A Pure Clear Light
Text Classics
Madeleine St John
Simon and Flora Beaufort have three perfect children and a comfortable, happy life in London. When Flora takes the children for a month-long vacation in France, Simon stays home to work on his latest film project…what could go wrong?
A Pure Clear Light examines a marriage at the moment it goes haplessly off-track: Simon succumbs to the temptation of his cool, blonde accountant and Flora heeds the cry of her reawakened faith. Ultimately, though, neither Simon nor Flora can escape the revelation that lies beyond excuses and remorse and candour, at the heart of the phenomenon called love. In St John’s hands, what is commonplace is transformed and transcendent.
REVIEWS
2SER: Final Draft
andA Pure Clear Light
‘Both funny and affecting…her gift for capturing conversation takes us deep into the hearts of both characters.’
‘Witty, clear-eyed and provocatively perceptive, Madeleine St John deserves a lasting readership.’
‘St John is one of those astonishing masters of dialogue such as Harold Pinter or Helen Garner, though faster than either, so that the effort of her speech is like great tennis or ballet…It’s a book about the search for truth and St John has an all but flawless ear for it.’
‘A Pure Clear Light is funny, cruel and finely written, exploring the place and time where marriages and affairs come undone…pitch perfect.’
