Status
Available
Genres
Description
"For nearly four decades, lifelong friends Jude, Wendy, Adele, and Sylvie have seen each other through romances, child-rearing, changing careers, divorces, medical recoveries, and general aging. But now Sylvie has died, and the three remaining women are tasked with cleaning out her beach house before it's sold. Thrust together In this weathered old house on the ocean, where the ghosts of their younger selves compete with their current realities, the women ponder a collective lifetime of loves and grievances, disappointments and successes, and ultimately, how a life can change in a single unexpected instant - or over the course of a weekend"--
User reviews
LibraryThing member oldblack
As an older person with a recent brush with death, this book about 3 older women confronting their demise, was pretty appealing to me. The characters are all interesting and their relationships with each other and with significant others are realistic, nuanced, and well described. In many ways it's
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a 5-star novel for me except that I was left with the distinct impression that this novel was over-thought. Too much symbolism, with characters too different from each other, designed to make a point rather than to tell a convincing story. Wood tells us that their differences were brought to the surface partly because of the absence of the dead Sylvie, who had helped to keep the group together, but she doesn't really make out a good case that they ever did have a cohesive group. The women were almost caricatures at times. Sometimes, not all the time. Mostly the story was a great read. Show Less
LibraryThing member siri51
An engrossing character study of three very different elderly friends.
LibraryThing member lesleynicol
Not a very enjoyable book. "With friends like these, who needs enemies ?" A very negative picture of life for women in their seventies. The writer is only 55 and has no idea. If that's what she thinks we are like .........
LibraryThing member smik
First of all, this is NOT crime fiction (for those who follow my blog).
Four friends, now in their seventies, have met for years at Christmas at a beach house on the New South Wales coast. Now there are just three of them, and they are meeting to clean out the beach house in preparation for sale.
It
We find out rather a lot about their current situations, and also a lot about what has happened in their lives over the years.
A thought provoking read.
Four friends, now in their seventies, have met for years at Christmas at a beach house on the New South Wales coast. Now there are just three of them, and they are meeting to clean out the beach house in preparation for sale.
It
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becomes obvious that the glue that has held them together over the years is the owner of the beach house, the friend who has recently died. And perhaps the things that separate them are bigger than the things that bind.We find out rather a lot about their current situations, and also a lot about what has happened in their lives over the years.
A thought provoking read.
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LibraryThing member shelleyraec
“Adele and Wendy and Jude did not fit properly anymore, without Sylvie.”
The Weekend by Charlotte Wood is a searing and insightful portrait of friendship, ageing and grief.
“Because what was friendship, after forty years? What would it be after fifty, or sixty? It was a mystery. It was
Less than a year after the death of Sylvie, her lifelong closest friends -Jude, Wendy and Adele, are spending Christmas weekend emptying her holiday home in Bittoes on the NSW Central Coast. It’s a chore each of them have been dreading, and in the sweltering summer heat, the task threatens to tear them apart.
“‘This was something nobody talked about: how death could make you petty. And how you had to find a new arrangement among your friends, shuffling around the gap of the lost one, all of you suddenly mystified by how to be with one another.’”
Shifting perspectives reveal the complex inner lives of these women as they grieve, and bicker and reminisce. Wood explores the fragility and resilience of their friendship as old hurts resurface, resentments simmer, and secrets are laid bare.
“It was true that time had gradually taken on a different cast. It didn’t seem to go forwards or backwards now, but up and down. The past was striated through you, through your body, leaching into the present and the future. The striations were evident, these streaky layers of memory, of experience— but you were one being, you contained all of it. If you looked behind or ahead of you, all was emptiness.”
Aged in their seventies, the women keenly feel the passage of time, reflecting on their pasts, and contemplating their futures as they attend to their tasks. Having enjoyed successful careers, and relationships, they struggle with their losses, and what they have yet to lose. Ageing is an uncomfortable process for them all, though in different ways for different reasons. Wendy’s old and feeble dog, Finn, is a clear metaphor for its indignities.
“And each of the three let go, plunged down and felt herself carried, lifted up in the great sweep of the water’s force, and then—astonishingly gently—set down on her feet again. They breathed, and wiped their eyes, reached for each other again, waited for the next wave.”
Yet there is plenty of life left in these women, none are quite ready to submit to mortality.
Told with wit, tenderness and brutal honesty, The Weekend explores the mundane to expose the extraordinary.
The Weekend by Charlotte Wood is a searing and insightful portrait of friendship, ageing and grief.
“Because what was friendship, after forty years? What would it be after fifty, or sixty? It was a mystery. It was
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immutable, a force as deep and inevitable as the vibration of the ocean coming to her through the sand. Wasn’t it?”Less than a year after the death of Sylvie, her lifelong closest friends -Jude, Wendy and Adele, are spending Christmas weekend emptying her holiday home in Bittoes on the NSW Central Coast. It’s a chore each of them have been dreading, and in the sweltering summer heat, the task threatens to tear them apart.
“‘This was something nobody talked about: how death could make you petty. And how you had to find a new arrangement among your friends, shuffling around the gap of the lost one, all of you suddenly mystified by how to be with one another.’”
Shifting perspectives reveal the complex inner lives of these women as they grieve, and bicker and reminisce. Wood explores the fragility and resilience of their friendship as old hurts resurface, resentments simmer, and secrets are laid bare.
“It was true that time had gradually taken on a different cast. It didn’t seem to go forwards or backwards now, but up and down. The past was striated through you, through your body, leaching into the present and the future. The striations were evident, these streaky layers of memory, of experience— but you were one being, you contained all of it. If you looked behind or ahead of you, all was emptiness.”
Aged in their seventies, the women keenly feel the passage of time, reflecting on their pasts, and contemplating their futures as they attend to their tasks. Having enjoyed successful careers, and relationships, they struggle with their losses, and what they have yet to lose. Ageing is an uncomfortable process for them all, though in different ways for different reasons. Wendy’s old and feeble dog, Finn, is a clear metaphor for its indignities.
“And each of the three let go, plunged down and felt herself carried, lifted up in the great sweep of the water’s force, and then—astonishingly gently—set down on her feet again. They breathed, and wiped their eyes, reached for each other again, waited for the next wave.”
Yet there is plenty of life left in these women, none are quite ready to submit to mortality.
Told with wit, tenderness and brutal honesty, The Weekend explores the mundane to expose the extraordinary.
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LibraryThing member MarilynKinnon
3 women gather to clear out deceased friends beach side house. Ghastly boring rubbish with endless descriptions of Finn the ageing dog. Set in Australia
LibraryThing member dianaleez
This is a quote from the Australian 'Guardian': Wood, a mere youngster in her 50s, researched the biology of old age during a fellowship at the University of Sydney and nimbly inhabits these bodies and minds.
Reality: Those of us who have reached our seventies have had lot of time to come to terms
If I researched the biology of youth would that make me qualified to write about it?
Aging is not about biology.
Old people are not that different from everyone else; we merely creak a bit more.
Reality: Those of us who have reached our seventies have had lot of time to come to terms
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with mortality. We do not waste our time whingeing about it. We get on with the life we have left.If I researched the biology of youth would that make me qualified to write about it?
Aging is not about biology.
Old people are not that different from everyone else; we merely creak a bit more.
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LibraryThing member shazjhb
Enjoyable book about old people set in Australia. Pity the ending was not complete. Why authors don’t finish books is annoying
LibraryThing member tibobi
The Short of It:
Started off as a sweet story about three friends coming together after a friend’s death, but then was punched through with sadness and a little darkness which I was not expecting.
The Rest of It:
After the passing of their friend Sylvie, Adele, Jude, Wendy and her dog Finn, arrive
Wendy arrives a little sad over the death of her friend but also sad about the husband she lost and the next chapter of their lives. They aren’t getting any younger. By her side, is her sweet dog Finn who is also getting on in his years. So much so that he has anxiety attacks, paces relentlessly and has accidents, regularly. Wendy knows that she should put him down, but can’t bring herself to do so. Poor Finn.
The author does a magnificent job of capturing that fleeting feeling of time passing too quickly. In their prime, these four women were formidable and strong, successful and bonded through friendship. But in their 70s, they are tired and short with each other as they each figure out how they fit together without their friend Sylvie. As insecurities flare and one big secret is revealed that threatens to destroy their friendship, they pause for a moment to figure out where they want to go because even at this age, they have choices.
I really enjoyed this book and the writing in particular but there was one big problem I had with it and it’s the treatment of the elderly dog, Finn. I know that a beloved dog approaching the end of its life was probably intentional given that these ladies were also getting on in years and approaching the last stage of life, but the way this poor animal is treated by the other ladies in the house really bothered me. He’s full of anxiety, pushed around, forced to sleep outside even though he’s terrified of his own shadow. I really do not know why the author chose to include such horrible treatment of this poor dog. It was terribly disappointing and I felt, a poor choice and unfortunately affected how I felt about the book overall.
If you can get past these moments with the dog, then you might appreciate the writing, as I did. But I felt so sorry for this poor pup. I really did.
For more reviews, visit my blog: Book Chatter.
Started off as a sweet story about three friends coming together after a friend’s death, but then was punched through with sadness and a little darkness which I was not expecting.
The Rest of It:
After the passing of their friend Sylvie, Adele, Jude, Wendy and her dog Finn, arrive
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at Sylvie’s old beach house to prepare it for sale. Adele, a former actress who still has her looks about her, prances around, flaunting her flexibility which she still possesses even in her 70s. Jude, the most sensible but also the most abrasive of the trio, puts up with her to a point but lets everyone know when they are annoying or slacking at the task at hand. After all, they have a job to do.Wendy arrives a little sad over the death of her friend but also sad about the husband she lost and the next chapter of their lives. They aren’t getting any younger. By her side, is her sweet dog Finn who is also getting on in his years. So much so that he has anxiety attacks, paces relentlessly and has accidents, regularly. Wendy knows that she should put him down, but can’t bring herself to do so. Poor Finn.
The author does a magnificent job of capturing that fleeting feeling of time passing too quickly. In their prime, these four women were formidable and strong, successful and bonded through friendship. But in their 70s, they are tired and short with each other as they each figure out how they fit together without their friend Sylvie. As insecurities flare and one big secret is revealed that threatens to destroy their friendship, they pause for a moment to figure out where they want to go because even at this age, they have choices.
I really enjoyed this book and the writing in particular but there was one big problem I had with it and it’s the treatment of the elderly dog, Finn. I know that a beloved dog approaching the end of its life was probably intentional given that these ladies were also getting on in years and approaching the last stage of life, but the way this poor animal is treated by the other ladies in the house really bothered me. He’s full of anxiety, pushed around, forced to sleep outside even though he’s terrified of his own shadow. I really do not know why the author chose to include such horrible treatment of this poor dog. It was terribly disappointing and I felt, a poor choice and unfortunately affected how I felt about the book overall.
If you can get past these moments with the dog, then you might appreciate the writing, as I did. But I felt so sorry for this poor pup. I really did.
For more reviews, visit my blog: Book Chatter.
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LibraryThing member BookBuddies
Not very likeable characters.
LibraryThing member tandah
This is my favourite CW book (so far)and the very best book I've read on long-standing female friendships. One I've pressed on my 'annual weekend away' girlfriends.
LibraryThing member Desiree_Reads
I was really excited to read this one - I love the cover art and the story of three septuagenarian friends reuniting for a weekend at a beach house appealed to me, especially after enjoying the tale of persnickety, 85-year-old Veronica McReedy in the titular "How the Penguins Saved
However, I wasn't able to get more than four-and-half pages in on this one, and even then because I was starting it over my lunch break and didn't have another book or magazine nearby to read. (Yes, I have to read while I eat! I was that kid who always ate my breakfast while reading the back of the cereal box). There was something about the writing style that I really struggled. Plus, a general vibe that the story wasn't going to go in a direction that I would enjoy.
Wood is an award-winning novelist, and this is an international best-seller, so I was disappointed I didn't like it. However, I'm sure (know based on the stats) that others will love it.
Regardless, a big thank you to Charlotte Wood, Riverhead Books, and Goodread Giveaways for providing me with a complementary copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.
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Veronica".However, I wasn't able to get more than four-and-half pages in on this one, and even then because I was starting it over my lunch break and didn't have another book or magazine nearby to read. (Yes, I have to read while I eat! I was that kid who always ate my breakfast while reading the back of the cereal box). There was something about the writing style that I really struggled. Plus, a general vibe that the story wasn't going to go in a direction that I would enjoy.
Wood is an award-winning novelist, and this is an international best-seller, so I was disappointed I didn't like it. However, I'm sure (know based on the stats) that others will love it.
Regardless, a big thank you to Charlotte Wood, Riverhead Books, and Goodread Giveaways for providing me with a complementary copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.
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LibraryThing member Dianekeenoy
Well, it looks like people either love this book or hate it! It's a short book about 3 friends in their 70s who have lost an important member of their group. They're meeting at her beach house to clean it out out before it is sold and spend one last Christmas in the house. Without the presence of
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Sylvie everything shifts and the remaining three must decide how their very long friendship will continue to go on...or not. Show Less
LibraryThing member arubabookwoman
Three elderly friends have gathered over a weekend before Christmas at the beach house owned by their recently deceased friend Sylvie. Sylvie''s partner has asked them to clear the cottage in preparation for its sale.
The friends are so different it's difficult to see how their apparently life-long
I thought I would enjoy this book much more than I did. I thought that there was an overemphasis on the litany of crud these ladies had to go through in the laundry room, pantry, etc. I became a bit bored. No treasures here. And I read that the author did some research in order to write about older women and get into the heads of her characters. I was expecting lots of musing of the philosophical issues we tend to come to consider as we get older--What's it all about? Is this all there is? etc. Instead there was lots about creaky knees and whether I can get up off the floor without groaning. A bit of that sort of thing is true to life, but this was a bit too prevalent.
So, it was an okay book, but not one I'd necessarily recommend.
2 1/2 stars
The friends are so different it's difficult to see how their apparently life-long
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friendship has flourished. There's Adele, an aging and somewhat vain actress who now in her old age is having a difficult time finding parts. She is suffering financially, and relies on the kindness of her friends to get by. Jude is a practical, take-charge, officious, and somewhat overbearing restaurant owner. She is waiting to spend a week with her long-time married lover, and only in his presence does she feel alive. Wendy is a widowed former hippy and current college professor and well-known public intellectual. Nevertheless she cowers in the face of Jude's disapproval of her sloppiness. Against Jude's wishes she has brought her elderly dog Finn with her, a dog whose senility and physical ailments Wendy is refusing to acknowledge.I thought I would enjoy this book much more than I did. I thought that there was an overemphasis on the litany of crud these ladies had to go through in the laundry room, pantry, etc. I became a bit bored. No treasures here. And I read that the author did some research in order to write about older women and get into the heads of her characters. I was expecting lots of musing of the philosophical issues we tend to come to consider as we get older--What's it all about? Is this all there is? etc. Instead there was lots about creaky knees and whether I can get up off the floor without groaning. A bit of that sort of thing is true to life, but this was a bit too prevalent.
So, it was an okay book, but not one I'd necessarily recommend.
2 1/2 stars
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LibraryThing member Jacsun
Not every book is good for everyone. This is one of them. I liked the first few pages and after that, I was disengaged. Three friends get together at the house of another friend that died. There's also a dog that is mentioned - a lot - in the book. I was glad to get to the last page.
Awards
New South Wales Premier's Literary Award (Shortlist — 2021)
Australian Book Industry Awards (Shortlist — Literary Fiction — 2020)
Miles Franklin Literary Award (Longlist — 2020)
The Indie Book Award (Shortlist — Fiction — 2020)
Stella Prize (Shortlist — 2020)
Prime Minister's Literary Award (Shortlist — Fiction — 2020)