Garner (Monkey Grip
) employs her signature realism in this stunted novel about the infuriating and eye-opening experience of caring for a terminally ill loved one. Helen prepares a room in her Melbourne home for Nicola, an old friend who travels from Sydney to begin a course of alternative treatment for bowel cancer. The central conflict of the story centers around these treatments: Helen fears they may be doing more harm than good, while Nicola has undying faith in the unorthodox practices of the Theodore Institute (these revolve around vitamin C injections), leading Helen to question her ability to care for someone so deep in denial. Garner paints Nicola’s unflinching optimism with a heavy hand, and her grand naïveté is unconvincing, a flaw that’s hard to overlook in a novel about a cancer patient. As it wears on, the narrative becomes clouded by litanies of worsening symptoms and platitudes about death, and Helen’s bickering about the treatment—while valid—become grating and tiresome. (Feb.)
Details
Reviewed on: 11/10/2008
Genre: Fiction
Compact Disc - 978-1-74214-013-1
Compact Disc - 978-1-74311-469-8
Hardcover - 195 pages - 978-1-84767-265-0
Hardcover - 195 pages - 978-0-88784-224-5
MP3 CD - 978-1-74285-560-8
MP3 CD - 978-1-74311-541-1
MP3 CD - 978-1-4890-8411-8
Open Ebook - 1 pages - 978-1-84767-361-9
Other - 192 pages - 978-1-4299-9251-0
Paperback - 192 pages - 978-0-312-42817-4
Pre-Recorded Audio Player - 978-1-74214-560-0
