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The Performance

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( 2,398 ratings, 419 reviews)
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
The Performance by Claire Thomas unfolds during a single day inside a Melbourne theatre. Three women attend a Beckett play and reflect on their lives amid personal and climate crises. As the play progresses, their inner worlds unfold, revealing intimate thoughts, fears, and connections.
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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

You might enjoy this book if you're intrigued by the interplay between art and life, and how personal dramas unfold in unexpected settings. The story weaves together the experiences of three women attending a play, each confronting deep personal issues and connections, offering a rich exploration of human emotion and resilience.

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Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

BARBARA JEFFERIS AWARD 2022 - HIGHLY COMMENDED

ABIA AUDIOBOOK OF THE YEAR 2022 - HIGHLY COMMENDED

LONGLISTED FOR THE MILES FRANKLIN LITERARY AWARD 2022

SHORTLISTED FOR THE NSW PREMIER'S LITERARY AWARDS CHRISTINA STEAD PRIZE FOR FICTION 2022

A SYDNEY MORNING HERALD 'MOST ANTICIPATED BOOK OF 2021'

"In this novel, the project of living is rendered with compassionate clarity." NEW YORK TIMES

"Thomas's imitation of wandering minds is flawless." WASHINGTON POST

"Claire Thomas has constructed, with graceful precision, a near-perfect wind-up music box of a novel." ARTS HUB

The false cold of the theatre makes it hard to imagine the heavy wind outside in the real world, the ash air pressing onto the city from the nearby hills where bushfires are taking hold.

The house lights lower.

The auditorium feels hopeful in the darkness.

As bushfires rage outside the city, three women watch a performance of a Beckett play.

Margot is a successful professor, preoccupied by her fraught relationship with her ailing husband. Ivy is a philanthropist with a troubled past, distracted by the snoring man beside her. Summer is a young theatre usher, anxious about the safety of her girlfriend in the fire zone.

As the performance unfolds, so does each woman's story. By the time the curtain falls, they will all have a new understanding of the world beyond the stage.

"How each woman interacts with and is altered by the play enacts beautifully the dialectical relationship between art and life." WEEKEND AUSTRALIAN

"Written with passion, The Performance is a brave book: unafraid of confronting the dissonances of living in a modern Australia." THE CONVERSATION

"Witty, affecting, brilliantly wise and original." Gail Jones, author of A GUIDE TO BERLIN, THE DEATH OF NOAH GLASS and OUR SHADOWS

"A potent meditation on the intensity of women's lives." Charlotte Wood, author of THE NATURAL WAY OF THINGS and THE WEEKEND

"Claire Thomas writes with a sure eye and knowing heart." Tony Birch, author of BLOOD, GHOST RIVER and THE WHITE GIRL

"I read from start to finish almost without looking up." Clare Bowditch, author of YOUR OWN KIND OF GIRL

"Read it as soon as you possibly can." Emily Bitto, author of THE STRAYS

"A tour de force. I can't recommend this too highly." Patrick Gale, author of A PLACE CALLED WINTER and TAKE NOTHING WITH YOU

"Quietly transformational" THE TIMES

"Inventive and rule-breaking...deliciously clever and self-aware" THE TIMES

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

The Performance by Claire Thomas has been praised for its thoughtful exploration of the intersecting lives of three women during a theatre performance. The setting creates a unique atmosphere that draws readers into the characters' introspections and personal tensions. Critical acclaim highlights Thomas's ability to weave profound themes of art, empathy, and human connection into the narrative.

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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9780733648397

Publisher: Hachette Australia

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 30 March 2022

Country: Australia

Imprint: Hachette Australia

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 20.0mm

Width: 130.0mm

Height: 198.0mm

Weight: 240g

Pages: 288

About the Author

Claire Thomas is a Melbourne writer. Her acclaimed first novel was Fugitive Blue, which won the Dobbie Award for women writers, and was longlisted for the Miles Franklin Literary Award.

Claire holds a PhD from the University of Melbourne where she taught literary studies and creative writing for many years.

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    From the internationally acclaimed, prize-winning author of The Performance and Fugitive Blue comes a remarkable work of literary fiction A woman arrives in Geneva, the first stop in a train journey through the country of her father's birth. She yearns to be outside timeβ€”untethered and aloneβ€”but she soon becomes immersed in the stories resonating all around her. She visits a...
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  • The Performance
    ABIA AUDIOBOOK OF THE YEAR 2022 - HIGHLY COMMENDED LONGLISTED FOR THE MILES FRANKLIN LITERARY AWARD 2022 SHORTLISTED FOR THE NSW PREMIER'S LITERARY AWARDS CHRISTINA STEAD PRIZE FOR FICTION 2022 A SYDNEY MORNING HERALD 'MOST ANTICIPATED BOOK OF 2021' 'In this novel, the project of living is rendered with compassionate clarity.' THE NEW YORK TIMES 'Thomas's imitation of wandering minds...
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