Amy Arnold (1) (1974–)

Well this is a book of horrors.

The blurbs on the back all seem to emphasize the word play & writing. Nothing, nothing, nothing seems to hint at the horrors inside which include affairs, child molestation, and... the protagonist killing her daughter. (My book club thinks the killing was unintentional, mostly, but still. The book is so fricking unclear on everything....) We all agree that the people who wrote the blurbs didn't actually read the book. They mentioned things like "Bemused by show more everyday life...", "quality of sentences", "A rich, linguistically dextrous portrait", and "disturbingly sensual". Uh. No. The mother killed her daughter. What bullshit descriptions of the story.

Pardon my ranting, but I'm pissed about this book. show less

Shortlisted for the Goldsmiths Prize 2019

This was Amy Arnold's debut novel, published by And Other Stories as a prize for winning the inaugural Northern Book Prize. It is an intensely personal and poetic book, and makes an interesting contrast with another of the Goldsmiths shortlist [b:Ducks, Newburyport|43412920|Ducks, Newburyport|Lucy Ellmann|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1546225252l/43412920._SX50_.jpg|67454703], in that both are essentially the show more inner thoughts of a mother with mental health issues, though Ellmann and Arnold have very different approaches, and this one is not in any sense political.

Ash and her husband Abbott have a seven year old daughter Charlie, whose ability to swim underwater gives the book its title. In the first part of the book we are introduced to the family, initially by a recollection of a film Ash and Abbott saw early in their relationship about a town in northern Finland's endless summer days. Lakes and swimming play major roles, as do a couple of books - [b:Aliss at the Fire|8238557|Aliss at the Fire|Jon Fosse|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1340647155l/8238557._SX50_.jpg|13085981] by [a:Jon Fosse|68668|Jon Fosse|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1555792719p2/68668.jpg] and [b:Leaves of Grass|27494|Leaves of Grass|Walt Whitman|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1418012204l/27494._SX50_.jpg|28117] by [a:Walt Whitman|1438|Walt Whitman|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1392303683p2/1438.jpg].

The narrative becomes increasingly fractured as Ash retreats into herself, dwelling on memories of a lesbian affair with her yoga teacher Kate that may or may not have occurred a couple of years earlier - Kate's appearances often have a ghostly quality and the story is introduced very gradually, and it is never entirely clear what is real and what is imaginary.

My ability to digest this book was somewhat hampered by reading it during a weekend away with friends - it is not an easy book to dip in and out of, as it is intense, a little repetitive and full of allusions.

Overall I was very impressed and this book could be a strong contender for the prize. show less