WINNER OF THE WRITERS' GUILD FIRST NOVEL AWARD 2020
ELLE ONES TO WATCH 2019
'Terribly moving. A clear-sighted, poignant rumination on loneliness, love, the melancholy of age and of youth' China Mieville
'An imaginative, atmospheric and original novel that lingers in the memory long after reading' Bernadine Evaristo
'A sad, funny, highly original novel' Blake Morrison
'Wholeheartedly enjoy(able)' Lauren Wilkinson, The Millions
'Season Butler is an extraordinary writer. Like Colson Whitehead, her work is fearless in its inventiveness' Julia Bell
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It's too hot for most of the clothes I packed to come here, when I thought this would only be for a week or two. My mother kissed me with those purple-brown lips of hers and said, we'll be back, hold tight.
The Kid doesn't know where her parents are. They left with a promise to come back months ago, and now their seventeen-year-old daughter is stranded on Swan Island.
Swan isn't just any island; it is home to an eccentric old age separatist community who have shunned life on the mainland for a haven which is rapidly sinking into the ocean. The Kid's arrival threatens to burst the idyllic bubble that the elderly residents have so carefully constructed - an unwelcome reminder of the life they left behind, and one they want rid of.
Cygnet is the story of a young woman battling against the thrashing waves of loneliness and depression, and how she learns to find hope, laughter and her own voice in a world that's crumbling around her.
I loved the writing, but the story felt more and more disjointed as it neared the end. It's like it was trying to cover too much, realized it was running out of time, tried to make do. I'm usually fine with - even enjoy - open endings. But it didn't work for me in this case. But gosh, the writing was lovely.
Reading updates
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Started reading
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26 August, 2019:
Finished reading
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26 August, 2019:
Reviewed