Dissection
Jacinta Halloran
‘A bracing and beautiful novel … I recommend it as an unputdownable and richly rewarding read, an extended ethical work-out of the classiest kind.’
Helen Garner
Doctor Anna McBride’s life is starting to unravel. The mother of two boys and a dedicated GP, she is being sued for medical negligence — a case of delayed diagnosis. Anna’s day-to-day work becomes increasingly difficult as she starts to scrutinise her every action and question her worth. Deeply ashamed of her mistake, she retreats into family life, only to find that her husband seems preoccupied with a younger colleague. As the date for mediation draws closer and the lawyers’ demands become ever more pressing, Anna also vaguely senses someone else’s cries for attention — someone who wishes her harm.
Dissection is an original and confronting portrayal of a woman facing personal and professional crises. It examines an extended moment of inner turmoil, after which nothing will ever be the same again.
Reviews
‘Her fine analytical intelligence is matched by compelling, rhythmic prose … Dissection reads like a moral thriller, a bulletin from the war zone that is modern living. You’ll never think of your GP in the same way again.’
Amanda Lohrey, The Monthly
‘[Dissection] dissects morally complex issues of life and death with a deceptively simple touch, using telling domestic detail to bring its characters and settings vividly to life on the page. The prose is clean, crisp, precise; as if carved by a scalpel. It might be the instinctual approach of a writer used to dealing with weighty issues in succinct fifteen-minute blocks.’
Jo Case, Australian Book Review
» All reviews for this title‘From page one, her prose has an unmistakable ring of authenticity. This writer knows what she is talking about … McBride’s professional crisis and her heartache [have] an immediacy that is balanced by her meditations. It is quiet strength that is celebrated in this novel: courage that can all too easily be overlooked.’
Dorothy Johnston, Sydney Morning Herald
