The Distance Between Us
by Maggie O'Farrell
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Gripping, insightful, and deft, The Distance Between Us by Maggie O'Farrell is a haunting story of the way our families shape our lives, from the award-winning author of Hamnet and The Marriage Portrait.On a cold February afternoon, Stella catches sight of a man she hasn't seen for many years, but instantly recognises. Or thinks she does. At the same moment on the other side of the globe, in the middle of a crowd of Chinese New Year revellers, Jake realises that things are becoming show more dangerous.
They know nothing of one another's existence, but both Stella and Jake flee their lives: Jake in search of a place so remote it doesn't appear on any map, and Stella for a destination in Scotland, the significance of which only her sister, Nina, will understand. show less
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The Distance Between Us weaves two stories together: that of Stella, a Scottish-Italian woman who grew up in Edinburgh, sister to whom she is very close, and a tendency to disappear; and Jake, who lives in Hong Kong and whose father - who doesn't know that Jake exists - was Scottish. Stella's and Jake's stories converge when they meet at a remote inn in Scotland called Kildoune (also Jake's surname); Stella has come there to disappear, and Jake has come in search of his father.
O'Farrell switches back and forth between Stella and Jake, past and present, with a single line space between paragraphs. Nevertheless, the story is smooth rather than disjointed, the pieces falling into place without confusion or too much suspense. Jake suffers show more a traumatic event in the present, near the beginning of the book, whereas a pivotal event in Stella and her sister Nina's childhood is revealed near the end.
The Distance Between Us packs less of an emotional punch than O'Farrell's other books (The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox, The Hand That First Held Mine), but it is a compelling read. O'Farrell probes the issues of "hyphenated" identity (e.g. Scottish-Italian), culture, and belonging, illuminating the ways in which being different sets you apart.
Quotes
If she narrows her eyes to a certain point, the sun makes prisms of her eyelashes, lining the edges of her vision with jewels. (53)
Motherhood is a clear, prescribed thing. Those nine months you spend with another being pocketed inside you are a lifelong, unwritten contract that can't ever be cancelled. But fatherhood is nebulous, undefined, and can be almost nothing, a mere tailed cell shot out into the void. (186)
That's the thing about gardening, there's always something to do, you're only ever catching up with yourself. (211)
Thousands of miles away, her son is still in yesterday. (211)
The moments that affect you are only ever the ones you're not expecting. The ones you know will arrive, the ones you've been waiting for, have an almost unreal, rehearsed air about them, because you've imagined them so many times. (212)
This collision of her worlds made her feel insubstantial, weakened, unsure of who she was supposed to be, how she was meant to behave. (255)
Why is it women have an innate ability to cut to the chase? To sniff out the germ of a situation? How do they do it? (291)
"You may not think you're married but if the person you're married to thinks you are, then you are." (291)
She gets the light-headed feeling she always gets when faced with a world map, that dizzying scope of the possible. She could go anywhere, be anyone, rewrite her life just by getting on a plane. All she has to do is hand over some money. Travel strikes her sometimes as an almost suspiciously easy bargain: a new life in exchange for cash. Surely there should be something more Faustian, more binding about it? How can it be that easy? (365) show less
O'Farrell switches back and forth between Stella and Jake, past and present, with a single line space between paragraphs. Nevertheless, the story is smooth rather than disjointed, the pieces falling into place without confusion or too much suspense. Jake suffers show more a traumatic event in the present, near the beginning of the book, whereas a pivotal event in Stella and her sister Nina's childhood is revealed near the end.
The Distance Between Us packs less of an emotional punch than O'Farrell's other books (The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox, The Hand That First Held Mine), but it is a compelling read. O'Farrell probes the issues of "hyphenated" identity (e.g. Scottish-Italian), culture, and belonging, illuminating the ways in which being different sets you apart.
Quotes
If she narrows her eyes to a certain point, the sun makes prisms of her eyelashes, lining the edges of her vision with jewels. (53)
Motherhood is a clear, prescribed thing. Those nine months you spend with another being pocketed inside you are a lifelong, unwritten contract that can't ever be cancelled. But fatherhood is nebulous, undefined, and can be almost nothing, a mere tailed cell shot out into the void. (186)
That's the thing about gardening, there's always something to do, you're only ever catching up with yourself. (211)
Thousands of miles away, her son is still in yesterday. (211)
The moments that affect you are only ever the ones you're not expecting. The ones you know will arrive, the ones you've been waiting for, have an almost unreal, rehearsed air about them, because you've imagined them so many times. (212)
This collision of her worlds made her feel insubstantial, weakened, unsure of who she was supposed to be, how she was meant to behave. (255)
Why is it women have an innate ability to cut to the chase? To sniff out the germ of a situation? How do they do it? (291)
"You may not think you're married but if the person you're married to thinks you are, then you are." (291)
She gets the light-headed feeling she always gets when faced with a world map, that dizzying scope of the possible. She could go anywhere, be anyone, rewrite her life just by getting on a plane. All she has to do is hand over some money. Travel strikes her sometimes as an almost suspiciously easy bargain: a new life in exchange for cash. Surely there should be something more Faustian, more binding about it? How can it be that easy? (365) show less
As with any O'Farrell book I've read this one grabbed me straight away. There isn't a lot of dialogue, especially in the beginning chapters, but the descriptive writing drops you right into the middle of Jake's Hong Kong new year celebration and resulting tragedy. I liked the descriptions of Hong Kong and the different culture Jake grew up in, especially considering he is British and Scottish (mom and dad). He'd never been anywhere else so he spoke the language and it was home.
The other storyline, which will eventually merge, takes us into Stella and Nina's world in London, Wales and Scotland. These sisters are thick as thieves and are basically shunned in their childhood by the school mates because they are "different." Their mother is show more Italian and somehow that makes them stand out a bit. A disasterous school outing changes Stella and Nina's lives forever.
All three of our main characters have big secrets. 4.5 Stars show less
The other storyline, which will eventually merge, takes us into Stella and Nina's world in London, Wales and Scotland. These sisters are thick as thieves and are basically shunned in their childhood by the school mates because they are "different." Their mother is show more Italian and somehow that makes them stand out a bit. A disasterous school outing changes Stella and Nina's lives forever.
All three of our main characters have big secrets. 4.5 Stars show less
What a completely immersive read! I just love Maggie O’Farrell’s writing — she always pulls you right into the story.
Summary: Stella runs away from her life in London to work at a Scottish hotel. Jake survives a crowd crush in Hong Kong, finds himself in the wrong life in England, and goes in search of his father in Scotland. Stella’s sister Nina has never coped well without Stella, and Stella’s Italian-Scottish family isn’t thrilled about her new life choices either…
I loved this. The bond between the sisters was so strong and real, and O’Farrell seems to have the knack of coming up with seemingly insignificant anecdotes which touch on the core of what she’s trying to convey – in this case, the protectiveness of a bigger (though younger) sister, teenage rebellion, different attitudes to life and love and yet that unswerving loyalty to show more one another.
Like in The Hand That First Held Mine, we have Europeans living in Britain, learning to be bicultural, touches of another language thrown in haphazardly – which appeals to me so much because it’s exactly what I have lived. According to Wikipedia, a stint working in Hong Kong (which she draws on in this novel) is O’Farrell’s only “foreign” experience, so I wonder where she got this bilingual slant from. Anyway, I think it’s fabulous.
Also as in THTFHM, there was a sort of mystery to be solved, or an undisclosed event which was revealed towards the end and had a transformative effect on the characters’ lives, but finding it out wasn’t really the aim of the book, which was quite pleasant. The deed in question was pretty clearly signposted but I didn’t think that detracted from it.
The reason this doesn’t get 10/10 is because the ending was a bit disappointing and twee – too neatly wrapped up. But I guess that’s a matter of personal taste. show less
I loved this. The bond between the sisters was so strong and real, and O’Farrell seems to have the knack of coming up with seemingly insignificant anecdotes which touch on the core of what she’s trying to convey – in this case, the protectiveness of a bigger (though younger) sister, teenage rebellion, different attitudes to life and love and yet that unswerving loyalty to show more one another.
Like in The Hand That First Held Mine, we have Europeans living in Britain, learning to be bicultural, touches of another language thrown in haphazardly – which appeals to me so much because it’s exactly what I have lived. According to Wikipedia, a stint working in Hong Kong (which she draws on in this novel) is O’Farrell’s only “foreign” experience, so I wonder where she got this bilingual slant from. Anyway, I think it’s fabulous.
Also as in THTFHM, there was a sort of mystery to be solved, or an undisclosed event which was revealed towards the end and had a transformative effect on the characters’ lives, but finding it out wasn’t really the aim of the book, which was quite pleasant. The deed in question was pretty clearly signposted but I didn’t think that detracted from it.
The reason this doesn’t get 10/10 is because the ending was a bit disappointing and twee – too neatly wrapped up. But I guess that’s a matter of personal taste. show less
An early O'Farrell novel....many alternating timelines, I was never confused, it created a slow reveal of the core of the sisters' relationship. I gave it 3 stars because the ending was drawn out when the resolution was obvious.
Still an O'Farrell fan..
Still an O'Farrell fan..
My previous venture into Maggie O'Farrell's writing left me less than satisfied with the story, but more than satisfied with the writing (barring some confusion at the end.) This story, however, was much easier to follow. Two stories entwined, about two rather lost souls (three if you count Nina). I think O'Farrell has a good grasp on how to write about wounded souls.
Enjoyed this story but not the structure. Two stories told as non-linear narratives - flitting here and there, back and forward in time. Normally I would abandon these books but Maggie O’Farrell writes so well that you can so easily picture the scenes in your mind. Basically a romance story - will these two make it? I’m not spoiling it.
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24+ Works 20,611 Members
Maggie O'Farrell is the author of several novels including After You'd Gone, My Lover's Lover, The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox, Instructions for a Heatwave, and This Must Be the Place. She received a Somerset Maugham Award for The Distance Between Us and the 2010 Costa Novel Award for The Hand That First Held Mine. (Bowker Author Biography)
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- Original publication date
- 2004
- People/Characters
- Stella Gilmore; Nina Gilmore; Jake Kildoune
- Important places
- Hong Kong; Edinburgh
- First words
- He wakes to find himself splayed like a starfish across the bed, his mind running at full tilt.
- Quotations
- Jake often thinks of Hong Kong as a kind of overflow pipe for Europe. The people who come here have left their homes and their families for a reason and not usually one they ever disclose. They're all in varying degrees of se... (show all)paration, or running away from something or in search of an elusive element that might complete them. (2%)
Mrs. Yee always spoke Cantonese with him, his mother English, so he grew up thinking it was normal for the world to have a double meaning. (10%)
Stella looks down, looks at the diagram in front of her, at the lopsided shape of the human heart, its twin chambers, at the red and blue passageways flowing through it, seeing for the first time the way your heart is always ... (show all)full of two opposing elements. (30%)
He thinks of them like drops of oil in water: a distinct, cohesive presence, unchanged by the elements surrounding them. (41%)
Motherhood is a clear, prescribed thing. Those nine months you spent with another being pocketed inside you are a lifelong, unwritten contract that can't ever be cancelled. But fatherhood is nebulous, undefined, and can be al... (show all)most nothing, a mere tailed cell shot out into the void. (48%)
Stella shrugs.It always surprises her, the way rows and schisms with your family can pass over, drain away so quickly. One minute you can be screaming that they have ruined your life and the next you're curled up on the bed t... (show all)ogether, as if nothing has happened. (88%) - Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)She steps out into the street, into the rain, and raises her hand, like someone shielding their eyes from light, like someone answering a question.
- Original language
- English
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- Reviews
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- 10 — Catalan, Danish, Dutch, English, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Romanian, Spanish
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- ISBNs
- 33
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