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Soon to be a major Channel 4 series, this novel is Weldon at her funniest, most perceptive, most topical.This is the story of women when they were of that unforgettable blossoming in 70s England of hope, freedom, equality, and sisterhood; and of what happened nextFay Weldons brand-new novel is everything and more that we expect from her a witty and controversial no-holds-barred portrait of four womens attempts and failures to create a new life.Theres the feminist publishing house, founded one balmy evening at sedate No 3, Chalcot Crescent, in a flurry of argument, peace-making and naked dancing.Theres noisy, darlingish, I am the only right-thinking feminist there is. Its all the others who are out of step.And Alice, the academic, the philosopher, the eventually Glastonbury witch.And Nancy, boring, sensible Nancy who is the only one with any business nous.And Stephanie the one who leaves her husband and children to embrace politics, men, other womenTheir stories are intertwined with 20 years of all our lives blissful, rage-filled, treacherous, redemptive. It is a novel, too, about money, power, and definitely Men.
A group of four women attempts to reshape their lives and society by founding a feminist publishing house in 1970s London, only to face the inevitable erosion of their ideals over the following two decades. The narrative follows the professional and personal trajectories of Stephanie, Alice, Nancy, and the self-appointed moral arbiter of the group, as they navigate the shifting landscape of gender politics, career ambition, and domestic upheaval. Through a multi-perspective lens, the story examines the friction between collective sisterhood and individual ego. The text functions as a social critique, tracking how the radical optimism of the seventies eventually collides with the pragmatic, often ruthless, realities of money and power.
This work is characterized by its biting wit and cynical observation of the feminist movement's evolution from the 1970s onward. The narrative structure suggests a deliberate attempt to dismantle the romanticized view of sisterhood by highlighting the petty rivalries and power struggles inherent in any collective endeavor. Readers likely encounter a prose style that is both fast-paced and intellectually demanding, favoring sharp social critique over sentimental resolution. The book serves as a mirror to the changing social mores of late twentieth-century England, focusing on the inevitable compromises that occur when idealism meets the marketplace.
Page Count:
224
Publication Date:
1997-01-01
Publisher:
Harper/Collins
ISBN-10:
0002256827
ISBN-13:
9780002256827
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