- Hardcover: 384 pages
- Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton Ltd (13 Mar 2006)
- ISBN-10: 0340839309
- ISBN-13: 978-0340839300
- Product Dimensions: 23.4 x 16 x 3.6 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 1,774,970 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Review
'Jessica Duchen's debut novel is captivating, imaginative and fascinating. As a musician and a mother, I recognized many of the scenarios and found the questions that were posed very poignant, both from a musical and personal perspective. The pace builds powerfully to a dramatic and ultimately very moving conclusion. Completely gripping!' -- Tasmin Little 'Adam and Sasha appear to have the perfect life - good jobs, a nice home, money and three perfect children. But as their marriage begins to unravel, their ballet-crazy daughter starts staving herself - and her parents are too preoccupied to notice. A haunting, heartbreaking novel.' -- Closer 'Liffy, the central character in Jessica Duchen's debut novel, is the teenage daughter of two career-driven parents living in an upmarket London suburb. As they struggle to make their former youthful ideals work amid the pressures of modern life, Liffy begins to shield herself mentally as her family decays around her by immersing herself in her passion - ballet. Rites of Spring draws on the image of a young girl dancing herself to death in Stravinsky's ballet to explore the impulse towards anorexia common in so many teenage girls today. Duchen paints a vivid and utterly bleak picture of modern family life, poignantly depicting Liffy's increased isolation as the people around her become so preoccupied and alienated from one another that one of the central characters, observing from a distance, wonders how people who are individually so bright, so intelligent, so nice, so creative, can collectively paper over all their problems. A sensitive and thought-provoking novel that will resona -- Femke Colborne, MUSO 'Jessica Duchen has crafted a riveting drama set within the arts world ... The neatly-composed plot charges to a climax as steadily as Ravel's Bolero, with Duchen capturing well the inner world of the pubescent girl and the London classical music scene. For fans of Joanna Trollope and Russian composers alike.' -- Classic FM Magazine 'In Jessica Duchen's novel, Sasha, a self-absorbed and self-righteous ex-dancer, is now the author of a social-commentary column and also appears on a TV arts-review show. Adam, who is a self-pitying, hard-left activist and former artist, works for an exploitative publisher. They have three children: rather repellent twin boys who reveal more likeable personalities away from their parents, and Liffy, who is an endearing 13-year old wannabe ballet-dancer who retreats into a fantasy inner-life that ultimately drags her into dangerous physical and psychological waters. Apart from three cats, most of the other characters are as unlikeable as Adam and Sasha, except for Sasha's cellist sister Lisa, whose low self-esteem and true heart makes her Liffy's only hope of understanding. As the family gradually begins to self-destruct and its members struggle towards self-realisation and a kind of redemption you'll either think 'there but for the grace of God' or, depending on your own background -- Barry Witherden, BBC Music Magazine, *****star review 'Jessica Duchen's debut novel is captivating, imaginative and fascinating. As a musician and a mother, I recognized many of the scenarios and found the questions that were posed very poignant, both from a musical and personal perspective. The pace builds powerfully to a dramatic and ultimately very moving conclusion. Completely gripping!' -- Tasmin Little 'Adam and Sasha appear to have the perfect life - good jobs, a nice home, money and three perfect children. But as their marriage begins to unravel, their ballet-crazy daughter starts staving herself - and her parents are too preoccupied to notice. A haunting, heartbreaking novel.' -- Closer 'A sensitive and thought-provoking novel that will resonate all the more for those with musical leanings.' -- Femke Colborne, MUSO 'Jessica Duchen has crafted a riveting drama set within the arts world ... The neatly-composed plot charges to a climax as steadily as Ravel's Bolero, with Duchen capturing well the inner world of the pubescent girl and the London classical music scene. For fans of Joanna Trollope and Russian composers alike.' -- Classic FM Magazine
Classic FM Magazine, June 2006
'A riveting drama... for fans of Joanna Trollope and Russian
composers alike.' --This text refers to the Paperback edition.
composers alike.' --This text refers to the Paperback edition.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
3 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
This supebly written story had me bawling my heart out. You live each momment. The author pulls you into the book from the word go, and I found it very hard to put down! Emotional, true to life, excellent storyline. A fantastic read.You wont be disappointed.
5 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I read this first in hardback; now I'm buying the paperback for all my friends' birthdays. I just couldn't put it down.
It's not really a book about anorexia, but about the sensitive balance of dynamics within the family and what can happen when they're out of kilter. Liffy, 13, is an adorable, vulnerable heroine. She and her pretentious mother, bereaved father, lovelorn aunt, and infuriating twin brothers feel like real people who are struggling to cope with what life throws at them, as we all do. And the cats are wonderful.
I found 'Rites of Spring' sensitive, beautifully written, compulsively readable and very moving. One review, quoted in the paperback, compared it to Joanna Trollope, but I'd say it's several cuts above, and incidentally you don't need to know anything about classical music to enjoy it. I hope we'll have lots more from this fascinating writer.
It's not really a book about anorexia, but about the sensitive balance of dynamics within the family and what can happen when they're out of kilter. Liffy, 13, is an adorable, vulnerable heroine. She and her pretentious mother, bereaved father, lovelorn aunt, and infuriating twin brothers feel like real people who are struggling to cope with what life throws at them, as we all do. And the cats are wonderful.
I found 'Rites of Spring' sensitive, beautifully written, compulsively readable and very moving. One review, quoted in the paperback, compared it to Joanna Trollope, but I'd say it's several cuts above, and incidentally you don't need to know anything about classical music to enjoy it. I hope we'll have lots more from this fascinating writer.
1 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Adam is having a mid-life crisis; he hates his (well paid) job, and, when he is offered a significant promotion he throws his dummy out of the pram and walks out. Unfortunately, he omits to tell his wife, Sasha, about his new jobless status. When she does find out, she throws him out, and Adam runs back home to daddy in Oxford for love and support.
The resultant strain, of trying to cope with a teenage daughter and eight year old twins, as well as write a weekly newspaper column and make fortnightly tv appearances - and desperately trying to find time for herself (oh, the poor dear!), propels Sasha into her own mid-life crisis. She embarks on an ill-considered affair, and discovers the illicit thrills of shoplifting.
Meanwhile, their teenage daughter, Liffy, is feeling increasingly lost and lonely; she is crying out for help but her parents are too absorbed in their own crises to notice.
This book has much to recommend it. The characterisations are good - you really feel you get to know the characters and can empathise with them even when they are at their most obnoxious. Liffy's teenage angst, and particularly the scenes where she interacts with school friends, is sympathetically handled and very readable. Moreover the writing style is engaging and easy to read, and the balance between the different plot elements is well done.
However, I feel the plot line was very thin and that the subject matter (which had quite a lot of promise) was handled in a way that managed to be both trite and stereotyped. I felt the ending was particularly weak - the ends were tied up far too neatly for credibility, and the last couple of pages deteriorated into a kind of "New Age" drivel.
Overall, an undemanding and enjoyable read, but not a great one.
NB: I might also add that I read this book with my book group, and of the five of us I was one of the most positive; one other person rated it 3*, one at 2* and two people only gave it 1*.
The resultant strain, of trying to cope with a teenage daughter and eight year old twins, as well as write a weekly newspaper column and make fortnightly tv appearances - and desperately trying to find time for herself (oh, the poor dear!), propels Sasha into her own mid-life crisis. She embarks on an ill-considered affair, and discovers the illicit thrills of shoplifting.
Meanwhile, their teenage daughter, Liffy, is feeling increasingly lost and lonely; she is crying out for help but her parents are too absorbed in their own crises to notice.
This book has much to recommend it. The characterisations are good - you really feel you get to know the characters and can empathise with them even when they are at their most obnoxious. Liffy's teenage angst, and particularly the scenes where she interacts with school friends, is sympathetically handled and very readable. Moreover the writing style is engaging and easy to read, and the balance between the different plot elements is well done.
However, I feel the plot line was very thin and that the subject matter (which had quite a lot of promise) was handled in a way that managed to be both trite and stereotyped. I felt the ending was particularly weak - the ends were tied up far too neatly for credibility, and the last couple of pages deteriorated into a kind of "New Age" drivel.
Overall, an undemanding and enjoyable read, but not a great one.
NB: I might also add that I read this book with my book group, and of the five of us I was one of the most positive; one other person rated it 3*, one at 2* and two people only gave it 1*.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
good, though with lots to remember
Again, another good read from jessica. The second i have read, the first alicias gift which is superb!
This, another family saga with its downs and issues. Read more
This, another family saga with its downs and issues. Read more
Published on 23 Nov 2009 by itchybeard
anorexia
There are better books about anorexia. However, as stated by other reviewers, this book isn't so much about anorexia as it is about the inner workings of a family, and this is... Read more
Published on 21 Feb 2009 by Sara
Amazing
I picked this book up on a whim and was absolutely entranced and drawn in from the beginning. Jessica is brilliant at explaining the tiny things that go on in family life,... Read more
Published on 4 Jan 2008 by Ms. Melanie J. Burrows
a real rollercoaster ride
Here's how I just explained to someone that this book is such a good read:
[1] because Jessica Duchen writes with truth, warmth and wit about instantly recognisable... Read more
[1] because Jessica Duchen writes with truth, warmth and wit about instantly recognisable... Read more
Published on 15 Dec 2007 by Francis Norton
Emma, Kingston
I absolutely loved this book. It is an excellent read - a really good story about family life with a twist. Read more
Published on 9 Nov 2006 by Mrs. Emma J. Rutherford
Dickens, Du Maurier, and now DUCHEN!
One of the most moving books I have ever read, this as an absolute must for this year. I loved it!
Published on 22 July 2006 by T. Saiten
*gasp*
I literally couldn't put this book down once I got past half way - which meant staying up until 4:30am to finih it!
It was just........amazing. Read more
It was just........amazing. Read more
Published on 10 July 2006 by E. J. Walton
a wonderful book
a novel about a time of passage - not only for the young girl growing up, but also for the other members of the family going through their own misadventures and coming out the... Read more
Published on 30 May 2006 by Laura C
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