Anne Goodwin

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About Anne Goodwin
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Anne Goodwin writes entertaining fiction about identity, mental health and social justice. She is the author of three novels and a short story collection published by small independent press, Inspired Quill. Her debut novel, Sugar and Snails, was shortlisted for the 2016 Polari First Book Prize. Her new novel, Matilda Windsor Is Coming Home, is inspired by her previous incarnation as a clinical psychologist in a long-stay psychiatric hospital.
Website: annegoodwin.weebly.com
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Blog postThis latest batch of micro reviews – the first of this year – features a Nigerian classic novel; a non-fiction book about Britain’s black communities during the First World War; a novella about the bond between a woman and her granddaughter; a psychological thriller set in a care home; a memoir about psychiatric abuse; a novel about love against the odds; a classic novel about a young woman’s breakdown; a whimsical fantasy and an Indian retelling of King Lear.
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The Dance Tree by Kiran Millwood Hargrave
In the sweltering summer of 1518, the1 week ago Read more -
Blog postThere's nothing about TikTok in my 2022 reading and writing plans. Why would there be? I'm far too serious for that kind of stuff. Yet a couple of weeks after I posted those plans I'd signed up for an account. Now I'm addicted.
Why? Because I've sold a few books, although not as many as I'd like to. But mostly because it's a fun place to be.
I’ve begun a series of spoof therapy sessions with fictional c2 weeks ago Read more -
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Blog postA reader does need to be patient with this novel initially but the rewards are great take it from one who generally finds textual quirks an irritant you quickly accommodate to unpunctuated paragraphs that perfectly encapsulate the narrator’s voice not voice as in audible speech he Elliott barely able to move due to cerebral palsy is using some kind of device to relate the great adventure of his childhood when in the late seventies without communication aids he made a3 weeks ago Read more
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Blog postAlthough many of us read for relaxation, our brains are far from passive as we do so. We actively process the words on page or screen through the filter of our own experience. Because everyone is different, we won’t find identical meanings in the same text.
As an author, I’m delighted when a reader makes a personal connection with my fiction that shows they understand what I set out to say. However, it’s1 month ago Read more -
Blog postThese two novels depict a character’s reflections on their life following the sudden death of their spouse. Both the male writer in the first novel and the female teacher in the second are mourning not only the loss of a partner but of the promise of their original romance.
The Chosen by Elizabeth Lowry
When his wife dies suddenly in her bedroom, Tom is perplexed. Should he have seen this coming?1 month ago Read more -
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Blog postA page-turning debut about power, patriarchy and politics; separation and secrets; set in late 1960s Pakistan.
Police inspector Faraz Ali is posted to Lahore’s red light district to investigate – or rather to deflect attention away from the powerful figures who might be implicated – the murder of a girl barely out of her teens. It’s a lucrative position, with the bribes and backhanders his role can comma2 months ago Read more -
Blog postTwo novels about women whose identities stem from the supernatural: the first, a vampire who moves to London to work in a gallery; the second, a traditional healer in rural Mexico and the journalist who wants to write her story.
Woman, Eating by Claire Kohda
After settling her mother into a care home in Margate, Lydia moves to London for an internship in a gallery. It’s a big step for a young wom2 months ago Read more -
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Blog postTwo fabulous fiction books about ordinary people in historically significant times. The first is a family saga set in China, Taiwan and America across six decades of the twentieth century. The second is a snapshot of Swiss history on a single day in 1959 when the male half of the populace denied their mothers, sisters and wives the right to vote.
Peach Blossom Spring by Melissa Fu
When the Japane2 months ago Read more -
Blog postAlthough fire has a significant role in both of these novels, I intended this post’s title metaphorically: along with the pandemic, the climate crisis and the (sometimes related) refugee emergency are the defining themes of the 2020s. If you like to explore our times through fiction, as I do, see if you think you’d enjoy The Forests, a translated cli-fi novel and/or The Bones of Barry Knight, a poignant portrayal of people literally or figuratively estranged from their homes.2 months ago Read more
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Blog postHere are two books featuring different kinds of caring: the first a translated memoir about a healthcare professional who looks after people’s minds along with their feet; the second a novel about an actor who opens his home to his struggling father and to his childhood friend.
Marzahn, Mon Amour by Katja Oskamp translated
by Jo Heinrich
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Blog postThese two recent reads feature characters who find themselves in morally compromised situations, partly of their own making. The first, set in the contemporary US art world, is about a young man’s relationship with a middle-aged man he saves from drowning. The second, set during a turbulent time in American history, focuses on a family of thespians, drinkers and dreamers.
Mouth to Mouth by Antoine3 months ago Read more -
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The Definition of Us by Sarah Harris
It’s less than a week until the anniversary of her teenage trauma, and Florence desperately needs her session with her therapist. Unfortunately, Howard has been called away to attend to some private business and it doesn’t look as if3 months ago Read more -
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Blog postDo you remember that song about the sisters, devoted to each other … unless a man should come between them? Here are two versions of the novelisation of that story. In the first, set primarily in the Philippines, the two daughters of a former dissident compete for the affections of a powerful man. In the second, a YA dystopian novel, thirty teenagers who’ve been raised together, and think of each other as sisters, also hope to be chosen a high-status man. In both cases, their position is bleak,3 months ago Read more
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Blog postLet me present two chunky novels, both published in the UK on 3rd February, about which I had some reservations but came to love. Despite a decade’s difference in age between the novels’ protagonists, both are coming-of-age stories in which an unexpected kind of love – or unconventional for their particular communities – teaches these young women about family, ambition, identity and themselves.
De4 months ago Read more -
Blog postAs with embarking on a novel project, so with setting goals for the year ahead: there’s a sweet spot between restraining oneself within an inflexible structure and leaving it all to chance. Now I’m clearer about how novels work, I’ve become a carefree planner – or is that an organised pantser? Now I know – in fact, I’ve always known – I’ll get some stuff done to progress my authorial career, I’m happy to set myself a mix of concrete goals and airy-fairy aspirations each January and review where4 months ago Read more
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Blog postI’ve paired these two novels because they both address human failings in unconventional ways. The first, translated from the Danish, illustrates the barriers to connection via a large cast of characters. The second is a zany take on our collective complicity in environmental collapse. Oh, and because the title of the first reminds me of Dali’s telephone, while I can only assume the enigmatic title of the second is intentionally surreal.4 months ago Read more
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Blog postHere I introduce two translated novellas – the first from Italian, the second from French – about the bond between siblings, survivors of damaging childhoods. They illustrate the difficulties of closing the door on the past.
A Sister’s Story by Donatella di Pietrantonio translated by Ann Goldstein
The narrator is a teacher of Italian origin, now living in France. She is also a sister, daughter an4 months ago Read more -
Blog postWe can choose our friends but not our neighbours, unless we happen to own a plot of land with cottages to rent or offer free to selected guests. In which case we should choose carefully: in a crisis, out in the countryside, we might have to rely on our neighbours more than we’d expect. But as renters and guests we might not have a say in the matter, as these two novels highlight. The first is about a woman unsettled by the folk beliefs of her neighbours in rural Scotland; the second about a temp4 months ago Read more
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Blog postWhen I selected these books for my first reviews of 2022, I thought all they shared was their UK publication date of January 6th. I was wrong. Both are unconventionally structured novels by and about migrants, from the Indian subcontinent, to rich countries founded on the genocide of their indigenous populations, where truth is sometimes sacrificed on the altar of populist politics and the realities of racism and the climate crisis denied. Read on for the different ways these authors handled the5 months ago Read more
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Blog postWe’ll remember 2021 as the year the rich countries rolled out their vaccination programmes, which should have zero overlap with my reading and writing, except that when I got my flu jab at my local pharmacy, I also managed to sell a book. So far, so serendipitous, but this post is about how I measured up against the goals I set at the beginning of this year.
Reading
As usual, I achieved my goal of readin5 months ago Read more -
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Blog postThis latest batch of micro reviews – the fifth and final one for this year – relates to novels about a Nigerian victim of child marriage and domestic slavery; white people’s funerals in post-apartheid South Africa; adolescence by the sea in North Yorkshire and Greece; pimps and drug pushers in the City of London; uses and abuses of mental health services in England; the residents and staff of a Canadian assisted living scheme for older adults; life and love in ancient Greece; a suspicious death5 months ago Read more
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Blog postLast January, I decided that this was the year I’d reread some of my all-time favourite books. I thought one per month would be reasonable; I actually read ten, although I’m awarding myself double points for the single non-fiction book. By sheer chance, they divided equally into five I found well worth revisiting and five that didn’t thrill me so much second time around. Read on to see which was which.5 months ago Read more
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Titles By Anne Goodwin
by
Anne Goodwin
$3.99
This book will have you breaking your heart one minute and laughing out loud the next.
In the dying days of the old asylums, three paths intersect.
Henry was only a boy when he waved goodbye to his glamorous grown-up sister; approaching sixty, his life is still on hold as he awaits her return.
As a high-society hostess renowned for her recitals, Matty’s burden weighs heavily upon her, but she bears it with fortitude and grace.
Janice, a young social worker, wants to set the world to rights, but she needs to tackle challenges closer to home.
A brother and sister separated by decades of deceit. Will truth prevail over bigotry, or will the buried secret keep family apart?
Told with compassion and humour, Anne Goodwin’s third novel is a poignant, compelling and brilliantly authentic portrayal of asylum life, with a quirky protagonist you won’t easily forget.
The Secret Scripture crossed with Elizabeth Is Missing and One Flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest. Chosen by Isabel Costello as a Literary Sofa Summer Read: “The light wins in this novel, which manages to be warm, uplifting and surprisingly funny for all the sadness and injustice portrayed.”
In the dying days of the old asylums, three paths intersect.
Henry was only a boy when he waved goodbye to his glamorous grown-up sister; approaching sixty, his life is still on hold as he awaits her return.
As a high-society hostess renowned for her recitals, Matty’s burden weighs heavily upon her, but she bears it with fortitude and grace.
Janice, a young social worker, wants to set the world to rights, but she needs to tackle challenges closer to home.
A brother and sister separated by decades of deceit. Will truth prevail over bigotry, or will the buried secret keep family apart?
Told with compassion and humour, Anne Goodwin’s third novel is a poignant, compelling and brilliantly authentic portrayal of asylum life, with a quirky protagonist you won’t easily forget.
The Secret Scripture crossed with Elizabeth Is Missing and One Flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest. Chosen by Isabel Costello as a Literary Sofa Summer Read: “The light wins in this novel, which manages to be warm, uplifting and surprisingly funny for all the sadness and injustice portrayed.”
Other Formats:
Paperback
Underneath: A psychological suspense novel inside the mind of an ordinary man who keeps a woman captive in a cellar
May 25, 2017
by
Anne Goodwin
$3.99
He never intended to be a jailer … After years of travelling, responsible to no-one but himself, Steve has resolved to settle down. He gets a job, buys a house and persuades Liesel to move in with him. Life’s perfect, until Liesel delivers her ultimatum: if he won’t agree to start a family, she’ll have to leave. He can’t bear to lose her, but how can he face the prospect of fatherhood when he has no idea what being a father means? If he could somehow make her stay, he wouldn’t have to choose … and it would be a shame not to make use of the cellar. Will this be the solution to his problems, or the catalyst for his own unravelling? Praise for Anne Goodwin: A dark and disturbing tale of a man who appears ordinary on the surface, but is deeply damaged. Clever and chilling; [Underneath] is a story that will stay with you long after you've finished reading. – Sanjida Kay, author of Bone by Bone [Underneath] is a compelling, insightful and brave novel of doomed, twisted romance driven by a sustained and unsettling voice. – Ashley Stokes, author of The Syllabus of Errors This secret tantalisingly grips the reader, gradually being pieced together bit by bit, so intrinsically and poignantly mapped out that I truly cannot praise this novel highly enough. – Isabelle on The Contemporary Small Press Fiction delivered by a writer who knows not only how to craft her words but also what those words should be communicating. – Dr Suzanne Conboy-Hill in The Psychologist An absorbing, clever and heartening debut novel. – Alison Moore, author of Booker-shortlisted The Lighthouse I loved this book. Sugar and Snails is beautifully written and a truly impressive debut by Anne Goodwin. It reminded me a little of Claire Messud’s The Woman Upstairs. The character of Di, at first frustrating, grows more endearing as you begin to understand her. Her friend Venus and lover Simon are well-drawn; there as foils to Di’s story. A beautiful and gripping read. – Fleur Smithwick, author of How to make a Friend Sugar and Snails is a brave and bold emotional roller-coaster of a read. Anne Goodwin’s prose is at once sensitive, invigorating and inspired. I was hooked from the start and in bits by the end. Very much to be recommended. – Rebecca Root, actor and voice teacher
Other Formats:
Paperback
Sugar and Snails: An unusual midlife coming-of-age novel shortlisted for the Polari First Book Prize
Jul 23, 2015
by
Anne Goodwin
$3.99
At fifteen, she made a life-changing decision. Thirty years on, it’s time to make another.When Diana escaped her misfit childhood, she thought she’d chosen the easier path. But the past lingers on, etched beneath her skin, and life won’t be worth living if her secret gets out.As an adult, she’s kept other people at a distance... until Simon sweeps in on a cloud of promise and possibility. But his work is taking him to Cairo, the city that transformed her life. She’ll lose Simon if she doesn’t join him. She’ll lose herself if she does.Sugar and Snails describes Diana’s unusual journey, revealing the scars from her fight to be true to herself. A triumphant mid-life coming-of-age story about bridging the gap between who we are and who we feel we ought to be.
Other Formats:
Paperback
Becoming Someone: Short stories, light and dark, about identity and what makes us who we are
Nov 27, 2018
by
Anne Goodwin
$3.99
What shapes the way we see ourselves?
An administrator is forced into early retirement; a busy doctor needs a break. A girl discovers her sexuality; an older man explores a new direction for his. An estate agent seeks adventure beyond marriage; a photojournalist retreats from an overwhelming world. A woman reduces her carbon footprint; a woman embarks on a transatlantic affair. A widow refuses to let her past trauma become public property; another marks her husband’s passing in style. Thought-provoking, playful and poignant, these 42 short stories address identity from different angles, examining the characters’ sense of self at various points in their lives. What does it mean to be a partner, parent, child, sibling, friend? How important is work, culture, race, religion, nationality, class? Does our body, sexuality, gender or age determine who we are? Is identity a given or can we choose the someone we become?
An administrator is forced into early retirement; a busy doctor needs a break. A girl discovers her sexuality; an older man explores a new direction for his. An estate agent seeks adventure beyond marriage; a photojournalist retreats from an overwhelming world. A woman reduces her carbon footprint; a woman embarks on a transatlantic affair. A widow refuses to let her past trauma become public property; another marks her husband’s passing in style. Thought-provoking, playful and poignant, these 42 short stories address identity from different angles, examining the characters’ sense of self at various points in their lives. What does it mean to be a partner, parent, child, sibling, friend? How important is work, culture, race, religion, nationality, class? Does our body, sexuality, gender or age determine who we are? Is identity a given or can we choose the someone we become?
Other Formats:
Paperback
Somebody’s Daughter: Prize-winning short stories
Jan 29, 2020
by
Anne Goodwin
$1.29
What does it mean to have a daughter? How does it feel to be one?
A child carer would do anything to support her fragile mother. A woman resorts to extreme measures to stop her baby’s cries. A man struggles to accept his middle child’s change of direction. Another uses his daughter to entice young women into his car. A woman contemplates her relationship with her father as she watches a stranger withhold his attention from his child.
Mothers of daughters, fathers of daughters, daughters from infancy to middle age. Three award-winning short stories plus a couple more. You’ll never think about daughters the same way again.
From the Polari Prize shortlisted author of Sugar and Snails.
A child carer would do anything to support her fragile mother. A woman resorts to extreme measures to stop her baby’s cries. A man struggles to accept his middle child’s change of direction. Another uses his daughter to entice young women into his car. A woman contemplates her relationship with her father as she watches a stranger withhold his attention from his child.
Mothers of daughters, fathers of daughters, daughters from infancy to middle age. Three award-winning short stories plus a couple more. You’ll never think about daughters the same way again.
From the Polari Prize shortlisted author of Sugar and Snails.