Review: Moving by Jenny Eclair
At first glance, Moving isn't a book that I would immediately gravitate toward.
There is nothing immediate about the cover. I didn’t hurry towards it and want to jump right in with excitement. The title was quite bland, the kind that blended into the pastel background of the cover. That’s not to say that the marketing for the book wasn’t good – after all there is a reason why it is an R&J Book Club Read - but the cover and title were just rather ordinary. Other than that the subtle crack in the corner of the cover, it did not intrigue me like other novels have initially.
But, as I have discovered a number of times, and, as we're so frequently told, you should never judge a book by it's cover. And there's a reason why that is such a popular saying.
This novel is wonderful. So simple, yet so compelling and moving and raw and real. I loved the choice of character perspectives, not necessarily obvious perspectives for a story set around a girl's death at an Oxford University party, but perspectives that offered a really interesting insight into the tale. I liked the fact that we didn’t have the central character’s perspectives because it made the plot and the surrounding characters that more intriguing.
Moving initially follows the twice-widowed, elderly and forgetful Edwina who decides that she cannot cope with the sheer size and work involved in her house anymore so decides to up sticks and leave. At the start, we, and the estate agent, are given a tour of Edwina’s house which triggers a number of memories for her.
There was a rift in the family a long time before and the cracks never quite healed: two marriages, one ending with the sudden death of her first husband, her twins, a step-son she couldn’t seem to love – Lucas Spinner, a truck and a missing jewellery box. We learn that something devastating happened to Edwina. But nothing else is really told. Between Edwina’s forgetful narrative and the other details we, as readers, absorb, it’s not until later in the novel that we begin to piece the puzzle together.
We then move on to Fern Woolbright, a drama student in the prime of her life, who seems initially completely unconnected to Edwina. That is until she meets Edwina’s son and Rowena’s twin Charlie.
They get on smashingly, an instant intimate connection clearly visible though she is supposed to be in a serious relationship with an army officer back home. Her narrative progresses as she falls deeper and deeper in love with Charlie; she falls pregnant, uncertain as to who the father is and then one night suddenly changes everything.
The final perspective is of Lucas Spinner, Edwina’s stepson, who is now fifty-six and has come to visit his dying mother Barbara Spinner – a woman who did not handle the divorce of her husband who went off with Edwina very well at all. Lucas’s tale, similarly to Edwina’s, unravels when his return prompts memories from a photo album that his mother took to help her remember, when the dementia became too much. We follow Lucas’s life, discovering perhaps why he acted the way he did, why he seemed to dislike his step-siblings and step-mother so much.
The story ends with the Fern's daughter Sophie undergoing an ultra-sound scan. The question mark hanging over Sophie's parentage is regurtitated again as it is discovered there are two heartbeats appearing on the scan - she is pregnant with twins.
The novel was wonderful. Having read none of Eclair’s previous work I feel I am not at liberty to back up my opinion with backlist material, but if you’re looking for an easy, yet intriguing read, I would highly recommend. There are relatable characters that suit everyone and the words run off the page and into your head so effortlessly and easily. My first impression of Moving was very wrong and I am glad I opened it up and found what I did inside.