Half Life is the 2006 debut novel of American writer and artist Shelley Jackson. The novel presupposes an alternate history in which the atomic bomb resulted in a genetic preponderance of conjoined twins, who eventually become a minority subculture.
 First edition cover | |
| Author | Shelley Jackson |
|---|---|
| Cover artist | Jacket design by Roberto de Vicq de Cumptich |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Novel, alternate history |
| Publisher | HarperCollins |
Publication date | July 25, 2006 |
| Publication place | United States |
| Media type | Print (hardback & paperback) |
| Pages | 440 pp (first edition, hardcover) |
| ISBN | 978-0-06-088235-8 (first edition, hardcover) |
| OCLC | 63165002 |
| 813/.54 22 | |
| LC Class | PS3560.A2448 H35 2006 |
Overview
The book tells the story of a disenchanted conjoined twin named Nora Olney who plots to have her twin murdered.
Reception
Half Life received mixed-to-positive reviews; Newsweek called it "brilliant and funny,"[1] and The New York Times, while praising Jackson's ambition as "truly glorious," added that "All this razzle-dazzle, all the allusions, [and] the narrative loop-de-loops [get] a bit busy."[2] It won the 2006 James Tiptree, Jr. Award for science fiction and fantasy.