The Dark Flood Rises

Margaret Drabble invites us in this novel to look through her eyes at how sad, how funny and how absurd aging is. The main character Francesca Stubbs in her seventies, still active, racing around England writing reports on sheltered housing for the elderly and caring for her dying ex-husband has recently become somewhat obsessed with mortality. The novel follows Fran, her family and friends over a period of two months, jumping from character to character and from England to the Canary Islands. Each characters’ story adds to a beautifully written contemplation on what it is like to grow old. "This is a wisdom book, which makes it a rare thing indeed." Peter Craven in The Weekend Australian