Review: These Dividing Walls

I really liked this book! From a fly-on-the-wall perspective we follow the lives of the residents who live cheek to jowl in an apartment building, but who do not know their neighbours. I felt the characters were well defined, and not mere caricatures. Although Cooper is obviously besotted with Paris, I think she does a fine job of portraying the everyday life of the Paris suburbs. Let’s face it, it’s pretty hard to avoid at least one reference to The Eiffel Tower in a story set in Paris!
Many of the characters are struggling: with loneliness and grief, post natal depression and alienation. With the rising temperature of a Parisienne heatwave, political unrest also rises to boiling point, spilling over into the lives of those who live at Number 37. When the violence impacts directly on several residents, they are made to realise that they are not as alone or isolated as they thought.
This is an insightful and enjoyable book. Highly recommended.

• Review
• Fran Cooper