BOOK CLUB
THE ONSET OF AUTUMN ALWAYS BRINGS A FLURRY OF NEW NOVELS TO GET BOOK-LOVERS THROUGH THE EVER-DARKENING EVENINGS. HERE’S A HAND-PICKED SELECTION TO GIVE YOU IDEAS AND INSPIRATION FOR YOUR NEXT READ... A utumn Rea d s
WORDS BY CHARLOTTE GRIFFITHS
WHERE THE EDGE IS
BY GRÁINNE MURPHY Longlisted for Cambridge’s prestigious Lucy Cavendish Prize, this extraordinary debut almost defies categorisation. On paper it’s the tale of a terrifying incident where a sinkhole swallows an early- morning bus in a rural Irish town. We meet reporters covering the news, the emergency services responding to the crisis, those saved from the bus, the passengers still trapped underground and the families who gather fearfully and hopefully at the pit’s edge. But as we learn more about the characters’ diverse backgrounds, their motivations, relationships and hopes and dreams, the book unfolds into an unforgettable story of truly jaw-dropping depth and scope. The rage-inducing pace of bureaucracy and the requirement to ‘follow protocol’ is set in stark opposition to the split- second life-and-death decisions made by the response team and those desperate for rescue. As people facing trauma tend to experience, these tragic events leave the protagonists questioning what truly matters in their lives, while the media spotlight shining brightly on those saved from the wreckage forces them to confront illuminated truths that might have been better left in the shadows. The book also plays with the characters’ perception of time, and will leave you wondering how so much can be covered in just a few days. The trapped bus riders, watchless, sleep to make time speed up: those above ground long for more hours with those they’ve lost. It’s a reminder that time, like pain, is relative – or as Nina, the journalist covering the
incident thinks to herself: “An article she read said the slower your heart rate, the faster your perception of time passing, so that while children and insects felt days stretch out for weeks, adults feel time speed up on them.” Murphy puts her cast of characters on trial, continually testing their individual capacity for both heroism and humanity. They are racked with physical and emotional pain, yet still hopeful for the future in bewildering yet beautiful sets of contrasts that all add up to make Where the Edge Is into one of the most memorable and affecting reads of the year.
“An unforgettable story of jaw- dropping depth and scope”
ABOVE Longlisted for the Lucy Cavendish Prize, Gráinne Murphy’s novel opens with a tragedy that uncovers characters’ hidden secrets
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