I loved the predictability of Om’s character. He has such a grip on the entire town, which is so interesting, and becomes ironic as the novel progresses. He asks questions that aren’t relevant and seem entirely self-serving, has a gong in his office, and coaches his clients with breathing techniques as a bit of a cop-out. The therapist, Om (yes, his name is Om…), feels like a total phony for lots of the book. The characters felt so millennial with the way they spoke.
In addition, the inclusion of other clients’ sessions in this book was one of the funniest things about the novel (the eavesdropping… oh my god). The conversations between Greta and Big Swiss seem so polarizing because their personalities are so different.
Eventually Greta’s strange questions and interruptive remarks became humorous, ironic even. At first, I considered Greta’s dialogue quite unrealistic and random. I could not stop imagining Greta’s character as Aubrey Plaza adjacent. I can largely attribute this to what seems to be obvious plot-wise (when or if Greta would ever tell Big Swiss about her true transcriptionist identity), but the dry humor of the text really brought it to life for me. It’s always difficult for me to find a book that I can’t put down, but I absolutely could not put this down. Greta becomes enthralled with one of the therapist’s clients, Flavia, who she refers to as “Big Swiss.” The text follows Greta’s journey navigating her relationship with Big Swiss and the other clients living in a city where everyone is so connected. The novel follows a woman named Greta who recently becomes single, moves into a farmhouse with her friend Sabine, and picks up a job as a sex/lifestyle therapist’s transcriptionist. I’ve also seen some discourse regarding this book being made into an HBO series, which I can’t wait to see. I’d seen some mentions of Beagin’s new release, Big Swiss, back in February, but only got around to reading it this past month.
After coming across a brief recommendation on TikTok from Lauren Hower on TikTok/Instagram), and seeing the excitement on their face as they described Beagin’s writing, I just knew I had to pick up this book.
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