The Woman Upstairs (novel)
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The Woman Upstairs is a novel by Claire Messud that was published in 2013 by Alfred A. Knopf.[1] Set in Cambridge, Massachusetts, the novel is told from the point of view of Nora Elridge, an elementary school teacher reflecting back on her life in 2004 when she became enchanted with the Shahids, a family of intellectuals she met while teaching their young son Reza.
Plot
Nora Elridge is an elementary school teacher living in Cambridge, Massachusetts who was raised by her frustrated stay at home mother to have artistic ambitions, ambitions which she was never able to fulfill. In 2004, when Nora is 37, a little over a year after her mother's death, she is delighted to learn that a young Parisian boy, Reza Shahid, has been assigned to her classroom. After Reza is bullied Nora meets his mother, Sirena Shahid, who she learns is an acclaimed artist. When Nora reveals that she makes art as well, Sirena suggests that they rent a studio together. Nora agrees and begins working on her own project, a series of shoebox size dioramas of the rooms of famous women artists. Nora grows increasingly enamoured of the Shahids including Lebanese born Skandar, a professor. She crosses personal boundaries with them, not only by agreeing to rent the studio with Sirena, but by eventually agreeing to babysit Reza for free on nights when Skandar and Sirena have dinner engagements. Sirena eventually unveils her project entitled "Wonderland" a mixed media piece in which she creates, and then films, a world based on Alice in Wonderland which Nora assists her in working on. During the project Nora begins to think she has fallen in love with Sirena but hesitates to tell her so. Instead, drawn closer to Skandar, she ends up having an intimate encounter with him one night at the studio, an event they quickly agree cannot be repeated. Shortly after Sirena completes all the work she can in Cambridge and must return to Paris.
Reception
The novel received mixed positive reviews.[2][3][4][5] Quill & Quire praised Messud's prose but called the book "a slog".[6] The novel was longlisted for the 2013 Giller Prize but ultimately did not make the shortlist.[7]
References
- ↑ "The Woman Upstairs". Kirkus Reviews. February 18, 2013. Retrieved March 6, 2019.
- ↑ Lezard, Nicholas (January 14, 2014). "The Woman Upstairs by Claire Messud – review". The Guardian. Retrieved March 6, 2019.
- ↑ Charles, Ron (April 13, 2013). "Claire Messud's 'The Woman Upstairs,' reviewed by Ron Charles". The Washington Post. Retrieved March 6, 2019.
- ↑ Schillinger, Liesl (May 3, 2013). "Significant Others". The New York Times. Retrieved March 6, 2019.
- ↑ Kakutani, Michiko (May 2, 2013). "On the Outside, Looking In". The New York Times. Retrieved March 6, 2019.
- ↑ Cerny, Dory (12 March 2013). "The Woman Upstairs". Quill & Quire. Retrieved January 9, 2019.
- ↑ Bethune, Brian. "Lucky 13 make Giller Prize long list". Retrieved 9 January 2019.