The Intentions
Book
Book
︎Finalist NZ Post Book Awards ︎
︎Longlisted for Commonwealth Prize︎
︎Longlisted for IMPAC Dublin︎
︎Longlisted for IMPAC Dublin︎
Morris Goldberg is a man who can’t cry. Semi-retired from his career as a metadata analyst, he lives alone and conducts imaginary conversations with his recently-deceased wife, Sadie. Then news arrives that his daughter Rachel is missing in the bush, with bad weather on the way. While Morris waits for news, memory and dream start to merge. Key scenes from his childhood and marriage play out in his imagination and the urgent questions of a lifetime press forward. What happens in moments of crisis? Are people capable of change? How can one express their true feelings? How does society survive the endless dance of estrangement and intimacy? The Intentions Book is a tender and funny novel about love, communication, and the ways families shape people.
'Gigi Fenster has made a standout debut with her novel, The Intentions Book. The writing is tight, the protagonist memorable and the revelations stitched with a subtle finesse.'
— Paula Green, NZ Herald
'a compelling look at what goes on in the gaps between how we see ourselves and how others see us, between what we say and how we feel, and the divide between intentions and actions. It's also about memory, resilience, love, and intimacy. Fenster deftly wrangles a large handful of ideas into a moving story with characters who stay with you.'
— Shelley Howells, KiaOra magazine
