The most moving moments in The Living are when characters must confront mortality. First-person narratives oscillate between Claire, an exhausted mother working in a shoe factory in England and failing to visit her ailing father, and the elderly Arun, who makes hand-sewn chappals in Kolhapur while pondering his past proclivities and proximity to the grave. The ground beneath their feet seems unsteady for both protagonists, as they meander through monotonous lives.
This third novel is less sure-footed than the author’s previous ones, and the pace is plodding. “What’s going to happen?”, Claire often wonders, but the two narratives never cohere, and in this loosely sketched series of scenes there is little strong storytelling. Characters come to life briefly but the switches of focus and unconvincing plot developments deflate our emotional engagement. The novel is best when excavating inner lives, and the most satisfying scenes deal with characters’ seething discontent with life.
The Living is published by 4th Estate (£12.99). Click here to buy it for £10.39
