find himself alive.”, which shows narrator style. It shows that the short story follows the main character’s mind, but does not know what is coming next. The story simply experience the things along with Andrew.

Andrew, also called Andy, is a middle-age man, who survived a disease that caused him to go to the hospital for a month and then shifted to a nursing home, where he lived ever since. After Andrew’s awakening, he asked for a mirror where he thought he looked old but somewhat young at the same time and compared himself to a “chimpanzee infant”1, which shows Andrew’s focus on aging. The nurse had to remind him about his family. In the short story, Andrew shows little and almost no excitement for the fact that he is being reunited with his wife and children. The short story only tells us the oldest child’s name, Robert, which shows the unimportance of his children’s role in Andrew’s life, since he does not mention the name of his other kids and only refers to them by their age, which he doesn’t even remember correctly.
Bromwyn is Andrew’s wife, who greets him with baby talk and the nickname Andy without knowing about the awakening. She said, “Hello Andy-boy”2 and “Mustn’t be a naughty boy at

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