A History of Forgetting

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Description

A funny and intensely moving pilgrimage into the dark heart of the twentieth century.

Empathy is a luxury few people can afford. Malcolm, an ageing hairdresser whose love for his Alzheimers-victim lover is fading fast, is too oppressed by his domestic life to notice the world outside. Alison, his colleague, is blithely innocent: she believes that hairdressing brings happiness. Both are in their own way blind, until a colleague s neo-fascist murder unites them on an emotional journey - to Auschwitz, where they are forced to confront the suffering of others, and to face the possibility of life.

Unexpectedly witty, devastatingly frank, this is a brave and extraordinarily enjoyable novel by an author hailed as one of Canada s best new writers.

Reviews

'[A] dark and witty exploration of love and loss' Independent on Sunday

'[An] arresting first novel...Adderson writes with a rare understanding of human frailty' The Times

'A moving, marvellous book' Eve

,Intelligent and assured' Independent

'[A] funny, sensitive, polished novel' Jewish Chronicle

,A beautiful novel...a dramatic read...what makes this book a gem is the lyrical prose of the author... this book draws the reader in from the first page... this a gentle story which gradually turns into a novel of great depth, leaving the reader to mull over the issues it raises long after the cover has been closed for the last time' Daily Express

''Astonishingly good...raw, beautifully written, this is...an author whose talent will only increase with time' Canada Post

Author Bio

Caroline Adderson's first collection of stories, BAD IMAGININGS, was shortlisted for several major awards, and won the Ethel Wilson Fiction prize, for which her debut novel, A HISTORY OF FORGETTING is also shortlisted. She lives in Vancouver, Canada.