When Was The Last Time You Read About...

Conjoined twins??

Been a while huh? Yeah, me too.  Until this week when I read The Girls by Lori Lansens.  This fictionalized account of conjoined twins is set in Canada during the present day.  Rose and Ruby are joined at the head and, approaching 30 years old, about to become the world's longest surviving craniopagus twins. 

Rose is the largest of the twins and is the mobilizing force behind them as Ruby does not have functional legs.  Ruby is known as the prettier and more outgoing of the two.  I'm not sure how else to describe it but together they are able to function as individuals.  They hold separate, part-time jobs and have individual hobbies.  This requires the twins to be very patient with each other and yet they clearly still have a sisterly relationship including the occasional argument.

The Girls is told from the point of view of both Ruby and Rose.  The majority of the chapters are told in the voice of Rose who has decided to document their lives in a memoir.  This includes the background of their adoptive parents and the unique struggles the sisters have faced.  Ruby's sections are not as frequent but tell the reader about their current circumstances and the reason they are writing the book.  According to the story, neither sister is privy to what the other one is writing which allows them to discuss each other.  Lori Lansens writing shines in these brief moments as the intense love they feel for each other is described in the most quiet of ways.  It was refreshing to have an author describe feelings of affection between characters without being overly dramatic or gushy.  I felt as though it gave the characters and their unique relationship more depth. 

I've had The Girls on my "To Read" list for, literally, years.  I'm not sure what compelled me to finally pick it up but I am so glad I did.  It was an engaging story that managed to tell the story of two sisters in the most unusual circumstance without feeling gossipy or turning them into a circus sideshow. 

I may be compelled to read Chang and Eng by Darin Strauss next to see if Strauss was able to convey conjoined twins as successfully as Lansens.  I've heard good things...