As If

Reading Waidner is like plugging into an electric socket of language and ideas

Guardian

Waidner pushes form to make us see the world around us in new ways, and perhaps even for the first time

Kamila Shamsie, author of 'Home Fire'

The writer everyone is talking about . . . Their explosive sensibility and style are as far removed from mediocre prose and middle-class manners as you can imagine

Bernardine Evaristo, author of 'Girl, Woman, Other'

Waidner once again proves themself to be one of our most exciting and significant writers – I am in love with their smart, energetic prose . . . This brilliant novel dissects identity and performance as mechanisms of survival in the 21st century, asking what choice we have in how we live and who we become. Through doppelgängers and replacements, relation and differentiation, As If examines the selves we slip into or enact, as well as the grief and sacrifices of a life in the arts

Peter Scalpello, author of 'Limbic'

As If is an entirely new species of fiction: a spellbindingly clever and profound romp; an urgent exploration of contemporary masculinity in love with, and at war, with itself; a story of desire, art, and redemption. Isabel Waidner is the heir to many legends – Kafka, Bosch, Monty Python, Jonathan Swift – and their new novel summons gorgeous, canny, comedic tulips from the austerity-hammered present. A total stunner

Jordy Rosenberg, author of 'Confessions of the Fox'

Isabel Waidner turns ordinary life into a hall of mirrors, full of ironic melancholy and sly existential twists – perfect for anyone who’s ever wondered ‘what if?’

Service 95, 'The 21 Must-Read Books To Have On Your Radar In 2026'