The Language of Others
Format:Paperback
Publisher:Hodder & Stoughton
Published:16th Oct '08
Currently unavailable, and unfortunately no date known when it will be back
The wise, warm story of a woman negotiating her way through life without realising she doesn't understand the rules of the game, by the Booker-shortlisted author of Astonishing Splashes of Colour
'A story of self-discovery, of difficult family relationships and redemptive friendships . . . An enjoyable, engrossing read' (Independent) by the Booker-shortlisted author of Astonishing Splashes of Colour
'A surprisingly joyful novel' Daily Mail
The world is a puzzling, sometimes frightening place for Jessica Fontaine. As a child she only finds contentment in playing the piano and wandering alone in the empty spaces of Audlands Hall, the dilapidated country house where she grows up.
Twenty-five years later, divorced, with her son still living at home, Jessica remains preoccupied by the desire to create space around her. Then her volatile ex-husband reappears, the first of several surprises that both transform Jessica's present and give her a startling new perspective on the past.
The Language of Others tells the absorbing story of a woman who spends much of her life feeling that she is out of step with the real world, until she discovers why. Related with humour and compassion, it offers a fresh, illuminating insight into what it means to be 'normal'.
It's the warmth and roundedness of her characters that give Morrall's novels their appeal . . . THE LANGUAGE OF OTHERS offers a suspenseful tale with a taut, spare style and real emotional impact. In this and in its brave challenge to our assumptions about what it means to be normal it's a more than worthy shelfmate to Astonishing Splashes of Colour. * Guardian *
A story of self-discovery, of difficult family relationships and redemptive friendships that slips between past and present and unfolds not so much a coming-of-age as a coming-to-understanding . . . An enjoyable, engrossing read * Independent *
A writer with a phenomenal imagination and power with words * Scotsman *
Pacy with an intriguing plot, Morrall has produced a joyful novel . . . Morrall combines thoughtful, satisfying writing with an accessible style. Expect plaudits all round. * Birmingham Post *
Enthralling * Irish Times *
She [Morrall] also has a talent for making characters who might ordinarily alienate readers seem appealing, funny and moving. The result is a surprisingly joyful novel * Daily Mail *
Not only very readable, but very moving; a funny, and occasionally sad, account of what it feels like to be outside the norm * The Times *
Subtle and absorbing . . . Morrall has a talent for making pitiable characters triumphantly sympathetic * Guardian *
Morrall's rewarding third novel combines strong characters and vital evocations of place with a greater psychological intensity * Financial Times *
It's the warmth and roundedness of her characters that give Morrall's novels their appeal . . . THE LANGUAGE OF OTHERS offers a suspenseful tale with a taut, spare style and real emotional impact. In this and in its brave challenge to our assumptions about what it means to be normal it's a more than worthy shelfmate to Astonishing Splashes of Colour. * Guardian *
'Enthralling' * Irish Times *
ISBN: 9780340896679
Dimensions: 198mm x 131mm x 25mm
Weight: 256g
384 pages