Doubles
Nora Gold
Guernica Editions (2026)
ISBN: 978-1778490361
Reviewed by Tyson Peveto for Reader Views (08/2026)
Set in 1968, Doubles by Nora Gold packs a lot of emotion into just ninety or so pages. This short novella follows a twelve-year-old girl while she tries to understand her forced relocation to an institution for “troubled youth.” The protagonist is obsessed with math, does not cause trouble, and observes the type of people working there and the type forced to live there.
Told from the narrator’s point of view, each chapter is an entry in the protagonist’s diary. These entries start as answers to questions posed by someone auditing the institution. Every answer connects to her love of math, to her loneliness, and to her confusion about why she is being punished for the actions of others.
Because these pages are her private thoughts, she remains completely unnamed throughout the book. This choice by Gold makes the first-person perspective feel incredibly intimate, as if we are reading secrets meant for no one else.
As the reader, you immediately feel empathy for the narrator and frustration with her situation. Though she speaks as a twelve-year-old, you can still understand her deep emotions hiding behind her attempt at strength, at being an adult, or at least being more mature and less naive.
You are also immediately transported to the institution. You feel the anger at the situation, the frustration with the adults who are there to “help” you, and the fear of the other kids. You long for safety as the narrator yearns for safety.
Nora Gold’s Doubles accomplishes a lot with so few words. The budding of a relationship, the potential of a conflict, and the bourgeoning of a young adult all begin here in these pages.
The ending came quickly, too quickly. I wanted to continue following the narrator through her trials and tribulations. I wanted to see what happened to the institution, to her sister Vicky, and to the staff. I wanted to learn more about her little brother Hank, and see how he is faring at home with the abusive father. I wanted to check in on the grandmother, too.
But sometimes leaving the reader asking for more is way better than overstaying or oversharing.
At a Glance: Historical literary fiction told through diary entries, this 1968-set novella follows a math-loving twelve-year-old placed in an institution for troubled youth despite her quiet nature. It explores isolation, family dysfunction, institutional injustice, and a child’s search for security and understanding.
Best for Readers Who Enjoy: historical literary fiction, coming-of-age novellas, diary-style narratives, institutional settings, books about troubled youth, dysfunctional families, child narrators, emotionally intense fiction, 1960s settings