Jenny Offill

Last Things

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THE EXQUISITE DEBUT NOVEL FROM THE BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF DEPT. OF SPECULATIONChosen as a notable or best book of the year by the New York Times, Village Voice and GuardianTo eight-year-old Grace Davitt, her mother, Anna, is a puzzling yet wonderful mystery. This is a woman who has seen a sea serpent in the lake, who paints a timeline of the universe on the sewing-room wall, and who teaches her daughter a secret language which only they can speak. For Grace's father, however, the only truth is science, and increasingly he finds himself shut out by Anna as she draws Grace deeper and deeper into a strange world of myth and obsession.
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199 printed pages
Publication year
2016
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Quotes

  • b1440204843has quoted3 years ago
    I sat on the edge of the bathtub and watched my mother put on her face. Outside, the trees were breaking themselves into pieces. Ice tapped against the glass. My mother went to the window and rubbed away the steam. ‘Listen, Grace,’ she said, ‘I think someone’s speaking to us in code.’ I looked out the window. There was nothing but the dark trees to see. My mother tapped twice on the glass, then cupped a hand to her ear. For a long time she stood like that, waiting. Then she gave up and walked away. I wanted to ask her if she had really been a spy, but I was too afraid. If I told you that, I’d have to kill you, she said once.
    My mother held a finger to her lips. Loose lips sink ships, she liked to say. I watched her put her eyelashes on. If she touched them to my cheek, this meant a butterfly had kissed me.
    From my bedroom window, I watched as my parents struggled down the icy walk. My mother was wearing her mermaid dress, the one with the blue scales. My father had on his funer

    Me senté en el borde de la bañera y vi a mi madre ponerse la cara. Fuera, los árboles se rompían en pedazos. El hielo golpeaba el cristal. Mi madre se acercó a la ventana y frotó el vapor. "Escucha, Grace", dijo, "creo que alguien nos está hablando en clave". Miré por la ventana. No se veía nada más que los árboles oscuros. Mi madre dio dos golpecitos en el cristal y se llevó una mano a la oreja. Permaneció así mucho tiempo, esperando. Luego se rindió y se alejó. Quise preguntarle si realmente había sido una espía, pero tenía demasiado miedo. Si te lo dijera, tendría que matarte, dijo una vez.
    Mi madre se llevó un dedo a los labios. Los labios sueltos hunden los barcos, le gustaba decir. La veía ponerse las pestañas. Si las tocaba en mi mejilla, significaba que una mariposa me había besado.
    Desde la ventana de mi habitación, observé cómo mis padres bajaban con dificultad el paseo helado. Mi madre llevaba su vestido de sirena, el de las escamas azules. Mi padre llevaba su vestido de

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