This book had some rave reviews so I thought I'd try it. A famous poet, his wife, their teenage daughter and another couple, vacation in a villa in the south of France. Upon arrival they find a beautiful naked woman swimming in their pool and offer her a room in their villa. The opening had me curious ... but I found the characters uninteresting, depressing, and selfish. Maybe I missed something or should have done a closer read or more likely this just wasn't a book for me. ( )

Shortlisted for the Booker, displaying a unique style, set in a sunny southern France in the mid-1990s. This is indeed a haunting exploration of loss and longing, in which a married poet of national acclaim, commits his umpteenth adultery with a young teasing girl, who invites herself in the holiday home of the two married couples.

Kitty makes her appearance in the opening moves, drifting in the pool (making the new visitors wonder whether she has drowned). The wife is numbed, both by her poet husband’s many affairs and her own experience as a war reporter. Joe feels caught in his own web of guilt, that was originally triggered by the Shoah (his parents were abducted to the camps; he himself managed somehow to escape). Kitty Finch, the red-haired girl (aka Kitty Ket), invites herself and ‘guides’ the 14 year old daughter Nina after her first menstrual experience. But she also teases Joe. She basically says she was sent to save him. Kitty herself has a troubled history of being abducted to an asylum (receiving shock treatment). But not even Kitty can save Joe. It ends with him in the pool, bullet in his body. This novel is brief but incredibly layered, saturated with many allegories and hints. Levy is a unique but very capable writer. ( )

Let’s face it, as much as I may want Summer to be over, it isn’t. And if that’s the reality I can’t think of anything better than finally reading ‘Swimming Home’ by Deborah Levy. It’s definitely full of Summer heat and a palpable setting. I loved this one — but I knew I would.

Unsettling, tense, subtle in its execution and so intriguing I had a blast reading this slim little novel. Deborah Levy is such a great writer, I love the way she explores themes of marriage, depression, life and obsession with taut writing and vivid descriptions.

it’s July 1994, in the South of France, and a couple (journalist and poet) are staying with their young teenage daughter and another couple in a villa. Upon arrival they realize there’s been a mix up with scheduling and a young woman, Kitty, is there — swimming naked in the pool. The wife asks her to stay…

I won’t say more… just enjoy the storytelling of the incredible Deborah Levy, great for Summer reading. ( )

This author definitely has a distinctive voice, and I'm pretty sure it's not going to be everyone's cup of tea, but it is mine. Like the other Levy book I've read, this book has a slow, dark build up, rife with symbolism and unstated implications.

This dark story takes place in France. Two couples are renting a villa. One couple has a 14 year old daughter and a shaky marriage. The wheels are set in motion when a female acquaintance of the villa's owner and friend of the caretaker shows up with no where to stay. The book is primarily a psychological one, focused on the interplay of these characters. The themes in this book - the weakness underlying the parent/child relationship, mental illness and depression - are the same that are later echoed in Levy's other Man Booker prize nominee, the aforementioned [b:Hot Milk|26883528|Hot Milk|Deborah Levy|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1461535043s/26883528.jpg|46932640].

Even though this book is short, it reads slowly and it also feels almost more like a short story . . .the reader is left to do a lot of the work in terms of envisioning who these characters truly are . . .and the ending packs a punch. ( )

I didn't really like this book. Found it rather depressing and a bit pretentious. Although I agree with most reviewer's content (printed on the cover pages) I don't agree with their kudos. Studies of dark, troubled individuals are not my thing, nor is a cast of thoroughly unlikable characters. By the way hasn't anyone noticed that in the contemporary world Poets are neither rich nor famous -- at least the living ones. ( )