Everything Under by Daisy Johnson was shortlisted for the Man Booker in 2018. This is the story of Gretel, who was raised on a houseboat in a backwater canal by her mother, Sarah. They don't have much contact with others and develop their own private language. But when her mother disappears when Gretel is 16 and she is taken into foster care, she tries to move on. Now, 16 years later, she is a successful lexicographer, updating entries in the dictionary. But a phone call from her mother sets in motion not only a hunt to find her, but also to finally understand the events leading up to her abandonment. The narrative slips between the past and present, and has a dreamlike (or rather nightmare like) quality at times when you aren't really sure what's real and what's imagined. Everything revolves around Marcus, a youngster who took shelter with Gretel and Sarah and became part of their lives. Things seem a bit more normal, but all three are haunted by "the bonak" - a "creature" who is the personification of the thing you most fear. And maybe the bonak caught up with them, when both Marcus, and then Sarah disappear. Gretel is convinced that Marcus is the key to finding her mother, and sets out to find him. What unravels reads like a Greek tragedy. It is painful and heartbreaking and sometimes a little frightening. The build up of dread as the book goes on is palpable. I really didn't like what happened, and it certainly isn't for the faint hearted - but it is a book that I found hard to put down. It's a true tragedy on so many levels, although I suspect it will divide the audience, but books should challenge us from time to time!
My STAR rating: FOUR.
Length: 272 print pages.
Price I paid: free, borrowed from library.
Formats available: print, unabridged audio download, MP3CD, ebook.
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