1960s New York: Emma Bowden lives the glamorous Manhattan lifestyle - swish apartment, with fabulous views; a loving, surgeon husband; and a successful writing career. Surely she has everything? What more could she want?
But Emma's background and upbringing have left their mark, and one summer, while Emma and her husband are on vacation in the Hamptons, a young child drowns in the sea and Emma may have been involved in some way. If only she could remember what really happened...
Old wounds are reopened, and Emma, who has been barely holding on to the facade of a normal life, starts to spiral out of control, as the voice in her head cannot be ignored.
*********************************************************************************
Don't Think A Single Thought is, quite simply, outstanding and one of the best books I have read all year. There are only a handful of books I would describe using the word I am about to use and that word is classy! Yes, Diana Cambridge, your book is definitely classy!
This is so beautifully written, and I knew straightaway I was going to love it. The words flow off the page and it would be very easy to soak up its deliciousness in one glorious sitting - especially, since it runs to under 200 hundred pages - but I did not allow myself to do this. In fact, I managed to eke this book out over a week, taking flavoursome little bites each time I picked it up in order to prolong the reading pleasure. There is so much to enjoy and speculate on in these pages!
Emma Bowden is the most unreliable of unreliable narrators you will ever encounter. Her chaotic past, with a mother who could not cope, has left an indelible mark that cannot be washed away, no matter how much champagne she douses herself in.
Her adoption, at a young age, has done nothing to dispel her inner feelings of disquiet, indeed her adoptive parents' manner of upbringing has only increased Emma's belief that she is ultimately undeserving.
It is no wonder Emma does not know how to live a normal life. What even is normal? Her bouts of depression are hardly a surprise.
It is easy to think of Emma as a boozed up, pill-popping, bored Manhattan socialite, playing at being a writer, while being unable to appreciate the good fortune she has, but she has learned that it is necessary to play at life. It is easier to play a role than to delve into her own dark reality and her husband is complicit in this. He likes the image Emma can project of the ideal wife - the beautiful, chic, enchanting, writer wife than can aid him in his ambitions. I could not like his selfishness, arrogance and inability to understand his wife's real fragility - if only she would follow her therapist's advice, all would be well.....don't think a single thought....just go with the flow...it is all so easy.
Except, it is not easy. It takes a lot of effort for Emma to play the part required and it becomes increasingly difficult for her to keep the facade in place. Emma is deeply unwell and although she seems to recover from her bouts of depression, each new set back threatens to destroy her.
There is an intriguing question that runs through this novel, that cannot be ignored. Emma is such an unreliable narrator that we are never sure whether or not she is guilty of being directly involved in any of the tragic events that set her off in a downward spiral. There is always a whiff of suspicion about her actions and it is impossible to know the truth from her account, as she can never remember what actually happened. I could not rid myself of the feeling that there was more to each unfortunate death than there appeared to be on the surface, and her own past did nothing to dispel this impression. There was always a shade of American Psycho tied up with her Bell Jar thinking that fascinated me, but maybe I am reading too much into this. I leave you to draw your own conclusions!
And draw your own conclusions you should, by reading this stellar novel. This is destined to be a modern classic, so get in early.
Thank you so much to Louise Walters Books for providing me with an early copy of this wonderful book. I am eternally grateful for the reading pleasure this has given me! xx
Update September 2019: See my review for the cracking audio book version here
No comments:
Post a Comment