I found it difficult to get through this book, the voice was so weak and lacklustre I found no impetus to the story arc.

I just sort of followed this drone and then the book was over.

I really didn't enjoy this book after looking forward to it for so long.

This was an interesting read both in subject and in tone. I thought that Pew as a character was a weird mix of having no personality and a distinct personality, this made it so that the side characters were really allowed to shine and Pew was the right balance between them all. The writing was beautiful and I was always intrigued by the mystery and unexplained nature of Pew.

A fascinating, enthralling and well written story that is full of food for thought.
There're a lot of interesting themes in this weird and fascinating story and once I started I couldn't put it down.
It was an excellent read, highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Thank you Netgalley and Granta Publications for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Pew is an interesting story about Pew who got their name after a church pew they were found sleeping on.They were woken in the middle of Mass by a local family who later decided to help Pew and offered them a place in their home.
Pew is unusual because no one knows Pew's gender,race,real name-nothing.And Pew aren't keen on telling that to anyone-they rarely talk and don't actually know their name,gender or race themselves.
The local community wants to help Pew but when they don't cooperate the community decides to take it upon themselves to decide what to do with Pew without asking them anything which is what angered me most throughout the book.Pew was never asked whether they wanted help,whether they actually wanted to stay in strangers' homes and hang out with people they don't like.They were just taken from one place to another and expected to stay there and behave accordingly.
The community was accustomed to everyone who lived in town and didn't get new visitors or tourists often and really,when Pew appeared,they just wanted to keep them under control and control what they were doing in town while making it seem like kind help. If they were kind,they would've treated Pew nicer and would've cared more about them and their feelings. Instead,no one offered to have a nice conversation with them and Hilda even locked them in the attic so they wouldn't come down when it wasn't appropriate to everyone else.
The whole book was leading up to the Forgiveness Festival-a local ceremony for forgiveness of one's sins,no matter what they were. When the Festival came,and along with it the end of the book, I felt slightly disappointed. Maybe I didn't understand it the way it was intended but I feel like the ending wasn't enough.I would've liked to know what happened to Pew after the ceremony and sadly,I didn't get that closure.

3.5* but I was leaning more toward 3*

Homeless and sleeping in an empty church in the US South, Pew is woken mid-service by the family whose seat they are sleeping on. The family - out of Christian charity - take Pew in and name them after where they were found. Pew does not speak to them, does not tell them -- or does not know -- their name, age, gender, or colour. The family are wary of Pew, but tell them stories and secrets, take them to a doctor, try to find out who Pew is, and where they have come from.

As the week goes on, Hilda and Steven get tired of living with their suspicions, and farm Pew out to various friends and neighbours. Pew listens to all of them, passing no judgement, never speaking. Everyone who speaks to Pew has an opinion on what should be done, or on what is the right thing, in the lead up to the towns Forgiveness Festival, which it seems Pew has arrived just in time for.

I *loved* this novel, and sped through it. It's dedicated to Jesse Ball, and has shadows of his most recent novel, The Diver's Game, most obviously in the festival buildup, but also in the small-town community and the cruelty at its centre. Really excellently done.

Out in early May - thank you to @netgalley and @grantabooks for the review copy!

How much of an identity is defined by what other people believe of you? How much is defined by what you believe of yourself? Pew is an compelling little novel with a timely regard for questions of self and community.

Our narrator of indeterminate age, gender, and race, with no memory of their past, no name, and very little speech, wakes on a church bench. Nicknamed ‘Pew’, they’re taken in by the residents of a small religious town. In the face of such an anonymous listener, some people find themselves spilling their long-held secrets, whereas others begin to feel anxious about an interloper in their midst. And tensions are running high in the lead up to their annual 'Forgiveness Festival'.

Compulsive, intense, enigmatic, its interactions read like riddles and characters are ciphers to be decoded. I loved the ambiguities and contradictions that emerge as Pew gets acquainted with the town's residents, and raced through from cover to cover in under 24 hours. Delightful!

Literary fiction at its best.A haunting novel a stranger in town embraced.We learn through different voices the effect of his presence.Unique well written a book I could not put down.#netgalley #panmacmillan.

Pew by Catherine Lacey is an intriguing novel about an ambiguous stranger being welcomed into a small community.

This is an enigmatic and intense piece of writing, impressionist rather than linear, that explores themes of identity, fear, morality and religion. Disembodied voices emerge to tell their stories and there is some disturbing imagery that erupts as townspeople respond to Pew, who is both provocation and blank slate upon which other identities are inscribed. The dedication to Jesse Ball will give an idea of the register of the writing, with the mysterious Forgiveness Festival reminding me of Shirley Jackson. A short but resonant read that begs to be 're-read.