Weather by Jenny Offill

Weather

Jenny Offill

There's no real action or plot, but this short, funny book is a joy to read. The observations made by Lizzie, a New York Librarian, ring true, with comments about marriage, motherhood and the library’s clientele. All wrapped up in real, unsettling fears about climate change and politics. It feels a little like being privy to the inner workings of Lizzie’s mind, and I finished with the feeling of having made a new friend.

Extract
That night, Eli calls to us hysterically from the kitchen. There’s a mouse skull under the sink, he says. I give Ben a dark look. We are killing them secretly, I thought. Heavily, he rises to go in there. He gets down on his knees to look under the sink. But it is only a knob of ginger and we are saved.
Parallels
  • Misadventures by Sylvia Smith
  • Lying in Bed by Polly Samson