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Again and Again by Jonathan Evison
Contemporary fiction

Again and Again

by Jonathan Evison

Quick take

In this moving paean to storytelling, an old man regales his nursing assistant with tales that blur fact and fantasy.

Good to know

  • Illustrated icon, Icon_Emotional

    Emotional

  • Illustrated icon, Icon_NonLinear

    Nonlinear timeline

  • Illustrated icon, Icon_Unreliable

    Unreliable narrator

  • Illustrated icon, Icons_Underdog

    Underdog

Synopsis

Eugene “Geno” Miles is living out his final days in a nursing home, bored, curmudgeonly, and struggling to connect with his new nursing assistant, Angel, who is understandably skeptical of Geno’s insistence on having lived not just one life but many—all the way back to medieval Spain, where, as a petty thief, he first lucked upon true love only to lose it, and spend the next thousand years trying to recapture it.

Who is Geno? A lonely old man clinging to his delusions and rehearsing his fantasies, or a legitimate anomaly, a thousand-year-old man who continues to search for the love he lost so long ago?

As Angel comes to learn the truth about Geno, so, too, does the reader, and as his miraculous story comes to a head, so does the biggest truth of that love—timeless, often elusive—is sometimes right in front of us.

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Content warning

This book contains mentions of child abuse.

Free sample

Get an early look from the first pages of Again and Again.

Why I love it

When a book keeps me turning pages long after bedtime, I often ask myself why. Is there a delicious mystery demanding to be solved? A heart-pounding stretch of action and tension? Or is it simply a superbly told story granting me temporary residence in a world I don’t want to leave?

In the case of Jonathan Evison’s Again and Again: All of the above.

We don’t know who Geno Miles is. Geno Miles is a present-day centenarian who keeps his nursing-home staff on their toes with his curmudgeonly quirks while carrying deep wounds in his soul. Geno Miles is a street urchin who runs afoul of the powerful in medieval Spain, growing into his own bravery and risking everything for his one true love. Geno Miles is—and, honestly, this one is my favorite—Oscar Wilde’s cat, selectively spoiled in an apartment in Chelsea, believing his owner might be a reincarnated version of that one true love.

Centuries separate Geno from his love, but he still believes. It’s a fantastic story. Compelling enough to draw in Angel, a young man who works at the nursing home and forges an unlikely friendship with Geno. Compelling enough to keep me, as a reader, up until dawn, unable to put the book down.

Hope. That’s it, I think. We’ve got mystery and action and unforgettable characters but there is also an unbreakable thread of hope running through Again and Again. I can’t think of anything our world needs more right now.

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Member ratings (1,863)

  • Suzanne C.

    Milford, MA

    No matter the past lives for Eugene/Euric, it’s the readers choice how you see it. The most meaningful part of this book was the friendship between he and “Angel” his room cleaning, caregiver friend.

  • Ashley C.

    Huntsville, AL

    Eugene is lonely, and Angel is looking for something missing from his life. Angel takes the time to humor an old man, and in that connection, there is care that serves them both. A poignant story - ❤️

  • Lisa S.

    Greenville, SC

    ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Eugene was such a fascinating character, and the relationship between him and Angel was so heartwarming. Loved how his present was interwoven with tales of his past lives

  • Shelia T.

    Seabrook, TX

    I am OBSESSED! I was hooked immediately. Took an unexpected turn and I wouldn't have it any other way. Geno and Angel are the duo I never knew I needed. I want more of this book. 100000/10 recommend

  • Rebekah F.

    Harlan, KY

    In my top three of the year so far! By turns heartwarming, humorous, and heartbreaking, it is a beautiful meditation on love, forgiveness and life lessons. Make sure you have tissues for the ending!