July 12, 2023 - Anita Brookner’s - “A Friend from England”

Anita Brookner’s A Friend From England is a cautionary tale. Maybe you know him, or her, or them —- that one friend who keeps at a distance; the one who, at any moment, might boil over in a rage and judgment-filled lecture about your life-choices, as well as those life-choices of everyone around you.

Brookner’s 1989 novel explores the pseudo-friendship between thirty-something Rachel Kennedy and the twenty-seven-year old Hannah Livingston; who finds herself faced with at least three decisions: when to wed, who to wed, and what to do for work.

Even though Rachel isn’t that keene on getting to know Hannah —- and Hannah’s less than interested in spending time with Rachel, Hannah’s parents, who’ve helped Rachel with accounting for a bookstore that she runs — have invited Rachel —- a woman who has kept mostly to herself and lives alone —- into their family circle. They’ve made these efforts, at least in part, in hopes that Rachel can help their daughter navigate these impending decisions, and then in essence, launch.

The caution and hesitancy with which Rachel speaks parallels the deliberate and careful manner in which Brookner wrote this novel. Nearly every sentence is explored for its authenticity, then either confirmed and expounded upon — or retracted, and explained away.
For instance:

The weather put a stop to all my activities. Every evening I got into bed earlier and earlier. It was as if I were travelling backwards, back into childhood. I slept voraciously and was aware of dreaming copiously, although I always forgot my dreams as soon as I awoke. In any event, those dreams were of no consequence to me or of interest to anyone else.