Arlington Park - Rachel Cusk

=Synopsis of the book: The book follows a day in the life of five very different women all of whom live in a typical town called Arlington Park. It shares not a special day at all more a typical day the only thing out of the ordinary is the rain that never seems to stop throughout it. The thing these ladies share other than their location is they are all mothers in their late 30’s or their 40’s. The story follows firstly Juliet a part time teacher who worries about the relationship between men and women. Then it moves onto Amanda’s life who spends her time cleaning and improving her home. Next ... more

I have just finished reading Arlington Park by Rachel Cusk - a novel that looked quite promising particularly as it had been shortlisted for a fiction prize in 2007. I really liked the idea behind this book too as it follows the residents of an ordinary English suburb throughout one day, moving from one household to the next and dipping into the lives of the inhabitants. Unfortunately the reality fell far short of my expectations! Throughout the novel the reader meets a number of different characters who all live in Arlington Place. Most are women - housewives and school run mums - who pretty ... more

Arlington Park is a novel chronicling the lives of a group of women in the ficitional city of Arlington Park. Like Virginia Woolf's famous novel 'Mrs Dalloway' (published in the 1920's), the action is set soley in a single day. Whereas Woolf's story was based on the life of a middle class woman who who is preparing a dinner party and a meeting with a former lover, this novel chooses the themes of motherhood, small domestic battles, and relationships between a group of women. Rachel Cusk has quite a spare, honest style of writing and at the same time, is melodic and beautiful. However, this ... more