Description

‘A masterpiece of poignant brilliance . . . heartbreaking’ Guardian

Charlie Gordon, a floor sweeper born with an unusually low IQ, has been chosen as the perfect subject for an experimental surgery that doctors hope will increase his intelligence – a procedure that has been highly successful when tested on a lab mouse named Algernon. All Charlie wants is to be smart and have friends, but the treatement turns him into a genius.

Then Algernon begins to fade. What will become of Charlie?

Publisher Review

This is one of the greats: a story and a central character that have stayed with me for thirty years, from the first moment I picked it up * Conn Iggulden * A masterpiece of poignant brilliance . . . heartbreaking, and utterly, completely brilliant * Guardian * A timeless tearjerker * Independent * Excellent . . . extremely moving * The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction * Unflinchingly honest . . . it will make you reflect on your own life . . . and completely and utterly break your heart * Guardian Online * A narrative tour de force, very moving, beautiful and remorseless in its simple logic * Science Fiction, 100 Best Novels * Strikingly original * Publishers Weekly * A tale that is convincing, suspectful and touching * New York Times *