Seaside Suspicions: 'Uncle Paul' by Celia Fremlin – Book Recommendation

 

Until recently I had never heard the term ‘domestic-noir.’ Well, now I have, and it applies brilliantly to this novel (as per the Sunday Times review). Fremlin depicts family dynamics within the setting of a summer holiday as frazzled adults (mostly women) endeavour to keep children entertained at the seaside. However, there is more to the jittery nerves of three grown-up sisters than contending with childish tears, tantrums, the vagaries of British weather, and sub-standard holiday accommodation. They must confront their relationships with the men in their lives and with each other. This is especially so, since the past, in the person of the mysterious ‘Uncle Paul’, may be about to catch up with them, with potentially horrifying results.

This 1959 novel adeptly evokes its postwar period and treads a fine line between humour and horror which could easily go awry, yet is skilfully navigated by Fremlin. The novel’s humour both underscores and relieves its sense of tension as the action moves almost seamlessly from the mundane exasperations of a family vacation to unease and foreboding. The ending is one you think you should have seen coming, but it still took me by surprise. Layers are peeled back to reveal that appearances can be deceptive since, in life as with the novel itself, much goes on beneath the surface. Well crafted and thought-provoking, Uncle Paul is a joy to read.

Uncle Paul by Celia Fremlin ISBN: 9780571380879