Before She Met Me
by Julian Barnes
Buy on AmazonA remarkably original and subtle novel' Frank Kermode, New York Review of BooksGraham Hendrick, an historian, has left his wife Barbara for the vivacious Ann, and is more than pleased with his new life. Until, that is, the day he discovers Ann's celluloid past as a mediocre film actress. Soon Graham is pouncing on old clues, examining her books for inscriptions from past lovers, frequenting cinemas and poring over the bad movies she appeared in. It's not that he blames Anne for having a past before they met, but history has always mattered to him...
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"This is a very funny short book about a man who becomes obsessed with his girlfriend’s sexual past. It’s about how intense jealousy can be. People think they can cope with a lover’s past history but really there is always a struggle. His look at human nature is disturbing. Because we all think we can cope, that we’re always right about how we deal with things but Barnes forces the reader to look at a different angle on relationships. I think they don’t stay together in this book, but it makes the hairs on the back of my neck all prickly. Get the weekly Five Books newsletter"
Enduring Love · fivebooks.com