Indelicacy

A sublime tale of art, power and privilege from a rising star in American literary fiction. A ghostly feminist fable, Amina Cain's Indelicacy is the story of a woman navigating between gender and class roles to empower herself and fulfill her dreams. In 'a strangely ageless world somewhere between Emily Dickinson and David Lynch' (Blake Butler), a cleaning woman at a museum of art nurtures aspirations to do more than simply dust the paintings around her. She dreams of having the liberty to explore them in writing, and so must find a way to win herself the time and security to use her mind. She escapes her lot by marrying a rich man, but having gained a husband, a house, high society and a maid, she finds that her new life of privilege is no less constrained. Not only has she taken up different forms of time-consuming labor-social and erotic-but she is now, however passively, forcing other women to clean up after her. Perhaps another and more drastic solution is necessary? Reminiscent of a lost Victorian classic in miniature, yet taking equal inspiration from such modern authors as Jean Rhys, Octavia Butler, Clarice Lispector and Jean Genet, Amina Cain's Indelicacy is at once a ghost story without a ghost, a fable without a moral and a down-to-earth investigation of the barriers faced by women in both life and literature. It is a novel about seeing, class, desire, anxiety, pleasure, friendship and the battle to find one's true calling. 'Cain's jewel-like book catches the light from many angles: Indelicacy is at once a playful and enigmatic meditation on art, a fable about gender and class and how they influence the way we read the pursuit of power, as well as a glittering engagement with writers from Jean Rhys to Jean Genet.' Age/SMH 'With its short, spare sentences, Cain's writing seems simple on the surface but it is deeply observant of the human condition, female friendships, and art. A short, elegant tale about female desire and societal expectations.' Kirkus Reviews ' A chilling, beautiful novel about a woman who marries a near stranger, expecting their life together to deliver the freedom and creativity she craves. What she learns is not what you think it will be-and it serves as the perfect starting point for a memorable conversation.' New York Times ' Amina Cain's bone-clean prose creates a sense of immersion in a story that feels both mythic and true...A woman's search for creativity is not a new subject, yet Cain has made it so.' Guardian