S MAGAZINE ★ 4 AUGUST 2019 55
- Name
Author
(Publisher, price) - Name
Author
(Publisher, price)
on what three
women want
is the subject of
intense debate.
For all Lisa’s
research, there’s
nothing academic
about this book. We
are immersed in the
stories of Lina,
Sloane and Maggie
in a style that
wouldn’t be out
of place in a novel.
There’s lushness
to the prose, an
intensity to the
emotions and an
intimacy to the (often
explicit) sex that
makes the reader
invest in the lives
of these women.
Maggie is the beating heart of the book,
seduced by her much older schoolteacher
when she was 17. She was vulnerable – both
parents were alcoholics – looking for love,
affection and attention and finding it in the
form of Mr Knodel, later voted North Dakota
Teacher of the Year. But he uses his classroom
to develop an intimacy with Maggie, snatching
moments of sexual contact between lessons,
although he didn’t want to sleep with her
before she was 18. Only after he ended their
affair did Maggie report him.
Lina is in a loveless marriage, her staid
husband Ed refuses to kiss her and she takes
a lover – her married high-school sweetheart- much to the opprobrium of her friends. They
have explosive sex but Lina is fully aware there
is no emotional commitment.
Sloane is beautiful and wealthy with a
seemingly perfect life but her husband gets his
kicks watching her have sex with other men of
his choosing.
The emotional lives of the women are messy,
contradictory and full of conflicting thoughts
and feelings as they attempt to discover how to
make their relationships work in a world that is
quick to pass judgment on their looks, actions
and morals. It is pretty depressing stuff, as this
flawed, fascinating and occasionally frustrating
book reveals. Female desire, it seems, is still
contentious, passion is political and all too
often women are left feeling powerless when
they attempt to find sexual pleasure.
Eithne Farry
BOOKS
To buy these books, see Bookshop on page 77Small wonders
Eithne Farry reviews interior design
books full of inspiration and ideas
Wabi-Sabi Home: Finding
Beauty In Imperfection
by Mark & Sally Bailey
(Ryland Peters & Small, £19.99)
Inspired by Wabi-Sabi, the
Japanese art of finding beauty in
the imperfect, the Baileys apply
its principles to interior design,
believing that old and worn is
more homely and personal.
Vintage fabrics are transformed- pretty linens are turned into
duvet covers and French tea
towels become cushion covers.
The wood of their chairs and
tables is left scored and
unvarnished, its natural grain
glowing through the patina of
age, while unusual ornaments
abound in this gorgeous book.
Tiny House: Live
Small, Dream Big
by Brent Heavener
(Ebury Press, £14.99)
Good things come in small
packages as this collection of
photographs proves. There are
houses tucked away in woods or
nestling in branches, converted
shipping containers with sea
views and mobile homes given a
modern twist with fireplaces and
streamlined kitchens. Taking up
little space, built on sustainable
principles and with the emphasis
on minimal clutter, they show a
way of living that is both stylish
and environmentally friendly.Small Space Style
by Sara Emslie
(Ryland Peters & Small, £19.99)
Stylist Sara Emslie offers
solutions for making the most of
compact interiors. Paint choices,
practical storage and carefully
chosen multipurpose furniture
can help create rooms that are
cosy and characterful. Dark
floorboards distract from low
ceilings, pale walls bounce light
around gloomy rooms and
uncluttered shelves make
meagre rooms look less
confined. With floor plans and
photos from a small house,
a minute flat and a pint-sized
beach retreat, Sara shows that
small can be beautiful.Shared Living: Interior Design
For Rented And Shared Spaces
by Emily Hutchinson
(Thames & Hudson, £19.95)
It can be tricky making rented
house shares feel homely but
Emily Hutchinson’s ideas,
gleaned from visiting resourceful
sharers in London, New York
and Sydney, show cramped
quarters can be warm and
welcoming. Budgets are tight, so
renters furnish flats with finds
from flea markets and charity
shops, brighten up dark corners
with light-enhancing mirrors and
give urban environments a green
feel with pot plants.Special offer for S Magazine readers
Get 10 per cent off The Boy Without Love by Simon Dawson
(rrp £8.99), plus postage and packaging. Call 01256 302699
or order online at mirrorbooks.co.uk. Offer code R10.
Warm, witty and honest, this book charts the humour, anger, confusion,
hurt, hate and desperation of a mother who can’t give love and tells the
story of the son who longs for it. The autobiography is set against the
backdrop of present day life on a farm where some animals also
mysteriously reject their young. Was it Simon’s innate unlovableness that
provoked the emotional damage his mother inflicted on him – or was it something that would
now be called postnatal depression?