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Swimming Lessons

Claire Fuller (Goodreads Author)

3.60 · Rating details · 15,397 ratings · 2,039 reviews

Ingrid Coleman writes letters to her husband, Gil, about the truth of their marriage, but instead of giving them to him, she hides them in the thousands of books he has collected over the years. When Ingrid has written her final letter she disappears from a Dorset beach, leaving behind her beautiful but dilapidated house by the sea, her husband, and her two daughters, Flor ...more

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Hardcover, 350 pages

Published February 7th 2017 by Tin House Books

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3.60 ·

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· 15,397 ratings · 2,039 reviews

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Oct 19, 2016 Emily May rated it really liked it

Shelves: arc, 2017, contemporary

“It’s difficult to live with both hope and grief.”

I didn't really know what to expect when going into Swimming Lessons. I haven't read the author's previous work - Our Endless Numbered Days - and I couldn't decide from the synopsis whether I was going to get myself into another thriller spawned by the Gone Girl craze, or a quiet contemporary like, say, Everything I Never Told You. I can say confidently now that it's more the latter.

Swimming Lessons is a character-driven novel about a family, a ...more

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Nov 16, 2016 Elyse Walters rated it it was amazing

Shelves: netgalley

Beautiful - Beautiful - BEAUTIFUL!!! I'm excited to share this book. It's another wonderful book I've read this year - with many terrific qualities!!!

......The gorgeous writing pulled me in immediately.
"Shielding her eyes, Flora look in the direction of the fading headlights: hundreds of creatures lay across the road, a handful of flapping feebly. They may have been baby mackerel. The wind pulled at the open door and Flora yanked it shut, climbed back over the driver seat, and sat staring. Sh ...more

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Jan 25, 2017 Diane S ☔ rated it really liked it

3.5 We first meet Flora when she is driving home through the night, a night it rains fishes. Having heard her father has had an accident, she is trying to get to him to make sure he is alright, her sister Nan is there, but Flora has been a daddy's girl, and needs to see for herself. Her mother presumed dead from drowning, though Flora who shared her love of swimming with her mother, never believed her mother had drowned.

I was drawn to this book because of the synopsis, a woman who hides letters ...more

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Feb 27, 2017 Hannah rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: arc, fiction

A few years ago somebody told me that in any relationship there is always an "Ernie" and a "Bert" (from Sesame Street, you know?). I am always the Bert and I used to not particularly like that - because being the Ernie is more fun and people tend to like the Ernie's of the world more. Even at 17, I was always the person to tell others to be more quiet at parties as to not disturb the neighbours, I was the one blowing out candles when the drunkest person in the room decided having candles would m A few years ago somebody told me that in any relationship there is always an "Ernie" and a "Bert" (from Sesame Street, you know?). I am always the Bert and I used to not particularly like that - because being the Ernie is more fun and people tend to like the Ernie's of the world more. Even at 17, I was always the person to tell others to be more quiet at parties as to not disturb the neighbours, I was the one blowing out candles when the drunkest person in the room decided having candles would make the party more intimate (that did happen on more parties I went to than you would believe), and teenagers tend to not appreciate this person at parties.

Why am I telling you this?

Because Flora - one of the main characters of this book and the focus of most chapters - is such an Ernie and her poor older sister had to take on the role of Bert when their mother disappeared. Flora drove me up the walls; she is so unbelievably self-centered and just refuses to grow up and then has the nerve to be annoyed at her sister for being responsible. I think that was not the emotional response I was supposed to take from this book and it made this at parts really difficult to read for me.

The story is told both in the present when Gil had an accident and his two daughters come to look after him and in the past through a series of letters that their mother Ingrid left for her husband to find in different books all over the house. I love stories framed in an unconventional manner, so this structure worked extremely well for me. I like how the two story lines were woven together and how Claire Fuller uses this device to show how memory can be deceiving.

Ingrid was by far my favourite characters and I so wanted her to be happy. She is also the most convincing, fully fleshed out character out of this family and I would have liked to spend even more time with her.

It is a pretty great book, but in the end, I couldn't ignore my emotional response to it. But this is pretty much a me thing and I am sure lots of others will love this book more than me.

___
I received an arc of this book curtesy of NetGalley and Penguin Books, Fig Tree in exchange for an honest review. Thanks for that! ...more

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Jan 03, 2017 Abby rated it it was ok

Shelves: 2017

There is no doubt that Fuller's prose is well-composed and vivid, but that did not redeem this book for me. Mostly, as the novel went on, it made me angry on Ingrid's behalf. Really angry. Both at her for not taking charge of her life and angry at every single other character for betraying her in some way. All the characters were also either grossly unlikeable or one-dimensional. And the womanizing, older, male college professor seducing a younger student is tiresome. Not a trope I can get behin ...more

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Jul 16, 2017 İntellecta rated it liked it · review of another edition

"Swimming lessons" by Claire Fuller tells the story of the marriage between the literary proffesor Gil Coleman and the 20-year-younger student Ingrid. The novel tells the story of mother and daughter in two stories in different times. Ingrid's story is told by Ingrid herself in a letter form, which she hides in His Library. A family history and a nice piece of literature. The end unfortunately disappointed me, here I would have at least a clear attitude wished.

PS: Also worth mentioning is the co ...more

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Dec 02, 2016 Margitte rated it really liked it

Shelves: 2016-read, 2017-releases, british-author, british-novels, drama, family-sagas, fiction, suspense, literary-novel

There's not much new in the plot of an older professor seducing a young student, who could have easily been his daughter and then through debauchery and a decadent lifestyle pushed her out of his life. She left him with two children, allegedly disappearing after a swim, never to be heard from again.

Ingrid Coleman was the realist, and Gil, her husband, the dreamer. He hanged onto imagination as a prerequisite for his existence, like a tick on a dog. But it is Ingrid, writing their life story in s ...more

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Apr 01, 2017 Eve rated it it was amazing

Shelves: read-2017, favorites

"Gil...This is what happened–the facts, the reality. I've always found that reality is so much more conventional than imagination. And over the years I've imagined far too many things..."–Ingrid

This is such a beautifully, heartbreaking book! It's also cathartic and hopeful. If I had known the premise of the book, I more than likely wouldn't have been too inclined to read it. Ingrid's letters to her husband kept me turning pages until the very end. What a dear, dear woman.

I won't spoil this revi ...more

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Apr 18, 2017 Tooter rated it it was amazing

5 Stars - Oh my, I loved this book. Didn't want it to end.

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Jan 28, 2017 Jenny (Reading Envy) rated it really liked it

Shelves: read2017, botm, reviewcopy

I had a review copy of this book, but still selected it as my pick when it came around as an option for Book of the Month. I read her earlier novel and liked it, and was curious to see what would happen next. This is a little more ordinary of a storyline, about a marriage, the effect of infidelity, the impact of a missing parent on a child even after they are adults. Some of the setting and characters made me think of Fates and Furies (anyone else?)

The novel alternates between chapters in the cu ...more

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Jan 27, 2017 Nicola rated it it was ok

Dull, undeveloped cookie-cutter characters, boring plot, poorly paced, and lacks tension. It was very readable, somehow, yet I could've stopped at any point without wondering what happened next. Disappointingly mediocre.

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Oct 14, 2016 PattyMacDotComma rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction-adult, calibre, kindle, mystery-crime-thriller, arc-netgalley-read, x-explicit-sex

4.5★
Wonderful writing, great story, interesting style. The book opens in 2004 with Flora rollicking in bed for two days with her current young man when she gets a call from her older sister to come “home” because Dad’s had an accident and is in hospital. Nanette (Nan) is 5 and a half years older and is a stable, reliable nurse.

We learn that their mother, Ingrid, disappeared 12 years ago.

Flora’s chapters are written third-person, as are her father’s. Dad is Gil Coleman, a former professor and no ...more

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Feb 06, 2018 Warda rated it liked it · review of another edition

Swimming Lessons was an extremely heavy read. Heavy in the sense of the plot, the characters, the grief they were facing due to the fact that the mother went missing and that there's been no closure for years. The only form of sense we have of the mother is through a series of letters she's left behind in different books for her husband. Thus, we get two perspectives: that of Ingrid (the mother) through those letters and her daughter, Flora who is in present time, looking after her father with h ...more

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Mar 14, 2017 Constance rated it did not like it

I was so mad after I read this book. The writing was good and moved well, but it was smoke and mirrors disguising the fact that the book was pointless.

Basically, the book alternates chapters between the present, in which daughter Flora comes home to care for sick/aging father Gil, and past, which tells the story of Ingrid (Flora's mother) and Gil's relationship (told through letters, which is usually, and is here, a lazy, flat, and overly-cute way to tell a narrative). Ingrid disappears on a swi ...more

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Mar 20, 2018 Elaine Mullane rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: 2018, favorites, readwomen, recommended

"Writing does not exist unless there is someone to read it, and each reader will take something different from a novel, from a chapter, from a line.

It is true that no two people read the same book; everyone takes something different from what they have read. One thing that is certain, however, is that beautiful writing is beautiful writing.

Swimming Lessons opens with Flora, dressing hurriedly while her boyfriend watches on, having received word from her older sister, Nan, that her father is in "Writing does not exist unless there is someone to read it, and each reader will take something different from a novel, from a chapter, from a line.

It is true that no two people read the same book; everyone takes something different from what they have read. One thing that is certain, however, is that beautiful writing is beautiful writing.

Swimming Lessons opens with Flora, dressing hurriedly while her boyfriend watches on, having received word from her older sister, Nan, that her father is in hospital. Flora hurries to catch a ferry back to the small island she grew up on. As she drives from the ferry to her childhood home in the dark and the rain, baby mackerel rain down and cover the road in front of her (a strange phenomenon that is never explained to us but stands as a symbol of the things in life we cannot know, raining down on us at unexpected moments). And it sets up the premise for the novel.

Flora's father is writer Gil Coleman, a man most famous for a bestselling and scandalous novel and a disappearing wife. Now aged and lonesome for his wife, Ingrid, he has taken a stumble from a seafront wall after believing he has seen her walking in the street. Worried for his state, Nan and Flora assemble in the house where they grew up, an old swimming pavilion, where the ghosts of the past lie between the pages of books that have been piled high in every room by their grieving father. From the point where she returns home, Flora’s narrative interweaves with letters written by her mother, revealing details of the story of her parents’ first meeting and subsequent life together. The letters have all been hidden within the pages of different books in the house: stories within stories, quite literally, and as the book moves on, the secrets start to emerge urgently from the pages.

Ingrid, a lover of the sea, disappeared 12 years before the book opens. We don't know what happened to her but soon understand that Flora doesn't believe she is dead. In the interposed chapters, we learn about Ingrid's life with Gil and her passing into motherhood; her young, naive infatuation with Gil; her departure from her old life and her movement into Gil's world, one humming with his desire for a big family and a house full of books and words. The back-and-forth style of narration can feel a little confusing at the start, in that the tone of Flora's and Ingrid's pieces feel similar, but it is never off-putting, and it certainly doesn't deter from the desire to find out when the mystery around Ingrid's disappearance and her relationship with Gil will be untangled.

Swimming Lessons is stunning for so many reasons. The writing is truly mesmerising; Claire Fuller creates characters with such depth and vivaciousness, and stories with such richness. It is a gentle book, with a perfect pace and subtle power, but it is so effective in capturing the wonder of human connection and communication. The poignancy in the realisation that we may never truly know the people we love the most is heart-wrenching, and the multifaceted layers in love and loss are presented masterfully.

A beautiful and moving story about family dynamics, disappearances and what people choose to believe. It is a vivid and sensitive portrayal of marriage, motherhood, sibling relationships and female friendships, as well as a compelling portrait of a woman trapped. It is beautifully evoked. The prose is arresting and the premise compelling; five very enthusiastic stars. ...more

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Nov 17, 2016 Jessica rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: novels, reviewed, jessicantdoit-blog

https://jessicantdoit.wordpress.com/2...

Swimming Lessons is the kind of book that makes me question every other book I've given five stars to. It's been a while since I've been left with so many feelings after reading a book. I was not prepared to be swept away by this wonderfully written novel and it's rich and complex characters. Events unfold little by little and make you want to read quicker and quicker to find out what happens. There are little nuggets in here that made my heart hurt when I https://jessicantdoit.wordpress.com/2...

Swimming Lessons is the kind of book that makes me question every other book I've given five stars to. It's been a while since I've been left with so many feelings after reading a book. I was not prepared to be swept away by this wonderfully written novel and it's rich and complex characters. Events unfold little by little and make you want to read quicker and quicker to find out what happens. There are little nuggets in here that made my heart hurt when I read them. A quiet read in many ways, but so thrilling.

At the start of the novel Gil, an elderly man, is looking through some second hand books when he sees a woman out in the rain. A woman who he believes to be his wife, Ingrid; a woman who has been missing, presumed drowned, for several years. Gil runs out into the rain, falls and injures himself whilst pursuing her. From this point on alternate chapters are narrated by two main characters; daughter, Flora, who goes home with her sister, Nan, to care for their father, and the second, Ingrid, who speaks to the reader through old letters written to Gil, that’s she’s left behind in books for him to find.

Although we only hear from Ingrid through the letters she writes, she was such a vivid character. I felt for her and I empathised with her internal struggles; her unfulfilled wants and needs, her discomfort with motherhood, and her tragic love for a man who did not deserve it. She was essential for me in this book, and I wouldn’t have loved it as much had she not been the woman she was.

Flora is also a wonderful character, yet more like her father in many ways. The only thing she seems to share with Ingrid is her love for swimming, and for the water. Quite oblivious to her fathers sordid past, she adores him, is outgoing and self assured, and has not experienced the more troublesome childhood that Nan has, who takes over mothering Flora as a teenager. Whilst Nan also cares for her father deeply, she is more aware of his true character, more cautious around him, and has a more reserved and careful character.

Younger Gil (whilst still being more than twenty years older than Ingrid), was a womaniser; a man at the centre of his own universe and with seemingly no regard for those around him. He churned up so much anger in me, I really haven’t felt such dislike for a character in a while. Whilst he certainly doesn’t make up for this in my eyes with his older self, he is still a changed man: a sick man, a broken man, a lonely man. His world view has shifted and he realises his mistakes. Whilst I could never forgive him for his treatment of Ingrid, he is at least a little bit closer to some form of redemption.

In terms of writing style, this is not a difficult book to read. Yet it is dense, multi layered, and i’m sure upon a reread would evoke even more feelings. I found myself completely invested in this unconventional family, and felt their internal struggles and pain right alongside them. Perhaps the ending could be seen as cliche by some, but I thought it was perfect. ...more

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Jan 19, 2017 Sarah rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: z2017, ebook, netgalley, fiction

This was a good read but it wasn't quite what I was expecting. I was expecting a mystery but I wouldn't really consider this to be a mystery novel. There's certainly a mystery in the story - Is Ingrid alive or dead and what happened to her that caused her disappearance? The whole story focuses on that mystery but predominantly this book is about people and different relationships. There were quite a few complex relationships at play in this book and every relationship was different. I really enj This was a good read but it wasn't quite what I was expecting. I was expecting a mystery but I wouldn't really consider this to be a mystery novel. There's certainly a mystery in the story - Is Ingrid alive or dead and what happened to her that caused her disappearance? The whole story focuses on that mystery but predominantly this book is about people and different relationships. There were quite a few complex relationships at play in this book and every relationship was different. I really enjoyed reading about all of the relationships especially the relationship between Ingrid & Gil. I also really enjoyed reading Ingrids letters. Her letters were insightful, heartbreaking, honest and I really liked how she put her letters in books that related to the specific topic of a letter. Her letters were by far my favourite thing about this book and they were the main reason why I liked this book so much. The present day story was alright but not as good as the letters.

This book has a very authentic feel to it. The characters are unlikeable for the most part but they feel so real. The book is also interesting because there are quite a few gaps in the story, Claire Fuller leaves things quite open-ended so the reader has to fill in the gaps. I really enjoyed the open-ended aspect BUT I did not enjoy the ending. Once I finished this book, I was shocked. I didn't know what to make of that ending because it was open to interpretation. I thought I missed something but I didn't. Once I had time to reflect on the ending, I didn't like it that much. I like getting closure and there were too many questions left unanswered in my opinion.

I would recommend this and I would read something else by Claire Fuller. Her writing is pleasant and it flows very nicely. She was very subtle with her hints so it wasn't a predictable read.

*I received a copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Writing does not exist unless there is someone to read it, and each reader will take something different from a novel, from a chapter, from a line." ...more

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Jan 02, 2017 Mackey rated it it was amazing

Shelves: favorites, my-reviews, domestic-thriller-noir, fiction-general

Swimming Lessons is the book that taught me never to read reviews but to go with my own gut instinct regarding a book. That said...I'm writing a review anyway! I was led to believe that this was mystery and it's not, not really. Most savvy readers will figure out what has happened to Ingrid long before the ending of the book. What it is, instead, is a marvelously and beautifully written tale of two people who loved each other madly but who never should have married. If you're old enough to remem ...more

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Jan 01, 2017 Jen rated it it was amazing

Shelves: advance-reader-copies

I got to read an advance copy through Book of the Month Club. What a fabulous book! One of the best I've read in a long time. Very, very well written. Beautiful, creative language and phrasing. The author lets readers use their brains, instead of spelling everything out for them. The reader must pause and think from time to time, which I appreciate. The story is compelling and brilliantly told. I couldn't put the book down. So many surprises. I'm so thrilled that I read it! Looking forward to mo ...more

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Mar 29, 2017 Resh (The Book Satchel) rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: 5-stars, favorites, published-in-2107, read-in-2017, literary-fiction

Told through a series of letters that Ingrid leaves for her husband before her disappearance , Swimming Lessons, dissects a marriage and a woman's life. This is an absolute favourite read this year and if you are someone who has time for very few books, make sure you add it to the list.

What to expect?
- engaging and suspenseful plot
- excellent writing
- occasional symbolisms
- detailed character sketches
- a bit of sarcasm
- clever structure that alternates between past and present
- LOTS of scenes th ...more

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Sep 23, 2017 Paula Kalin rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Recommended to Paula by: Tooter

Shelves: mystery, contemporary, published-2017, literary-fiction, e-book, read-in-2017

Swimming Lessons takes you on a journey through a bad marriage. A professor, Gil, and his student, Ingrid, marry for all the wrong reasons. What’s beautiful about this book is the letters Ingrid writes to her husband, but never gives to him. Instead she hides them throughout the house amongst his over abundant book collection. We get to read these beautifully written letters as the book progresses and find out about Gil’s infidelities and Ingrid’s disappearance.

3.5 stars rounded up to 4 as the ...more

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Jan 01, 2017 Claire McAlpine rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction

Swimming Lessons is an evocative, thought-provoking novel that begins with an intriguing mystery, evolving into melancholy as the events of Ingrid's marriage, the wife of Gil and mother of two young girls who disappeared 12 years before, are revealed.

The novel begins with Gil inside a second hand bookstore, having found a scrap of paper within a books' pages, moving closer to the window to try and read it. It is a letter dated 2 July 1992, which his attention is diverted from when he glances ou Swimming Lessons is an evocative, thought-provoking novel that begins with an intriguing mystery, evolving into melancholy as the events of Ingrid's marriage, the wife of Gil and mother of two young girls who disappeared 12 years before, are revealed.

The novel begins with Gil inside a second hand bookstore, having found a scrap of paper within a books' pages, moving closer to the window to try and read it. It is a letter dated 2 July 1992, which his attention is diverted from when he glances out the window and sees a woman in a coat who he believes is Ingrid, missing, presumed drowned for twelve years.

When chapter two begins with a letter addressed to Gil from his wife dated 2nd June 1992, a quick scan ahead reveals the novels pattern, alternate chapters, one set in the present around Gil and his daughters Flora and Nan, the other a chronological revelation of the letters his wife wrote to him over the month before she disappeared, each of them placed within one of the many books that were on the shelves of their home. And now here is is having just discovered one within the pages of a book in the local second hand bookshop. Quite an extraordinary and brilliant concept, it opens the novel with the maximum intrigue and desire to know what went on between these two.

After Gil's sighting, events bring the family together, highlighting their similarities and differences, exposing various family secrets and lies and all the while, each letter like a dripping tap, one by one revealing more of the relationship between Ingrid, the young Norwegian university student and Gil, her literature professor and the very different path her life would take once their lives intertwinded. The letter's are her story of a marriage, told to him (or perhaps to us the reader) as if he were an outsider, even though much of the dialogue she writes is his.

Dear Gil, Of course I couldn't write the story of a marriage in one letter. It was always going to to take longer. After I finished my first letter I meant to send it straight away. I found an envelope from an old electricity bill in the kitchen table drawer, and thought I'd walk to the postbox as the sun came up before I could change my mind. But perched on the arm of the sofa in the dark with the pen in my hand there was a noise from the girl's room (the squeak of bedsprings , the creak of the door), and without thinking I grabbed a book from the nearest shelf, shoved the letter inside and pushed it back into place.

Ingrid's story focuses on the marriage, without ever straying into her past, her home country, her own ambitions or desires. Those omissions create a presence that is never mentioned, they weigh on the reader, who on reading begins to feel the futility of her existence, she is isolated, without friends or family and struggling as a mother, she has forsaken all on a whim, fulfilling desires of a man whose star in decline, while hers will be extinguished before it has a chance.

Swimming Lessons is an incredibly accomplished novel with well drawn characters, including that of 'the marriage,' perhaps the chief protagonist itself, as the letters reveal more of 'the marriage' than of Ingrid herself.

It is something of an homage to books, readers and writing as they are all given important roles in providing clues and holding secrets of this marriage.

It is a book that invites discussion and would be a provocative novel for a bookclub, there is so much that invites discussion and would likely bring out quite different points of view.

Intriguingly, my copy of the book also had something old slipped between the covers, not a letter, but an old black and white photograph of 'The Lake', Alexander Park, yet another intrigue within the intrigue, I'm still wondering where that came from and whose handwriting is on the back and what story that photo could tall, if it could give up more than just a still, lifeless image.

Highly Recommended.

...more

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Mar 13, 2018 Dannii Elle rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: mysterious-miasmas

I went into this expecting a thriller and hoping for suspense. This was duly received, but there was also a lot more compacted into this than I had originally anticipated. Yes, there was a mysterious story-line, but the heart of the narrative dwelt on more familial and emotional topics and a lot of what occurred were outside of this genre's usual confines.

What was delivered far surpassed my expectations, making this a top contender for favourite read of the year. Perhaps it is too soon in the ye ...more

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Feb 25, 2017 Jennifer Blankfein rated it really liked it

A beautifully written story about a flawed family who's memories and hopes over time get confused with reality. Ingrid, a college student, and Gil, her professor, have an unconventional love affair leading to pregnancy. This forces Ingrid to give up her academic goals in order to marry Gil and raise her two daughters, Flora and Nan. Gil's primary focus is writing and all his family responsibilities are neglected while his relationships go unnurtured. During the couples years together, Ingrid wri A beautifully written story about a flawed family who's memories and hopes over time get confused with reality. Ingrid, a college student, and Gil, her professor, have an unconventional love affair leading to pregnancy. This forces Ingrid to give up her academic goals in order to marry Gil and raise her two daughters, Flora and Nan. Gil's primary focus is writing and all his family responsibilities are neglected while his relationships go unnurtured. During the couples years together, Ingrid writes letters to Gil about how she is feeling about motherhood, their marriage, and what she discovers about him, but instead of giving him the letters she hides them in his books. Then one day she is gone. Did she drown like many are saying or did she run away from the life she had with Gil and her young daughters?

Years later the daughters return home to take care of Gil who has been in an accident. He has fallen while chasing a woman he thinks is his wife, Ingrid. One daughter insists he was wrong and going senile while the other is open to the possibility of her mother miraculously being alive. There was never any proof of death and when the girls were younger Gil had said "It is difficult to live with both hope and grief," she may be waiting for us when we get home, or, she's dead. "A balancing act." And later on in age he questioned whether it is better to live with imagination and hope or to know the truth. Ultimately he told his daughters it is not good to "have an imagination which is more vivid, wilder, than real life".
Gil was the proclaimed writer yet he only wrote one book, which Ingrid spawned and dictated to him. She wrote all the letters to him expressing her feelings and recounting their courtship and marriage. He was a dreamer, a philanderer and a collector of books with writings in the margins. His interest was in the handwritten notes; they told him about the reader. He said, "Without readers there is no point in books, and therefore they are as important as the author, perhaps more important." Ingrid gave up her hopes and dreams and struggled with marriage and being a mother and Gil's lack of success as a writer, husband and father made for a heartbreaking story.
Author Claire Fuller delves into love, a dysfunctional marriage, and contemplates the value of truth and living with unrealistic hope. The complex characters deal with their own selective memories and ambiguous loss where there is no closure. Swimming Lessons was an engrossing, thought-provoking novel. ...more

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Dec 19, 2016 Anastasiya rated it it was ok

Shelves: 2016

I was really excited to receive this book through the Book of the Month club subscription service. I had a choice of five books, with brief descriptions of the plot, and I selected Swimming Lessons based on the description. It sounded like a wonderful whimsical journey in time - a woman communicating to her husband across time through letters hidden around the house.

What it turned out to be is a trope-filled run-of-the-mill bland fiction. There is no communication across time, there is just your ...more

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Mar 07, 2017 Neyly rated it it was ok

Much to like about Swimming Lessons and even more to dislike.

Pros:
*Fuller's way with words.

Cons::
*I just spent four days with unlikeable characters:

Ingrid: Wife and passive doormat.

Gil: Husband who betrays Ingrid et al in multiple ways (though I might have betrayed Ingrid myself).

Flora: Daughter - strange. Affected by her mother's disappearance. Well, yeah, but strange before that also.

Nan: Older daughter - caretaker of the family because she has to be but other than that, nothing.

Richard: Flo ...more

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Jun 12, 2016 Anmiryam rated it it was amazing

So it took a long time for me to come back and actually post the review I wrote way back in the spring when I first read Claire's book! But here is a nicely edited* version thanks to the good folks at the ABA who used it (after cleaning up the messy stilted language) for February's Indie Next flyer:

“With Swimming Lessons, Claire Fuller confirms her place as a writer of exceptional insight and warmth. This tale of a marriage, of a family, and especially of children bearing the brunt of the fallou ...more

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Nov 13, 2016 Kirsty rated it it was amazing

Shelves: kindle, november-2016, favourites

I very much enjoyed Fuller's first novel, Our Endless Numbered Days, and was very much looking forward to her second effort, Swimming Lessons. I am pleased to report that I enjoyed it even more than her debut. The plot very much appealed to me, and it was compelling from the outset.

Ingrid's voice is rich and distinct; she has such agency. The inclusion of her letters allows her to be present within the story despite not being visible in the physical world. Each of the backstories which Fuller h ...more

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Mar 08, 2017 Rebecca rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: newbury-library, bibliophiles-delight, writers-and-writing, magic-realism, best-of-2017, other-giveaway-win

(Nearly 4.5) “It’s about believing two opposing ideas in your head at the same time: hope and grief. Human beings do it all the time.” This isn’t a happy family story. It’s full of betrayals and sadness, of failures to connect and communicate. Yet it’s beautifully written, with all its scenes and dialogue just right, and it’s pulsing with emotion.

Fuller manages her complex structure very well: in the 1990s, Ingrid is writing letters (hidden in relevant books) to narrate the start of her life wit ...more

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Jan 14, 2017 Karen rated it really liked it

Ingrid has written multiple secret letters to her husband which she hides in some of the many books he has collected instead of facing him directly with troubles of their marriage. An interesting concept. Ingrid chooses each book wisely. And then she disappears. The easter eggs included by the author after revealing each letter was a bonus and so clever. In fact, I liked the letters even better than the surrounding story which is also very good. I got caught up in the mystery of Ingrid’s disappe ...more

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About Claire Fuller

Claire Fuller

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Claire Fuller trained as a sculptor before working in marketing for many years. In 2013 she completed an MA in Creative Writing, and wrote her first novel, Our Endless Numbered Days. It was published in the UK by Penguin, in the US by Tin House, in Canada by House of Anansi and bought for translation in 15 other countries. Our Endless Numbered Days won the 2015 Desmond Elliott prize.

Claire's seco ...more