Rating: 
Summary: The most interesting, unique book I have read recently.
Review: This book is impossible to describe, but must instead be experienced. Bender's descriptions are beautiful and her characters are so understandable. I don't even know how to explain how much I enjoyed reading this book!
Rating:
Summary: Characters and language to luxuriate in
Review: Aimee Bender has a gift. Every time I put her novel down, I couldn't wait to pick it up again and delve into the characters' quirky, yet very familiar, thoughts, habits and relationships. Ms. Bender has an uncanny ability to identify and express perfectly the frequently hidden feelings and patterns that lie within us, sometimes without our even knowing it until we read her smooth prose. Bender's fresh perspective makes you notice the beauty (and sadness, too) in things that have become mundane. A bonus: I laughed out loud -- truth is funny.
Rating: 
Summary: Consummation is worth it
Review: To be honest, I had a tough time with parts of this book. As a math lover and teacher myself, I really wanted to connect with Mona but I had a tough time. All the characters are quirky enough but sometimes I really had no clue as to what is going on. Fortunately, the book is short enough that I felt I could keep going and Bender pulls it all together in a very satisfying conclusion. It is certainly worth the time spent on it.
Rating:
Summary: A blue glass fairy tale
Review: What a sweet, wonderful, sad story Aimee Bender has told. I'm a fan of her short stories and am happy to see how the novel form fits her like a shoe -- a glass slipper, maybe :) She has used the format's extra space to create a landscape whose tucks and rolls provide an excellent pathway for her characters, a town that somehow feels like middle America and the Black Forest, a stage setting and your own living room. I'm generally prone to plot summary when recommending books, but stripping away the wonders of Bender's language doesn't really do the plot justice. After reading the book, I'm more blown away by the characters and how they realize that life experiences are either disfigurements or badges of honor. I don't really want to give much else away. She's a wizard. I don't know how she does it.
Rating: 
Summary: viva too different
Review: Standing out + getting noticed = crazy. There is so much in the stories that could be interesting but with all the heavy laden metaphors (drippingly obvious for attention) which the writer is soooo proud of as if to say gee Im a genius look at me I can add...makes me feel like..who cares! Knock it off, get out of the way of the story and write.
Rating:
Summary: More than just numbers and materials...
Review: Coming to appreciate Mona Gray (the narrator/protagonist) is similar to falling in love with a lover's scar or awkward birthmark. I thought Bender's "Fairy Tale" became emotionally detached a bit much, but even so, the story is quirky and compelling enough to give a strong recommendation to. While at times the novel read like plain and familiar prose, it never veered in this direction long enough for me to lose interest. An Invisible Sign of My Own is a dececptively simple story; a metaphor for childhood and the pains of growing up. I'm certainly looking forward to more novels from Ms. Bender!
Rating:
Summary: I always wanted the stories to last longer and now they do
Review: I loved Flammable Skirt so when I heard Bender was writing a novel I bought it immediately. I love it! She delivers on the promise of her stories in a way I wouldn't have imagined. The darkness that was present in the stories about the Ice Girl and the Fire Girl or The Rememberer, is deeply explored in this novel. The novel has a weighty sadness which is revealed through the prism of Bender's magical language. In terms of what it has to say about family too, this book is both frightening and relevant. I am so happy to spend a whole book with her characters.
Rating:
Summary: eeccchhhhh
Review: Silly, precious, irritating, twee fluff. Couldn't finish it, wish I hadn't bought it.
Rating:
Summary: Perfect
Review: This is a wonderful book. The language is clean and beautiful. The world is surreal yet not at all distant, and the characters are funny and sad all at once. This is a rare book and I am going to read it again right now.
Rating:
Summary: A Visible Talent For All of Us
Review: Displaying an even finer blend of the virtuosity she gave us in her fabulous debut story collection, THE GIRL IN THE FLAMMABLE SKIRT, Ms. Bender has concocted a fable that seeps into the reader's heart and spleen. She pulls you into her reality and makes you see the world through her poignant, painful, compassionate and downright hilarious prism. Take this ride, if you like your fiction to set off tiny concussion bombs in your heart rather than just telling a mildly compelling story.
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