Praise for "Aftermath ""[I] admire Cusk . . . for the gravity and ruthlessness of her self-examination. Much that is written these days about what are regretfully called 'relationships' feels overly processed, with emotions filtered bloodlessly through irony, or diverted into easy sentimentality. Cusk's book, on the other hand, is emotionally raw and deeply uncomfortable-making, while also being finely turned as a literary artifact. (Cusk can nail a simile like Gabby Douglas can execute a backflip). Cusk, admirably enough, is not afraid to take herself seriously." --Rebecca Mead, "The New Yorker ""[A] brilliant new memoir . . . As slim and revealing as a microscope slide."--Lisa Shea, "Elle ""Compelling . . . Affecting . . . [A] bravely unsympathetic memoir of marital dissolution . . . A restlessly erudite portrait of post-marital strife. The book's satisfactions lie in its cold-eyed probing of the "aftermath," which, as she tells us, is a second sowing after the initial harvest. And in its vivid use of image and metaphor . . . This book is a solace to anybody who has dwelt in post-familial wastes." --Liza Mundy, "San Francisco Chronicle ""Thrilling . . . There are riches buried like gold in the bitter picture she describes . . . An enormously talented writer." --Nan Goldberg, "The Boston Globe ""Striking . . . Startling . . . Unflinching . . . Bold, gripping, original and occasionally darkly funny." --"Kirkus Reviews "(starred review) "I read "A Life's Work" shortly after I, too, had had a child, and doing so was like finally letting go of a breath I had held for a year. Ostentatiously smart, fearless, the author displayed what almost seemed a compulsion to yank the threads of that impossibly pretty doily tatted by convention around motherhood . . . Her memoir of divorce displays the same ferocity of intellect, humor, and occasional bad mood . . . It is a testament to Cusk's talent that she was able to make something ofh
