Before reading “The Narrow Land” I had little knowledge of painters Edward and Josephine Hopper. Of course, I was familiar with Edward's most famous painting Nighthawks but all I knew about the artists themselves was a brief biographical sketch and critique of his work/their relationship in regards to the subject of loneliness in Olivia Laing's book “The Lonely City”. So it was fascinating to find out more about the strong bond and animosity between this tempestuous couple through the lens of Christine Dwyer Hickey's fiction. The novel depicts the summer of 1950 on a stretch of coastal property in Cape Cod known as the narrow land. Though Edward and Josephine are two major characters in the novel and we see many scenes through their perspectives, the novel begins with a ten-year-old boy named Michael being sent by the woman who adopted him to spend the summer on the Cape with the Kaplans, a wealthy philanthropic family. Michael is meant to be a companion for the adolescent Kaplan boy named Richie but the two boys do not get along well. As a young German who survived the war, Michael is deeply traumatized but this isn't openly discussed with the people around him; there are only devastating glimpses of what he must have suffered in half-seen foggy memories and his guarded, self-contained attitude. The Hoppers live next door to the Kaplans and over the course of the summer Michael and Richie strike up a unique friendship with them as Edward struggles to begin a new painting. Through an accumulation of subtle, quiet moments this novel creates an extraordinary portrait of people struggling to deal with the after-effects of WWII and different forms of deep-felt loneliness.

The way Hickey writes about her characters and describes certain scenes is similar to the modified perspective of reality that art provides. For instance, at a train station a couple who are kissing are viewed from a distance and the author notes how this is “A sailor and his girl taking a last, long chew of each other's faces.” Most people who'd glimpse this couple would consider this a tender, romantic moment but the way it's described here makes it feel much more sinister and cannibalistic. It provides both a unique, humorous new view of the world and also the way someone of Michael's temperament might see fleeting scenes like this as more creepy and threatening than the average person. A similar image of consumption is given later when Edward Hopper sees someone in the distance: “he stops to watch a man with a fancy-looking camera make a meal out of the scenery.” I like how this gives an insight into the way people attempt to take possession and digest the world through their subjective perspective. It also gives an indication how Edward might be doing something similar in the way his meandering walks and observations of different people are filtered through his imagination to create new paintings.

Mrs Hopper's real name was Josephine but throughout the novel she's mostly referred to as “Mrs Aitch” as that's the way Michael phonetically understands her name. I adored how she is a difficult, fiery character that speaks her mind so forcefully and how this usually leads to incredibly awkward moments of social interaction. She's one of those deliciously ornery characters like Olive Kitteridge who is a joy to read about but who I'd be terrified to meet in real life. It's so moving how Josephine forms a quick bond with Michael because even though there's more than fifty years in age between them they are able to relate to and understand each other much better than the majority of people who surround them. I find such unusual chosen-family relationships very touching to read about and it's heart breaking to see how their connection to each other plays out in the story.

It's also fascinating the dynamic between Josephine and Edward who are so different in their temperaments. The author movingly describes how they provide a necessary support for each other in certain fundamental ways but how their relationship is also extremely painful and destructive. They frequently bicker and sometimes have physical altercations. Hickey brilliantly writes about the way they are so attuned to each other's moods and can predict their partner's probable reactions to certain situations. This so accurately depicts the subtly found in how long-term couples interact with each other. It's also a compelling look at a creative couple who are beset by certain jealousies. Josephine fiercely longs to be recognized as an artist in her own right, but her efforts are ignored next to her lauded husband. This is an indication of how female artists had more difficulty in achieving success in the mid-twentieth century compared to male artists but also the way Josephine specifically sacrificed honing her own craft in order to support Edward with his artwork.

One of the most impressive things about this novel is the way Hickey builds so much compelling drama into many seemingly trivial situations and builds sophisticated small mysteries into her narrative. A man's indecision about whether or not to have ice cream at a party hints at unexpressed grief about his son who died in combat. A boy's private play with paper dolls signifies the deep-felt loss he's experiencing because of the war. A small act of theft becomes a pivotal dramatic point in the novel. These moments build to a much larger understanding of the reverberating effects of WWII. There are also brief descriptions of things like a book hidden in a basement and a boy observed crying which the story circles back to later in the novel. This artfully shows the hidden motivations and isolated longing different characters feel. It's also a satisfying payoff for the reader who uncovers the significance of certain actions and moments as the novel progresses. This made it an utterly absorbing book to read. Prior to The Narrow Land” I'd only read a short story by Hickey in the Irish anthology “The Long Gaze Back” but I'll be very keen to read more of her novels.