We’ve selected 12 groups to shadow the Baileys Women’s Prize for Fiction. Here we look at one of the shortlisted titles, The Undertaking, which will be reviewed by Eastwood Bookclub and Ruth’s Readers in more detail.
About the book
A soldier on the Russian Front marries a photograph of a woman he has never met. Hundreds of miles away in Berlin, the woman marries a photograph of the soldier. It is a contract of business rather than love. When the newlywed strangers finally meet, however, passion blossoms and they begin to imagine a life together under the bright promise of Nazi Germany. But as the tide of war turns and Allied enemies come ever closer, the couple find themselves facing the terrible consequences of being ordinary people stained with their small share of an extraordinary guilt…
Warwickshire Super Readers described this book as not immediately accessible and a very serious tone.
h2. About the author
Audrey Magee worked for 12 years as a journalist and has written for, among others, The Times, The Irish Times, the Observer and the Guardian. She studied German and French at University College Dublin and journalism at Dublin City University. She lives in Wicklow with her husband and three daughters. The Undertaking is her first novel.
Get involved
Have you read The Undertaking? Let us know what you thought by leaving a comment below.
You can also read about the other titles shortlisted for the Baileys Women’s Prize for Fiction and join the conversation on Twitter and Facebook.
