The Ladder

Michael Waterhouse

Summary

Can there ever be a clear-cut, unambiguous moment when life is so unbearable that helping someone to die is not only right, but an act of loving kindness?   
	   
‘The Ladder’ begins on a remote Scottish island where Gary, a recent widower, is living under an assumed name. Wracked with doubts and fears, and a grief that often overwhelms him, he decides to design a lasting tribute to his lost wife, a celebration of her life and her love of colour. But will the memorial he creates arouse suspicions amongst the islanders and make them ask questions Gary would rather not answer?  
   
Michael Waterhouse’s first novel, ‘Prodigal’, was recommended in ‘The Times’ by Joan Bakewell as ‘a first novel of enormous power. Inspirational.’

Available since: 01/16/2023.

Contemporary Fiction

1 Comments

Book of the Week 02/03/2023

A stunning narrative about the highly controversial topic of assisted dying. When Kim is diagnosed with an unstoppable disease that causes her body to deteriorate slowly but surely, she and her husband Gary are forced to make the hardest decision of their lives. When is enough enough? And, even more difficult, is assisted dying a dignified way to end suffering or is that just a self-deception? Whose decision is it anyway?

Told from Gary’s perspective, but interspersed with Kim's diary entries, the storyline jumps back and forth between his reclusive present and the joyful past of his marriage. Each page transpires Gary’s raw grief, immense love and awe for his wife. Waterhouse puts into words the unspeakable without sugarcoating neither Gary’s nor Kim’s actions, motives or feelings. By doing so, he sheds light on gray areas and blurred lines that no one wants to cross. The result is as powerful as it is beautiful, a thought-provoking and earnest approach to a delicate topic.

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About the author

Michael Waterhouse

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