My Phantoms by Gwendoline Riley

After reading Gwendoline Riley's The Palm House and finishing it on May 6, I returned to Riley in the final week of last month and finished her book My Phantoms on June 30. As much as I enjoyed The Palm House, I liked My Phantoms even more.

It's hard to neatly describe why I find Riley's books so enjoyable and compulsively readable. There is very little action or plot twists--not that any of that matters much to me. It comes down to the sharply drawn characters and Riley's ability to notice and artfully describe the small details of ordinary life.

My Phantoms is narrated by Bridget "Bridge" Grant, a 40-something academic living in London with her partner, John. Bridget's parents, Lee and Helen (aka "Hen") divorced when Bridget was two years old. Bridget has an older sister, Michelle.

Early in the book, Bridget describes her and Michelle's awkward court-mandated visits with her father. Lee frequently picks on and bullies the girls. His behavior is frequently belittling. Even when he tries to express affection towards Bridget and Michelle, it is often cringeworthy, as when he coerces an actress into giving the girls an impromptu tour of a theater dressing room--The Everyman Theatre in Liverpool--prior to seeing a play. (Bridget has a precocious interest in Chekhov--and literature in general--which eventually leads to a career in academia).

The book is primarily focused on the relationship between Bridget and her mother Hen. The two have an often contentious relationship marred by misunderstandings and communication breakdowns, some of which is rather comical, albeit darkly comical. (Hen's text messaging habits are particularly amusing, particularly for anyone with a Boomer parent).

Without giving anything away, the final 1/4 of the book is the most moving portion of the novel, with a final paragraph that I'm still thinking about.

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