What Does it Feel Like?
sophie’s introduction
What Does It Feel Like? is fiction, but it is my most autobiographical work to date. Eve’s story is my story. Why did I write such a personal book? I have always processed my life through writing. Hiding behind my fictional characters, I have always turned my own life into a narrative. It is my version of therapy, maybe. Writing is my happy place, and writing this book, although tough going at times, was immensely satisfying and therapeutic for me.
synopsis
Eve is a successful novelist who wakes up one day in a hospital bed with no memory of how she got there. Her husband, never far from her side, explains that she has had an operation to remove the large, malignant tumour growing in her brain.
As Eve learns to walk, talk, and write again — and as she wrestles with her diagnosis, and how and when to explain it to her beloved children — she begins to recall what’s most important to her: long walks with her husband’s hand clasped firmly around her own, family game nights and always buying that dress when she sees it.
Recounted in brief anecdotes, each one is an attempt to answer the type of impossible questions recognizable to anyone navigating the labyrinth of grief. This extraordinary novella is a celebration of life, shot through with warmth and humour – it will both break your heart and put it back together again.
******
‘I laughed. And I cried. And then I thought about the meaning of life. A jewel of a book.’ JOJO MOYES
‘The bravest book you’ll read all year.’ JODI PICOULT
‘I was gripped and moved and I loved every word.’ LISA JEWELL
‘A beautiful love story and a glowing beacon of hope.’ JENNY COLGAN
extract
audio extract
goodreads reviews
media reviews
buy the book now
your country:
choose format:
choose format:
choose format:
you may also like
