From Publishers Weekly
In Salway's second novel (after The ABCs of Love), much of Molly Drayton's past is held until the end of the narrative. A scandal involving untoward behavior by her father has landed the unhappily overweight Molly without money or connections in an out-of-the-way English suburb. A dirty old man, stationer Mr. Roberts, takes stern pity on her and offers Molly a room above his shop in exchange for some shelving work, albeit with "conditions." The latter include climbing a ladder and spinning stories about her life while Mr. Roberts gropes her ample calves. Molly obliges with more and more elaborate dissembling, which will catch up with her just as she manages to make a few friends in the neighborhood: Miranda, the similarly weight-battling haircutter across the street whose habit of trading compliments with Molly is suspect; attractive, sweet, delusional Tim, who thinks he's a secret agent; and lonely-hearts librarian Liz, who urges Molly to read The Story of O to build character. Salway's characters are deeply estranged from the mainstream and too calculating to be sympathetic, except perhaps Mr. Roberts, married to a Frenchwoman whose attractiveness overtaxes his poor, dirty heart. Salway's book is a frustrating study in the intimate layering of deception. (Nov.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Product Description
“I galloped through this book–couldn’t stop once I’d started. The writing’s so spare and yet the message so complex. It’s spiky, sparky, pithy, and deep.”
–Kate Long, author of The Bad Mother’s Handbook
She didn’t mean to tell the story, or have it end that way. She just got a little . . . carried away.
It has been several years since she confided in her teacher, and Molly Drayton is still feeling the aftershocks. But when a chance meeting with a stranger leads to an offer of a room in exchange for telling stories, Molly jumps at the chance. Slowly, she builds an eccentric new family: Tim, her secretive boyfriend, who just might be a spy; Miranda, the lovelorn hairstylist; Liz, the lusty librarian; and Mr. Roberts, a landlord who listens, and his wife who is that very wonderful thing, French.
Much to Molly’s surprise, she finds that the stories she now tells are her key to creating a completely different life. Suddenly, her future is full of possibilities. The trouble is, Molly’s not the only one telling tales.
Sarah Salway’s witty, finely tuned, and poignant novel is an utterly entrancing chronicle of a unique coming-of-age, capturing the imagination as it explores what we reveal to others, how honest we are with ourselves, and the consequences of trying to bridge fact and fiction.
Praise for The ABCs of Love
“An innovatively told and exquisitely written novel about friendship, love, and life that sneaks up on you with just how extraordinary it is.”
–Melissa Senate, author of See Jane Date
“Charming and darkly funny.”
–Marie Claire (UK)
From the Trade Paperback edition.
–Kate Long, author of The Bad Mother’s Handbook
She didn’t mean to tell the story, or have it end that way. She just got a little . . . carried away.
It has been several years since she confided in her teacher, and Molly Drayton is still feeling the aftershocks. But when a chance meeting with a stranger leads to an offer of a room in exchange for telling stories, Molly jumps at the chance. Slowly, she builds an eccentric new family: Tim, her secretive boyfriend, who just might be a spy; Miranda, the lovelorn hairstylist; Liz, the lusty librarian; and Mr. Roberts, a landlord who listens, and his wife who is that very wonderful thing, French.
Much to Molly’s surprise, she finds that the stories she now tells are her key to creating a completely different life. Suddenly, her future is full of possibilities. The trouble is, Molly’s not the only one telling tales.
Sarah Salway’s witty, finely tuned, and poignant novel is an utterly entrancing chronicle of a unique coming-of-age, capturing the imagination as it explores what we reveal to others, how honest we are with ourselves, and the consequences of trying to bridge fact and fiction.
Praise for The ABCs of Love
“An innovatively told and exquisitely written novel about friendship, love, and life that sneaks up on you with just how extraordinary it is.”
–Melissa Senate, author of See Jane Date
“Charming and darkly funny.”
–Marie Claire (UK)
From the Trade Paperback edition.
