Featured Reading Guide
Anna Maxted
Helen Bradshaw, 26, has a lot to get over. A dogsbody job on a women’s magazine. An attraction to unsuitable men. Being five foot one. Driving an elderly Toyota. She is about to ditch the infuriating Jasper when she hears the news that will change her life. Her father has collapsed with a massive heart attack. Initially Helen thinks of this as an interruption in her already chaotic lifestyle. But with his death everything starts to fall apart around her – her relationship, her mother, even her cat. Her flatmate Luke has the tact of a traffic warden with toothache, her friend Tina is in love…
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Anna Maxted lives in London with her husband Phil and their three sons Oscar, Conrad and Casper. Anna read English at Cambridge and works as a freelance journalist. She is also the author of the international bestsellers, Getting Over It , Running in Heels , Behaving Like Adults , Being Committed and A Tale of Two Sisters .
topAbout the Book
Helen Bradshaw, 26, has a lot to get over. A dogsbody job on a women’s magazine. An attraction to unsuitable men. Being five foot one. Driving an elderly Toyota. She is about to ditch the infuriating Jasper when she hears the news that will change her life. Her father has collapsed with a massive heart attack. Initially Helen thinks of this as an interruption in her already chaotic lifestyle. But with his death everything starts to fall apart around her – her relationship, her mother, even her cat. Her flatmate Luke has the tact of a traffic warden with toothache, her friend Tina is in love with her new man, her landlord Marcus is in love with himself, and, after the tequila incident, it looks as though Tom the vet will be sticking to Alsatians. Seems like Helen will be dealing with this one herself…
topAnna Maxted interview/review
DAILY TELEGRAPH, March 2000
“Emma Dally, editorial director of book publishing at National Magazines… was brilliant. She kept saying ego-boosting things such as: ‘You must write a novel‘… My idea involved, of course, a young woman whose father dies. This was two years after my dad’s death and, although I was less rabid by then, I remained obsessed. Phil [Anna’s husband] read my proposal and said: ‘You haven’t got a plot.’ But I ignored him.
I rang two writer friends who told me to talk to a few literary agents. One was Jonny Geller of Curtis Brown. He read my proposal and said: ‘You haven’t got a plot.’ He then gave me a priceless four-minute tutorial on novel writing and said: ‘Come back when you’ve got something proper.’
Naturally, I… sulked for a fortnight. But Emma and Phil kept goading me. Crossly I went to Waterstones and purchased a book called Bestseller.
The shame involved was such that I could barely bring myself to open it. When I did, I was surprised and humbled. There were so many crucial factors… that I’d never considered. Gradually, my vague ideas began to come into focus. I binned my original gobbledegook, and began again.
This time, I had a clearer idea of what I was doing. The novel would not be a rambling dirge about me. Getting Over It would be sharp, poignant, funny fiction… I spent a month devising the plot, and another month dreaming up a heroine.
So I put down the first three chapters, and sent them to Jonny. He rang the next day. ‘I love it!’ he said, and then it all went fairytale.”
topStarting Points for Discussion
- Anna Maxted writes about a sensitive issue with humour and pathos. Discuss how she accomplishes this without trivialising the experience of death.
- At the same time as her father’s death forces Helen to acknowledge that she must reassess her life and future, and regain some control over it, her mother is experiencing a similar situation. To what extent is their growing self-awareness helped, and hindered, by the mother/daughter relationship?
- There is a subplot of domestic violence in the book. How well do you think this episode is portrayed, and does the main storyline detract from or underplay it?
- The men in Getting Over It are depicted entirely through the female gaze, particularly Helen’s father whom we never get to meet. Discuss the role of the male in the novel.
- With the use of the first person narrative throughout the novel we are not privy to the thoughts of any of the other characters and must view their lives and reactions through Helen’s eyes. To what extent does this style limit the development of plot and characterisation?
- The 20-something chick-lit novel is an ever-growing genre. Do you think Getting Over It is typical of this genre or surpasses it?
Other Books by Anna Maxted
A Tale of Two Sisters
They were the best of friends, they were the worst of friends … Lizbet and…
Behaving Like Adults
Holly runs a dating agency. Up to now she’s had no need of her own services,…
Being Committed
Hannah thinks you have to be insane to get married. She’s content with her life…
Running In Heels
‘To say that Babs is my closest friend is rather like saying that Einstein was…
Suggested Further Reading
- Water Melon ~ Marian Keyes
- Back When We Were Grown Ups ~ Amme Tyler
- After You’d Gone ~ Maggie O’Farrell
- The River King ~ Alice Hoffman
- Girl Talk ~ Julianna Baggott
- Love Is a Four Letter Word ~ Clare Calman