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Thursday 29 April 2021

Review by Lisa Williams of "Crazy" by Jane Feaver



Crazy is a blend of fiction and memoir. It's a thought-provoking story of a relationship and essentially about the blurring between life and storytelling itself ...  

The book opens in a bed, the shipping forecast providing a comforting massage to its occupant. Rather than a sailor listening to the outlook for the seas around Britain we join Jane, a creative writing teacher. The areas trigger memories and so the course is set and we head off with her on her uncharted journey.

The novel focuses on a relationship. A former relationship. This is pieced together from flashbacks to first meetings during college years. Phone conversations from then and from present day hint that there’s been more to the relationship. We listen for what’s unsaid. The heaviness of a bad or wrong decision lingers throughout. 

Just as Jane the teacher unpicks students' work, so we dwell on the author's choices: we know an ill-fitting shoe at her wedding is more than just that. This is no fairytale with a prince and his bride set for a happy ending. We return again to the sea when a bottle of cider provides a life buoy at a party. 

Midway through the book Jane's partner declares the 'end of story.' It starts to sink in that they aren’t sharing the same story. Jane tells us her tale but there are negative bits she immediately tells us 'I edit it out.'

Crazy made me question my own relationships, the bits I exclude from my stories. I'd not read anything by Jane Feaver before but will definitely be looking up her other books.


About the reviewer
Lisa is a shop girl from Leicester. Find her on social media @noodleBubble

You can read more about Crazy by Jane Feaver on Creative Writing at Leicester here.

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