by Lily Tuck
First published 1996
She cuts through the water with practiced strokes, a champion swimmer living the prescribed life in suburban Connecticut. Her marriage provides comfort and security in their exclusive neighborhood. Yet something pulls her toward a different path. When she encounters a spiritual teacher, she makes a choice that shatters her conventional existence. She leaves her husband and familiar world behind to follow the guru to India. There she plunges into Eastern philosophy and spiritual practices with the same dedication she once brought to swimming. The ancient wisdom transforms her understanding of herself and the world. She discovers depths of spirituality she never knew existed. But this awakening demands sacrifices she did not anticipate. Her journey toward enlightenment comes with costs that test her resolve and reshape her identity in ways she never imagined.
Genres: fiction, literary-fiction, contemporary
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: fish-out-of-water, found-family, self-discovery
Setting: Connecticut, India
Period: Contemporary
Hardcover · Riverhead Hardcover