'Can bad children happen to good mothers? A totally absorbing novel, for readers of Liane Moriarty, Jodi Picoult, Lionel Shriver and Christos Tsiolkas.
'Blogger Lizzy's life is buzzing, happy, normal. Two gorgeous children, a handsome husband, destiny under control. For real-life Beth, things are unravelling. Recently returned to Australia from America, tensions are simmering with her husband, mother-in-law, and even her own mother. Her teenage daughters, once objects of her existence, have moved beyond her grasp and one of them has shown signs of, well, thoughtlessness ...
Beth hopes things will improve once they are settled in their new home and the girls start school. Reluctant to leave, her daughters seem to adapt to their new circumstances, and the younger, Charlie, shines in her unaccountable but customary way. Then a classmate of Charlie's is callously bullied and the finger of blame is pointed at Beth's clever, beautiful child. Shattered, shamed and frightened, two families must negotiate worlds of cruelty they are totally unprepared for.
This is a novel that grapples with modern-day spectres of selfies, selfishness and cyberbullying. It plays with our fears of parenting, social media and the refuge it provides, and it asks the question: just how well do you know your child?' (Publication summary)
Dedication: For all the teenage girls in my life - past and present
And in memory of Emma James (1971 - 2015).
Hoping you've found calmer waters, little sister.
Epigraph:
'She sat beside her daughter a long time, watching the soft placid signs of her breathing, thinking how innocent the child looked, how free of the dark, terrible instincts that were in her; then all at once she felt these things could not be true. that the things the child had done could only exist in her own imagination; but she pulled herself up sternly and said, "I'm imagining nothing. It's all true."
William March, The Bad Seed
For the first time in NRB’s history, Jean and Linda both have the same title on their books-of-the-year lists. What could it be? Read on to find out …
For the first time in NRB’s history, Jean and Linda both have the same title on their books-of-the-year lists. What could it be? Read on to find out …
