Having never read any of the earlier works of Sigurd Nunez, it was the title of the novel and the surreal nature of the cover that attracted me. Upon completion, I am still not totally sure what I’ve just completed apart from knowing that this novel made me laugh, made question the world of the writer and made me realise that we are now living in a world that even fiction can never be more bizarre than then reality around us.

Imagine an author with writer’s block , a confused young adult and a parrot residing in a luxury New York apartment during the lockdown of the Covid pandemic. In many senses, there was a feeling that this novel was a series of interrelated musings on the state of the world and human interaction ; but it was the interspersing of anecdotes from various authors that provided the most fascinating element of the book- the life and writing a novel and the life of the novelist.

The interaction between the two apartment ‘ guests’ and with the resident parrot was surprisingly moving at times as the distance between the generations moved from a sense of disdain to one of growing acceptance as lives were observed and discussed.

This isn’t a novel for anyone wanting a linear tale with event- laden plot ( we are talking lockdown ) but The Vulnerables exudes a quirkiness, huge warmth and humour which makes this a delightful read. Now to explore the back catalogue of Sigurd Nunez .