The Polite Act of Drowning
Publisher,Zaffre
Publication Date,
Format, Paperback
Weight,
No. of Pages, 288
Shelf: Fiction / Adult Fiction / Literary Fiction
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An elegant, atmospheric, emotional coming-of-age novel with themes of generational trauma, coping with mental illness, and the silence of women drowning in plain view in their daily lives.
Michigan, 1985.
The drowning of a teenage girl causes ripples in the small town of Kettle Lake, though for most the waters settle quickly. For sixteen year old Joanne Kennedy, however, the tragedy dredges up untold secrets and causes her mother to drift farther from reality and her family.
When troubled newcomer Lucinda arrives in town, she offers Joanne a chance of real friendship, and together the teenagers push against the boundaries of family and self-image during the tension of a long, stifling summer. But the undercurrents of past harms continuously threaten to drag Joanne and those around her under...
About the Author
Charleen Hurtubise has lived in Dublin, Ireland for over 25 years, having moved from Michigan, USA. She is a teacher and artist as well as a writer, and her short fiction, essays and poetry have appeared in various publications. She holds an MFA Creative Writing from University College Dublin (UCD) where she has also facilitated creative writing modules.
Reviews
"Charleen Hurtubise is a gifted storyteller. The vivid world of Kettle Lake, its natural beauties, its characters and its secrets, comes alive in this lyrical, evocative novel. Hurtubise's writing is skilful, compelling, mesmeric" ―Lia Mills
"A luminous and gripping portrait of a teenage girl coming of age in a small lakeshore community. Filled with colourful, complicated characters and brimming with heartbreak, love, and redemption, it is an exquisite debut from a powerful storyteller" —Michelle Gallen, author of Factory Girls
"...an impressive debut, establishing its author as someone with a keen eye for emotional detail and luscious scene-setting. Hurtubise's coming of age tale balances the tension of the trouble brewing in this community with the vulnerability, joy and pain of growing up" —Emma Flynn, The Irish Times
"The Polite Act of Drowning is an accomplished debut franked with credible characters and imbued with the conviction that we determine our own destiny" —Brendan Daly, Irish Examiner
"The humid haze of small-town America in high summer is brilliantly wrought here" ―Irish Independent
Dimensions: 12.9 x 1.7 x 19.8 cm
