To me it seems strange that the last two books seem to be about different topics but have so much in common. Stahler's Doppelganger, which in German is a double of a living person, is about a shape-shifter or chameleon who has no name. A doppelganger will kill a human and take on his or her life form to live as a human.
So what does this have to do with The Tragedy Paper that I just finished before picking up this novel? Shakespeare.... or even more specific Macbeth. Both novels tie in the character's story with Shakespeare's tragic hero Macbeth and the choices Macbeth makes.
When the doppelganger takes Chris' life, he thinks living with a real family, going to school, and dating will be like what he sees on television. He finds out quickly real life and TV shows are not the same. That is what I keep telling my children and students: the reality shows are not real; producers focus on the drama to keep the audience entertained and wanting more.
Like Emma Donoghue's Room in which Jack is locked in a room for the first five years of his life with books and television, Stahler pulls me in at the beginning when the doppelganger is isolated from everyone in a cabin and reads and watches television to learn about life. While I am not as emotionally pulled toward the doppelganger as Jack, I do feel for him as he deals with "a crappy place, filled with crappy people."
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