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A review by claire60
Lullaby Beach by Stella Duffy
4.0
Stella Duffy is a wonderful storyteller and she is especially good at taking the ordinary and peeling back the layers, as she did in my favourite novel of hers, The Room of Lost Things. In this book she features three generations of women, the book's timeline interweaves between all of their various encounters with abusive men. Kitty the older woman, who's suicide opens the book, is the spine of the novel, her naivety and strength on display until she is able to use her wisdom to help other women. Beth and Sara, sisters with a legacy of secrecy and jealously between them, both having experienced depression and unable to tell the other why. Lucy the teenager, who discovers Kitty's body and who really doesn't know what to do with all the very adult things she is being asked to manage. Each of these women is lovingly portrayed, their complexity, their emotions and thoughts so clearly defined. We also get a nuanced picture of Kitty's first partner, Danny, the ambitious young man trying to prove himself a man with his fists. His nephew Mark also features, less nuanced, more of a pathetic nasty violent man.
Stella Duffy explores many themes in this book, corruption in small seaside towns, capitalism and zero-hour contracts, 'me too' it's complexity and it's damage for those who have experienced sexual abuse and the online trolling experienced by those who speak out, racism faced by the Windrush generation and the vital importance of women having agency over their bodies especially medically safe abortions. It's a lot for a short book but it doesn't feel like that, it is a wonderfully enthralling read through generations of women's experience. Drawn from a tradition of storytelling bringing things to light, I could imagine Kitty telling this story over a cup of tea by the fire, such is the skill of the writer. The book is powerful and uplifting which feels like a wonderful tribute to Kitty and all she endured that made her determined to support other women and LGBT people who found their way to her hut, drawn by the three candles burning in the window.
With thanks to Virago and Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Stella Duffy explores many themes in this book, corruption in small seaside towns, capitalism and zero-hour contracts, 'me too' it's complexity and it's damage for those who have experienced sexual abuse and the online trolling experienced by those who speak out, racism faced by the Windrush generation and the vital importance of women having agency over their bodies especially medically safe abortions. It's a lot for a short book but it doesn't feel like that, it is a wonderfully enthralling read through generations of women's experience. Drawn from a tradition of storytelling bringing things to light, I could imagine Kitty telling this story over a cup of tea by the fire, such is the skill of the writer. The book is powerful and uplifting which feels like a wonderful tribute to Kitty and all she endured that made her determined to support other women and LGBT people who found their way to her hut, drawn by the three candles burning in the window.
With thanks to Virago and Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.