Swimming Lessons
Book Review - Swimming Lessons by Claire Fuller
Merry Christmas Eve! I finished this book bright and early before heading to my Grandma's house for our Christmas celebration. I *really* enjoyed Swimming Lessons by Claire Fuller. A big thank-you to Steph Opitz and Book of the Month Club for this selection! In her description Steph wrote that this book struck a chord with her because, "ultimately it’s about a couple whose individual ambitions complicate their relationship in ways that are both relatable and devastating." It was this quote that inspired me to choose this book over the others.
Swimming Lessons is about a "passionate and troubled" marriage which led to the disappearance, and presumed death by drowning, of the wife. Gil and Ingrid lived in a beautiful, if somewhat dilapidated, house by the sea. They had two daughters, Flora and Nan. Twelve years after Ingrid's disappearance, Gil thinks he sees her in a bookshop. Given his advanced age, this sighting is chalked up to senality by almost everyone. But Flora never believed her mother drowned and she has her doubts.
The story is told from the modern-day perspective of Gil, Flora, and Nan but we get flashbacks through letters written by Ingrid to Gil that were stuck into thousands of books that Gil collected over the years rather than given to him directly. I loved the construction of this book and its unique story. After I read it I gave it to my grandmother to read - I think it can be enjoyed by a variety of readers.
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