Sophie, Standing There
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- $26.99
Publisher Description
A Kirkus Earphones Award Winner
A TOP TEN LIBRARY READS PICK
“So smart, so funny, so moving. I absolutely loved it.”—Bonnie Garmus, New York Times bestselling author of Lessons in Chemistry
The “brilliant” (Ann Patchett) and much beloved author of the critically acclaimed Sorrow and Bliss returns with a tender and hilarious novel about heartbreak and the journey from isolation and loneliness towards love.
Sophie Pattison loves books. And as well as a dream job at a local book festival, she has a husband she adores, a lifelong best friend, Emma, and a brother she’s always been close to. Which makes you wonder why since Christmas Sophie has been living alone, estranged from Emma, avoiding her brother, and about to be fired.
Now it feels like the only thing she has left is reading. When Sophie re-discovers an author she first read in her twenties, the words on the page reach her in a new way—becoming both solace and company. Sophie devours every one of the author's novels and begins to dream of meeting her, but knows they never will. But what if she did? What if, by then, the author feels like a friend? What if, for Sophie, it feels almost like love?
In this much anticipated novel, Meg Mason captures the heartache and dark humor of our relationships in all their complexity, with a story about the power of connection and an ode to the inexplicable nature of the human heart.
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
We were captivated by this brilliant portrait of a woman searching for meaning in a rich (and often ridiculous) literary world. Everyone describes Sophie as upbeat and positive, but reality looks a little different when she’s alone in the old bachelor pad she’s renting from her estranged husband, eating hummus and rice cakes over the sink and compulsively reading the works of her favourite author, Lilac Dunne. So when Sophie’s job at a literary festival brings her face to face with Lilac herself, the emotional stakes are bizarrely high. Meg Mason (Sorrow and Bliss) has a true gift for writing women, exploring Sophie’s inner contradictions and palpable loneliness with wit, insight, and plenty of humour. And the incisive way she portrays the literary world is just as satisfying, particularly when it comes to Lilac’s cutting cleverness. Katherine Parkinson’s intimate, understated narration is a perfect fit for this deeply personal, sharply intelligent listen.
