Spring Books & A Review
Reviewing Second Place by Rachel Cusk and a list of nature based spring books.
Happy Easter to those of you who celebrate.
This week I finished Second Place by Rachel Cusk. It’s my first Rachel Cusk novel and it will definitely not be my last. In fact, I now want to read everything she’s written.
Second Place is not the story I really thought it was. Fair warning, this review may contain a bit of spoiling but I don’t think so. I guess it depends on how much you like to know before you read a book. The synopsis describes it as this:
“A woman invites a famous artist to use her guesthouse in the remote coastal landscape where she lives with her family. Powerfully drawn to his paintings, she believes his vision might penetrate the mystery at the center of her life. But as a long, dry summer sets in, his provocative presence itself becomes an enigma—and disrupts the calm of her secluded household.
Second Place, Rachel Cusk’s electrifying new novel, is a study of female fate and male privilege, the geometries of human relationships, and the moral questions that animate our lives. It reminds us of art’s capacity to uplift—and to destroy.”
Diving in I thought the book would be about people in their 20’s or 30’s and perhaps her enchantment with the painter and her feelings requiring her to question her life choices and what she really wants.
It wasn’t.
Recap
The book is written by the main character, M, to her confidante, Jeffers, retelling the events of this time so it reads like a letter.
It’s the story of a woman who I believe is in her 50’s and her husband who live in a remote location along a marshy area. When they first moved in it was overgrown and while clearing all the brush they found a “second place”. A little dilapidated house that they fixed up and decided to use as a second place for guests, long term and short.
During this time she became enamored with some paintings by a painter called L.
She would write to L as he traveled the world and tell him about her second place that he could come and stay in because she’d like to see how he paints the area through his creative eyes. I believe L is in his 60’s. Eventually, after years it seems, L finally agrees to come to the second place. M didn’t know when he’d show up but one day he did by surprise along with a younger woman almost the same age as M’s adult daughter who also comes to stay for a while and brings an older man who I find irrelevant.
So, not to rewrite the story for you and I don’t want to spoil anything but what plays out is that L is a psychopath imo. He’s one of those narcissistic artists that’s off in his own world and he very much will do what he wants and disregard others, even on their property.
What I find interesting, and what becomes apparent, is that she should’ve kicked him out shortly after he arrived due to his awful behavior.
But she didn’t and I believe it’s because, for some reason in L, she was searching for approval.
If a child is constantly ignored and shut down with their requests, they tend to become adults always seeking approval in others.
I feel like M was like this and there was really no reason to seek it out in L. L seemed to be on to her and eventually painted portraits of everyone around them except for her, purposely telling her that he couldn’t get inspired by her, which of course pierced her ego.
It led to M questioning her femininity and purpose as an older woman. It was like someone dangling cheese in front of a mouse.
Eventually things turned much worse before she finally rids him of their life in the end.
Thoughts
What I found to be the most striking aspect of this novel was the writing itself. Rachel Cusk has a brilliant way with words and language. It reads as though she’s recounting real life events and not a fictional tale. Her detail and depth of characters was wonderful to read. If you enjoy complex characters I really think you’d like this book.
As for the actual story. I don’t know that I recapped it in a way that might sell you the book but it was a twisted, dark tale of a woman looking outside of herself for fulfillment and having it really affect her mental health.
On reflection, I’m not really sure what she was hoping to get out of his visit to the second place. I know she expected him to come alone and paint the landscape. Maybe she wanted a deep connection with an artist and to become his muse. Maybe she just wanted something eventful to happen in her otherwise quiet life. I really can’t say. If you’ve read it, I’d be interested in your thoughts on it.
Conclusion
Overall, I think this was a brilliant book through the writing alone. It’s a peculiar and unsettling story that finds you pondering the meaning of it all. It’s that book you finish and set down and then stare into space for 10 minutes thinking about what you just read. I highly recommend it. I’m not sure which book of Cusk’s I’ll be reading next but I’m looking forward to diving into more of her work. Her writing style is truly unique and I now get the cult following. I’d love to see this made into a film.
Shifting
Now that we’re into the spring and summer months, my reading habits generally shift to more nature based books in both fiction and non-fiction.
Right now I’m currently reading Journal of a Solitude which is about May Sarton’s time spent living alone in a house with a lush garden. She usually starts her journal entries with the weather and what’s happening out her window. There are also photos and it’s a lovely read so far. It’s inspiring me to journal more about the seasonal changes around me.
I’ve also started my re-read of Walden by Thoreau. My copy also has Civil Disobedience within the same book. I feel like this is the book to read whenever you need recentered. When you feel like you’ve gone too far into society’s hustle culture or you’re feeling frazzled. Thoreau can bring you home.
So, I thought I’d compile a little list for you of various books for the coming months if you’re also interested in seasonal reading with an appreciation of the natural world.
Spring Books:
Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer
Gathering Moss by Robin Wall Kimmerer
Devotions by Mary Oliver
The Peace of Wild Things by Wendell Berry
Journal of a Solitude by May Sarton
Walden by Henry David Thoreau
The Oak Papers by James Canton
A Circle of Quiet by Madeleine L’Engle
Forest Bathing: How Trees Can Help You Find Health & Happiness by Dr. Qing Li
The Hidden Life of Trees by Peter Wohlleben
Leaves of Grass by Walt Whitman
Seeing Silence: The Beauty of the World’s Most Quiet Places by Pete McBride
Walking by Henry David Thoreau
Regenerative Business: How to Align Your Business with Nature for More Abundance, Fulfillment, and Impact by Samantha Garcia (on my TBR)
Church of the Wild: How Nature Invites Us into the Sacred by Victoria Loorz (this is also on my TBR)
Have you read any of these books? Do you have any to recommend?
“We breathe air exhaled from trees whose leaves are made of starlight… Our veins echo the patterns of rivers, branches, and root systems. We are not a part of Nature. We are Nature.” -Marysia Miernowska
Have a wonderful week.
x,
Courtney