Lead Review (Consider Yourself Kissed)
- Book: Consider Yourself Kissed
- Location: Darwin, Hackney, Sydney
- Author: Jessica Stanley
Consider Yourself Kissed by Jessica Stanley is an engrossing, entertaining and reflective debut novel. It explores the challenges facing many young women in the 2020s, such as career ambitions, desire for close relationships and possibly children. It’s a while before the title is explained (it’s taken from a 1963 book that was controversial at the time) and the meaning of the phrase CYK changes for the protagonist, Coralie, as the book progresses. It is a romantic novel, but it also gets to grips with the complexities of family life and friendships on a deeper level.
Coralie Bower is a young Australian who has relocated to London, though not for the usual reasons of wanting to explore the world or to find her roots. For her, London is more of a punishment – for reasons that become clear later in the book – and she experiences intense loneliness. She clings tightly to the friendships she develops and concentrates on her work, returning home each evening to write the first draft of her novel. When she meets Adam, a handsome divorcé, it is under dramatic circumstances, and she is initially wary of continuing their connection. Desperate for more human contact, she eventually relents and allows herself to explore the possibility of friendship with him.
The book examines universal themes through the lens of motherhood, partnership and family life. We see Coralie struggle with loneliness, anger and resentment, while her ambitions and self-worth are eroded over time. The story is set in the years 2017-2023, among the most dramatic political events in the UK, as well as the shocking social upheaval brought by the Covid epidemic. All of these contribute to Coralie’s struggles.
Consider Yourself Kissed treads a perfect middle ground between page-turning popular fiction and more philosophical women’s fiction. For me, it was entertaining and involving. I loved Coralie’s character and the way that the author has portrayed the children in the book is so wonderfully authentic. The choice of a third person narrative is apt, as we follow the challenges that face Coralie and wonder whether she can survive the various crises that life throws at her. It should be noted that the weightier discussions and conflict in the book are balanced with banter, humour and deeply felt love of the characters for each other. In no way is this a bleak novel – there is so much to enjoy.
As far as setting is concerned, the author beautifully describes the contrasts between Australia and London as Coralie experiences them, particularly the tropical heat of Darwin and the shocking cold of London in winter. Coralie has been unwillingly displaced to London and there are many things she misses but gradually the descriptions of her new home city become more tender as she builds her new life.
Both Coralie and Adam are writers and there’s an ongoing theme of writing – as a profession and in order to earn a living; as a life-defining ambition; for recognition and as therapy – which is central to the book. It might be true that everyone has a book in them, but giving birth to them can be a long and painful process, as the characters in CYK discover. I particularly enjoyed this existential question, “Do people who know the names of trees become authors? Or do writers feel like…they have to learn the names of trees?”
Jessica Stanley is writing from her own experience and this is evident in every aspect of the book, which is credible and often heart-wrenching. It is easy to identify with the characters and the problems that they encounter, they are so beautifully and excruciatingly described. I didn’t want it to end!
I cannot explain the cover graphic of a pigeon carrying a pair of cherries – I don’t think it’s supposed to be as emasculating as it first appears! Apparently they symbolise marriage, loyalty and fertility, so maybe that’s why they were chosen.
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