cement patio

Author Name: Ian McEwan

When Jack (14 years old) tried to disrupt the household, he failed miserably. He concocted a joke with his sister to make fun of their father during dinner; he wanted to reverse the roles, even if only for a moment. But he failed. No one laughed. This isn't the only unbalanced relationship between Jack and his surroundings; he also maintains a distance from his mother, his siblings, the school, and the neighborhood, feeling lonely and neglected. First their father dies, then their mother, leaving the four children alone in a spacious house resembling an ancient castle, standing alone in a neighborhood where most of the houses have been demolished to make way for residential towers and new roads. Free from surveillance and orders, they can do as they please, as long as they keep the secret hidden in the house a secret: they mixed a large quantity of cement their father brought to renovate the garden and buried their mother with it in the basement. A journey of tiring psychological upheavals, the author diligently discusses the details of childhood and adolescence, revealing what adults often forget or deny. From forbidden desires to hair-raising games, he constructs an enjoyable novel with its own unique method of reaching the unspoken.