The Two Lives of Louis & Louise

January 24, 2019

"Louis and Louise is Julie Cohen at her absolute best. So cleverly done and authentic, and you feel as if you live in the town with the characters and have been in the story with them." A J Pearce

Optioned for film by Enderby Entertainment ~ Longlisted for the Polari Prize
The Reading Agency Book of the Year 2019 ~ Bert's Books Book of the Year ~ Woman & Home Top Book of 2019 ~ Stylist Book of the Year ~ Fabulous Magazine Best Books 2019


Louis David Alder and Louise Dawn Alder are the same person in two different realities: they have the same parents, the same birthday, the same talents, the same wishes, the same eyes and hair. Their realities are separated only by the gender announced by the doctor.

Both Louis and Louise grow up in the small paper mill town of Casablanca, Maine, with the same friends and family but because of their gender, everything looks different.

On a sultry evening when they are eighteen years old, during a violent strike at the paper mill, two dramatic events happen--one to Louis, and another to Louise--which mean that they leave Casablanca, seemingly for good. But twelve years later, when their mother is dying of cancer, Louis and Louise return to Maine to deal with two very different towns and problems...and to discover whether their destinies are, after all, the same.

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More Praise for The Two Lives of Louis & Louise

"It's BRILLIANT. I enjoyed it hugely." Marian Keyes

"Not often does a story remind us of what beautifully complex creatures we are. Julie Cohen has given us that rare gift." Christina Dalcher, author of VOX

"Louis and Louise is moving and beautiful, but it will also make you wonder and question, and it will stretch out your thinking so very beautifully." Joanna Cannon

"A timely read that will stay with you long after you put it down." Libby Page

"In the hands of a less skilful author this could have been an unsubtle gimmick to make a point about gender but Julie Cohen has written a powerful and memorable story of small town secrets, family dynamics and the sense that some things are just meant to be." Sunday Express

"The premise here is radical, but worth the effort... This elegantly written novel also examines much that is universal: teen love, parent-child relations, class division and small-town prejudice." Daily Mail

"An engaging, moving novel, at its most arresting in the pivotal scenes when she explores the personal fallout of industrial and class conflict in Louis/Louise's beleaguered hometown." Sunday Times

"Wow. What a beautiful, ballsy and brilliant book." Sinead Moriarty