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An Equal Stillness
 
 

An Equal Stillness (Hardcover)

by Francesca Kay (Author)
4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
RRP: £12.99
Price: £9.98 & this item Delivered FREE in the UK with Super Saver Delivery. See details and conditions
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Product details

  • Hardcover: 240 pages
  • Publisher: Weidenfeld & Nicolson; First Edition edition (29 Jan 2009)
  • Language English
  • ISBN-10: 0297855492
  • ISBN-13: 978-0297855491
  • Product Dimensions: 21.6 x 14 x 2.6 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 124,302 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Product Description

Review

'An Equal Stillness is pitch perfect. Kay describes Mallow's painting with an arresting intensity' (Eithne Farry DAILY MAIL )

'An enchanting life story... Exquisitely written: the descriptions of Jennet's work, paintings that never existed and the descriptions of colour are breathtaking.' (DAILY EXPRESS )

'it's the freshness of the prose, the insightfulness of the author, that makes this a very special book... A startlingly accomplished debut.' (newbooks magazine )

'a masterful portrait of a woman forging an unexpectedly dazzling career against the backdrop of familial duty' (EASY LIVING )

'Kay writes about art with a wonderful sensuality and relish' (THE TIMES )

'Kay's writing is beautifully intense' (FINANCIAL TIMES )

'a compelling, vivid portrait' (THE GUARDIAN )

'Francesca Kay's impressive first novel is a fictional biography... The descriptions of artworks are remarkable. Colour is evoked with amazing subtlety.' (THE INDEPENDENT )

'the most beautiful, accomplished debut I have read for a long time... It is a powerful novel by a supremely talented artist.' (Francesca Segal THE OBSERVER )

'the author successfully shares with us her delight in the world.' (DAILY TELEGRAPH )

'This is a story of genius amid domesticity that will resonate with readers on a fundamental level. We're thrilled to recommend this book and are excited to see what Francesca Kay does next.' (Mishal Husain Orange Chair of Judges, BBC World News presenter )

'Ms Kay has an unusual ability to ignite the imagination. A passion for art and a gift for depicting the landscape of paint are what make the book stand out.' (THE ECONOMIST )

'Francesca Kay has won this year's Orange Award for New Writers and a real star has stepped on to the stage... Lyrical, sensual, sharp - this is the most impressive contemporary novel I have read for years.' (A.N. Wilson READERS DIGEST )


Product Description

Jennet Mallow is born in Yorkshire in the 1920s but her interest in art and creativity alienates her from her family, her father who is a priest, her conventional sister and her emotionally stunted mother. Jennet moves to London in search of a more exciting life and finds it in her new environment and in the handsome and enigmatic figure of the painter David Heaton. When Jennet falls pregnant, her parents more or less force the two to marry. In the postwar austerity of the 1940s, the young couple struggles to make ends meet and Jennet finds that her home life is gradually eroding everything she has fought to achieve. Aware that David is becoming increasingly reliant on drink and tired of the dank and drab bedsit in which they live, Jennet suggests they move to Spain. There, the bright blue skies, warm air and sunlit beaches give the couple and their children a new lease of life. Jennet begins to paint again and an agent takes an interest in her work. But as Jennet's own career begins to take off, her relationship with David sours and the two enter a destructive spiral with tragic consequences. Written in the form of a biography, An Equal Stillness is an outstanding debut, breathtaking in the poise and beauty of its language and craft.

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Customer Reviews

6 Reviews
5 star:
 (5)
4 star:
 (1)
3 star:    (0)
2 star:    (0)
1 star:    (0)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
4.8 out of 5 stars (6 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars An Equal Stillness, 21 Jan 2009
By H. Heriz-Smith "heriz" (somerset) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
I love the title of this book, counterpoised against the more well-known phrase - "an equal music" - from one of Donne's sermons, suggesting that the novel's journey will be a journey from uncertainty in negotiating the world outside oneself - parents, lovers, children, friends, success, failure - towards inner equilibrium. The main character is an artist - reserved, self-effacing, discriminating and, of course, amazingly talented! Her story is told by another voice, one which is able to share the artist's vision and describe as through her eyes, what she loves to look at and paint, until word, colour object become miraculously interwoven, suggesting the very texture of her paintings. The book is radiant with the love of the language of colour - a vast palette of pigments and hues, a continuous search for the exact words to describe the ever-changing landscape of city, country, sky and sea. The book is absorbing and the kind of novel you keep reading til you reach the last page, knowing then that you will surely go back and read it again.
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13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Took my breath away, 17 Feb 2009
By Mary Reilly (Edinburgh) - See all my reviews
An Equal Stillness is quite simply one of the best debut novels I've read. When I saw it was a fictional biography I thought it might be dry, but, in the vividness of its language and piquancy of its emotional dilemmas this book really is anything but. You are with Jennet every step of the way, as she struggles through her destructive relationship with David, her subsequent affairs, her difficult experiences of motherhood and daughterhood, all while producing the most amazing - and amazingly described - art. And for someone who's never written a novel before to write so well took my breath away - it's such a moving and heartfelt book.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Beautifully realised, 23 May 2009
By Booklover (Cheltenham) - See all my reviews
This fictional biography of an artist is startlingly good. It describes the painter's life and artistic development in a very realistic way, and offers very illuminating reflections on the whole creative process. It also works very well as a novel - you want to know how Jennet's story develops and ends. But the most astonishing thing about it is that you can visualise the paintings that are described in such detail - these wholly imaginary works of art have a real presence and weight within the book. You believe in their beauty and integrity, and you truly believe that Jennet is a serious and significant artist. This is a powerful and moving book about a life lived for art.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars equal impressiveness
This thoroughly deserves the praise heaped on it. As others have said, the descriptions of paintings, and also the technical processes behind painting them, are brought off... Read more
Published 2 months ago by maryleopard

4.0 out of 5 stars Beautifully written
I kept having to remind myself that Jennet Mallow is a fictional character; because Francesca Kay describes her paintings so exquisitely. Read more
Published 3 months ago by booksetc

5.0 out of 5 stars an equak stillness - francesca kay
excellent book and apart from my intrinsic bias (the author and I are related!) very well written.

well packaged and arrived safe and sound, on time
Published 7 months ago by Brian Dominic D'Monte

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