Three

British author Quin, who died by suicide in 1973 at 37, first published this unsettling work in 1969, and its story—of a dysfunctional married couple and the mysterious young girl who rents a room in their seaside house before drowning herself—still makes a heavy impact. Ruth and Leonard, the couple at the center of the novel, lead restless, dissolute lives of mid-century luxury. Their interactions, depicted in a running stream of blunt directives, are mostly superficial and often devolve into bickering: “Oh do get the little cups darling I do prefer the little ones. But I’ve got these now love these will do. But it tastes so much better in the little cups. He held a cup out. I want the small ones darling.” Ruth is determined to figure out why the charismatic, down-and-out girl known only as S, who rented a room from them, killed herself, an event that seems to have happened just shortly before the novel’s present. They listen to tape recordings S left, which remain in their possession and appear as long sections of poetry, and read through her diary, also presented as chapters of their own. The investigation hints at a physical connection between Leonard and S, threatening to upend Ruth and Leonard’s balancing act. The reintroduction of Quin’s dark, difficult work, which presages contemporary English writers such as Deborah Levy, is a gift to readers interested in experimental literature. (Nov.)