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    The Spare Room: A Novel
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    • Load image into Gallery viewer, The Spare Room: A Novel
    Brand: Henry Holt and Co.

    The Spare Room: A Novel

    4.1
    €65,00
    €65,00
    €106,00
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    Save 39% (€41,00)
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    Customer Reviews

    Caregiver's JourneyThis is the story of two women in their sixties. Helen, the narrator, is thriving, with work, family, and a nice homelife. Nicola, her friend, is a charismatic narcissist who is dying. In her manic efforts to thwart death with every crackpot cure available, Nicola becomes a black hole who sucks out the energy of everyone who loves her. This book is a chronicle of that journey.The good: The book is well-paced and interesting. Garner is a talented writer, and she describes beautifully the reality of caregiving. Here are some examples: We led (Nicola) into the spare room and she sat shivering on the edge of the bed. I banged down the window and switched on the oil heater. No, thank you she didn t want to drink, or eat, or wash, or go to the toilet. She was silent. Her head hung forward, as if a tiny fascinating scene were being enacted on her lap. Bessie, age five, who is denied attention due to Nicola s needs, ...hesitated, glaring at me over her shoulder, long enough for me to see her pearly skin, the vital luster of her pouting lower lip. Description of a quack clinic: The room within was painted a strange yellow, the color of controlled panic. At the realization she d have no choice but to offer up the next few weeks to continuing Nicola s care: My heart was full of holes. Everything strong and purposeful was draining out of me. When my coffee came I could hardly lift the cup. I drove home. My desk was buried under sliding heaps of unread and unanswered mail. I had lost control of my life. I also enjoyed the vernacular of urban Australia. The story is set largely in Melbourne, and their everyday language is different from what I'm used to. That added another layer of interest.The not-so-great: this is a chronicle of a debilitating and wondrous period in the author s life. It s really interesting to the reader, like driving past a wreck, but I like to see character growth. In that sense, the ending was a bit unsatisfying. Helen and all the other caregivers continue sacrificing themselves for Nicola right up until the last page. No changes.However, the story contained two powerful reminders. One, to appreciate my life, in spite of the fact that I can no longer leap tall buildings. Spare Room imparts gratitude for the joy of relative health and independence. Two, to do everything in my power NOT to let caregiving mow me down, the next time I m in that situation. So thanks to Helen Garner for sharing her story with us. I recommend this book. 4True StoryThis is an Australian author and about her own friend. I really liked it. Everyone can wonder how would you handle the same situation. Often we think we know how we would cope but when it comes to reality it is a totally different when it pops up in your own life and choices you make are different than what you thoughr. 4So much emotion in so short a book is the mark of a wonderful author.Very well written, but not a book for someone who has recently experienced the ravages of cancer. So much emotion in so short a book is the mark of a wonderful author. 4Loved this bookGreat story, it has to be based on a real life situation.There should be more books like this written.Some years ago when a close friend had stopped her medical treatment to have "alternate treatment" for her cancer because she had read a book written by someone to recommend these treatments. I recall saying to her " people who have alternate therapies for cancer and die don't write books about it".This is the book that was written for those people. 4The Spare RoomFrom beginning to end this book got me in. Helen's frustration, fear and love are so honestly presented. It would have been so easy to sweep the "negative" emotions away but then all "humanness" would have been lost. This book so clearly describes how being a carer in any situation demands so much more than we ever bargain for and than what anyone not "there" can see or understand. Helen's journey becomes the reader's. The honesty just blows you away! 5Splashes of an Aussie 'Beaches' - with its own quiet drama and soundtrackSeveral reviews mention the perfect symmetry of this book and as a huge fan of Helen Garner's work i completely agree. There is nothing wasted and each page is savoured for its contributions to the inevitable conclusion, so much so that one can't help but wonder if the characters are all real.I disagree with the Publisher's Weekly review which mentions that "Garner paints Nicola's unflinching optimism with a heavy hand, and her grand na vet is unconvincing" - unconvincing? This made me laugh out loud. I know that we're all expected to deal with terminal illness with iron wit and stoic resolve. But from personal experience there is nothing that can prepare anyone for the reactions to terminal illness that one will face. And from this perspective I was happy to read something so ludicrous and far-fetched in Nicola's reactions... and the humour was definitely realistic!Highly recommended. 5Terminal FriendshipI enjoyed this short novel; the topics were emotive and challenging. Garner tackles the difficult story of Nicola, a woman in her early 60s who is in the late stages of cancer, who comes to stay with her friend Helen for a few weeks while she explores alternative therapies to try and cure her cancer. Garner covers the almost taboo issues that people close to a terminally ill person must suffer: frustration and other negative feelings about the person they are caring for. The book is about friendship, anger, relationships, anguish and the tensions that terminal illness brings.My only disappointment was the feeling of a rushed ending. A period of time is condensed into one chapter. As it is not a long book, I wanted this to have been lengthened, although I can understand why Garner would not want to - as it stands the book is a close look at the short period of time where Nicola and Helen are together.I thought it was well written and portrayed the difficulties of such a friendship well. Recommended. 42nd time around - still loved itThis is the the second time I've read this novel. Couldn't put it down. Although it is a morbid subject, cancer, the story itself wasn't. Always think the sign of a good book is when you get so angry and frustrated with the character. In this case Nicola. And I did!! I felt the frustration Helen had with her friend who stayed in her "spare room". Why couldn't Nicola see the cancer treatments were a sham. Everyone else could, and was suffering, in someways more than the cancer victim. They (her friends) all wanted to shake her. And these so called specialists - the sad thing is I'm sure there are "quacks" like the ones pictured in this book that are out in our communities.It was a book that at times was quite a funny , but of course the underlying sadness could not be ignored, however that did not take over the tone of the book.It was a very easy read, not a big book. I will probably pick it up again.Am keen to read more of Helen Garners books. 5The Spare RoomThis would be a good read for anyone who expects to care for or be close to someone who is engulfed by a terminal illness. I liked how the effects on other than the sufferer were brought to light. It portrays how sufferers cling on to unlikely benefits at the exclusion of rational considerations. I thought this was written with empathetic feelings and believable consequences for relationships. 4Preparing to dieThis is a story about 2 friends. Nicola,a journalist from Melbourne has cancer and comes to stay with close friend, Helen in Sydney for 3 weeks while she receives an "alternative" treatment for her disease. It is obvious from the moment that Nicola arrives, despite an overly optimistic attitude, that she is dying and in worse shape than she is ready to admit.The book centres on the emotional aspects surrounding death. How hard it is for some to "give up" and accept death, how hard it is for those around those dying, the burden of it and the range of emotions experienced - sadness, anger, loss, tiredness,helplessness and finally the guilt of relief. The feeling while being beside death of being on the outside of everyday life.Told in a straightforward and honest manner, it is a good read. 5
    The Spare Room: A Novel

    The Spare Room: A Novel

    4.1
    You can't add more than 500 quantity.
    €65,00
    €65,00
    €106,00
    Sold out
    Save 39% (€41,00)