After she wrote her award-winning novel, The Natural Way of Things, Wood decided she would write and lighter, more humorous novel next. And that she did with The Weekend.
Sharply observed and excruciatingly funny, The Weekend celebrates friendship and the realities of ageing. Four older women have a lifelong friendship of the best kind: loving, practical, frank and steadfast. But when Sylvie dies, the ground shifts dangerously for the remaining three. Can they survive together without her?
They are Jude, a once-famous restaurateur, Wendy, an acclaimed public intellectual, and Adele, a renowned actress now mostly out of work. Struggling to recall exactly why they’ve remained close all these years, the grieving women gather for three days over Christmas at Sylvie’s old beach house – not for festivities, but to clean the place out before it is sold.
Without Sylvie to maintain the group’s delicate equilibrium, frustrations build and painful memories press in. Fraying tempers, an elderly dog, unwelcome guests and too much wine collide in a storm that brings long-buried hurts to the surface – and threatens to sweep away their friendship for good. A perfect Christmas read.
About the author
Charlotte Wood has been described as ‘one of our most original and provocative writers’.
She is the author of six novels and two books of non-fiction. Her bestselling novel, The Natural Way of Things, won the 2016 Stella Prize, the Indie Book Award for Fiction, was joint winner of the Prime Minister’s Literary Award, as well as many others for this and previous works.
Charlotte lives in Sydney with her husband.
The Weekend by Charlotte Wood is on sale now in all good bookstores.
