by Libby Purves (Author), Libby Purves (Author)
Alice McDonald has escaped all the obvious traps that lie in wait for women. She loves her job but enjoys her clever, spirited children too; her husband (Dan the New Man) does his share at home, and their London house is always full of friends. At her thirty-seventh birthday party, Alice reflects that their life has been a pretty successful production so far.
But love can be treacherous, and children are never quite what they seem. Two months later, far from home and alone on a desperate quest through the bleak lanes of Norfolk, Alice wonders how it fell apart so quickly. Were things ever as good as they seemed? Had the McDonalds really been happy, or was it no more than a stage illusion?
Format: Paperback
Pages: 288
Edition: Reprint
Publisher: Sceptre
Published: 16 Jan 1997
ISBN 10: 0340657987
ISBN 13: 9780340657980
Book Overview: A modern day family saga
Casting Off, Libby Purves' first novel was warmly received by the critics:
'Humour, humanity and relish for the enjoyably mundane' The Times
'A feel-good novel ... hilarious ... humorous ... fabulously incisive' Independent
'Ms Purves has the gift of tongues. A great fluency of expression, a real sense of narrative, a painfully acute perception but a forgiving nature - and there you have it - a born novelist' FAY WELDON