by A. S. Byatt
First published 2002
In the tumultuous late 1960s, a young woman named Frederica stumbles into a career in television, even as her home country of Yorkshire erupts with upheaval. As an "anti-university" springs up near the scientists studying the brain, a chaotic, charismatic leader takes over a nearby therapeutic community. Frederica's TV shows mirror the tensions of religion, myth, and the new computer age, as people struggle to find their true selves amid the darkness and light.
Genres: fiction, drama, literary-fiction, 20th-century, contemporary
Vibes: atmospheric, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: found-family, social-commentary
Setting: England, London (England), Yorkshire (England)
Period: 1960s
447 pages · Paperback · Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group