Providence by Anita Brookner: Another Personal Exploration

It's no secret, I love Anita Brookner. I have dedicated myself to reading every novel of hers.

Providence was my fourth novel by Brookner, and I was delighted to find that once again she swept me in her subtle and quiet way into the world of Kitty Maule and those deep longing observations we all make about life.

This story of love, desire, acceptance, loss, family, belonging, loneliness and despair really leaned into the dark spaces at some points.

Providence by Anita Bookner

In the character of Caroline - Kitty's gorgeous yet lonely neighbor, we learn that Caroline has accepted this state of loneliness

‘Well, now that I’m divorced they don’t want to know me. You know how it is with a woman on her own. The wives close ranks. A woman on her own is a threat, Kitty.’

 These thoughts of independence combined with thoughts of being imprisoned by one's life circumstances, created so much depth in this novel.

No one is able to write about the ordinary and mundane the way that Brookner can. 

Our protagonist Kitty deals with loss, ideas about living a full life, and she questions her connection to and love for her colleague and friend Maurice.

For two days she sat in the garden or walked about the streets, and she would remember those two days as a curious interval, when all things seemed possible, an almost mystical time of promise and anticipated fulfillment. 

We learn towards the end of the novel that Kitty realizes

I want it to be different now. I don’t want to be alone any more.

 I can only say that Providence (like every Brookner novel I've read so far) is worth the time. It's worth the reflection. It's world the pondering it insights.

I now know better how I feel about myself after having read Kitty's experiences. When I was considering a career and life inside of academia, I spent a great deal of time in academic circles, and I could almost feel myself there. This melodic way she writes is entrancing and I adore it.

I'll be finishing up The Passion According to G.H. by my other favorite author Clarice Lispector before picking up my next Anita Brookner novel.

Happy reading my slow living friends