Description
Book SynopsisA jewel of a novel by New York Times-bestselling author Claire Messud When the Armstrong family moves from New York at the dawn of the 1970s, Australia feels, to Alice Armstrong, like the end of the earth. Residing in a grand manor on the glittering Sydney Harbour, her family finds their life has turned upside down. As she navigates this strange new world, Alice must weave an existence from its shimmering mirage.
Lies and self-deception are at the heart of this keenly observed story. This is a sharp, biting, and playful tale with a cast of unscrupulous characters adrift in a dream life of their own making. Written with the characteristic delicacy of touch, humor, and emotional insight that make Claire Messud one of our greatest writers.
“A novelist of unnerving talent.”
—The New York Times Book Review “[Messud is] among our greatest contemporary writers.”
—The New Yorker “A perfect frolic of a book, puffed on breezes of beauty and wit: it waltzes you through a little fear, a little darkness, and tips you out, refreshed and laughing, into the sun.”
—Helen Garner
Trade Review"Witty, arch and acutely observed, A Dream Life expertly captures the excruciating insecurities of class in our supposedly classless society." Geraldine Brooks, author, March and People of the Book
"A perfect frolic of a book, puffed on breezes of beauty and wit: it waltzes you through a little fear, a little darkness, and tips you out, refreshed and laughing, into the sun." Helen Garner, author, The Spare Room
"A novelist of unnerving talent." The New York Times on Claire Messud
"Among our greatest contemporary writers" The New Yorker on Claire Messud
"This strangely charming novella the focus is on family and class dynamics and the style and point of view are sweet and sharp by turns, like a Granny Smith apple." Kerryn Goldsworthy, The Sydney Morning Herald
