In just over 150 pages, Cain spins a spare tale, or contour of a tale, about a woman learning to write. The real magic of Cain’s slim novel lies in its restraint and precision. As Vitória notes after watching a dance performance, “I enjoyed this coming together, this breaking apart. She weaves through time, occasionally interrupting her chronology with passages of Vitória’s writing or descriptions of her single life in the country. Indelicacy advances from one observation to the next, short chapter after short chapter-Cain structures her novel in bursts that last for between one and six pages. Through these characters, Cain sketches both opportunities and limitations available to women in this fictional universe.
Solange embraces sexual opportunism after Vitória stops sleeping with her husband. Dana finds quick success with her physical performance, while Vitória struggles with her intellectual endeavors.
Unlike Vitória, who chooses autonomy after abandoning a marriage of convenience, Antoinette elects to marry a poor man and start a family. SEE ALSO: Andrew Krivak’s ‘The Bear’ Imagines a Lush, Post-Apocalyptic EarthĪlong the way, we meet a trio of supporting characters: Antoinette, Vitória’s coworker at the museum Dana, a dancer Vitória meets in ballet class and Solange, maid to Vitória and her unnamed husband.
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