I sneakily read this in several sessions in the English Orell Fuessli Bookshop - well, it was expensive and they do have a nice sofa :-)

Found my own copy today in the Buecher Brocky in Zurich, an enormous and fantastic second hand bookstore :-)

Mike Gayle website

"A Cat. A Flat. And a couple who think it's all over."

This book is split into diary entries between the two central characters, Alison and Jim. It follows their relationship from university 1989, through to their divorce and separation in 1993. It's unusual, in that the book starts with the present day situation, they're divorced and moving onto the next stage in their lives, but then the diaries start from the beginning and work their way to the present.

Mike Gayle is able to intelligently 'probe' both the male and female minds, and brilliantly disects the relationship at all stages. He explores these stages with sensitivity, for example, the difficulty post-graduation for both characters, of finding jobs and making choices and having to live apart. However, I was not convinced at their separation - I didn't feel he really explained why Jim just got cold feet one day, and why this led to divorce. There was a nice sense of climax at the end, as Helen's second wedding drew nearer, and both characters had to reassess their relationship and the mistakes they made. Plus, the central character holding it together was a cat, always good :-)

Planning to release this at Buch Basel, with the other bookcrossers at the Basel Meetup!

Auf der Buchmesse BuchBasel gefunden und liegen gelassen.

RELEASE NOTES:

In the Newspaper bookshelf in the entrance hall