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The Lighted Rooms by Richard Mason (Weidenfeld & Nicolson)
Eloise McAllister is the ultimate London career woman – at 48, she lives alone and juggles multi-million budgets with confidence. But after she gambles her career on a tip from an old lover, she starts to feel less certain and has to reassess her priorities.
At the same time, her mother Joan moves into a frail care facility, where the reality of her mental deterioration becomes hard to hide. The author delicately probes the possibility that senility can include an element of enjoyable departure into fantasy and memory.
Eloise and Joan take one last trip together, to visit their roots in Bloemfontein, where the old lady unexpectedly uncovers the diary of an ancestor who was interred in a concentration camp during the Anglo-Boer war.
The maturity of Richard Mason's characterisation and the unique perspective he brings to his research makes this an emotional read. After his glowing start as a celebrated author at 19, he has continued to show an intense dedication to writing of admirable depth and quality.
Part of the proceeds of this book go to the Kay Mason Foundation, which the author established in memory of his late sister to further the education of disadvantaged South African children.
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