Entanglement
Katy Mahood
Borough Press, £12.99, pp320
In 2007, Stella and her husband, John, cross paths with a man at Paddington station. There is a flash of recognition, though neither can place the other. Winding back 30 years, Entanglement reveals the moments at which these lives have almost intersected, as characters deal with parenthood, life-threatening illnesses, addiction and professional disappointment. Dexterously structured around quantum entanglement theory, Mahood’s wise debut opens not with a prologue but a “prelude”. As the narrative unfolds, she offers us variations on marriage and motherhood, grief and redemption, and the sacrifices we choose to make in the name of love.
A State of Freedom
Neel Mukherjee
Vintage, £8.99, pp288 (paperback)
An Indian expat academic takes his six-year-old son around Mughal sites on a relentless tour that ends in tragedy. A young man’s conversations with the family’s cook cause social discomfort. A man runs away from his village and his debts with only a dancing bear for company. The daughter of a drunken father escapes her village into a life of servitude. And a stream-of-consciousness monologue reveals the final thoughts of a construction worker before his death. In five interlinked stories, Mukherjee explores social and geographical dislocation in contemporary India. Ambitious and relevant, dreamlike and moving, this is a powerful novel about alienation and the illusion of freedom.
MI5 and Me: A Coronet Among the Spooks
Charlotte Bingham
Bloomsbury, £14.99, pp256
When Charlotte Bingham is 18, her father, who “went around looking vague and rather bored”, tells her that he is a spy for MI5, and that he’s arranged for her to work as a typist there. “Lottie”, a debutante who spends most of her evenings in the Blue Angel nightclub, is filled with horror at the prospect, but she obliges, albeit resentfully. What follows is a hilarious and candid account of her time at MI5: the shady characters her father invites home, and anecdotes of office life both absurd yet believable. Filled with period detail, Bingham’s memoir is entertaining and extraordinary.
To order Entanglement for £11.04, A State of Freedom for £7.64, or MI5 and Me for £12.74, go to guardianbookshop.com or call 0330 333 6846. Free UK p&p over £10, online orders only. Phone orders min p&p of £1.99
