Book Review: "Levitation for Beginners" by Suzannah Dunn

As you can tell, I am trying to get back into the literature that I love which is fiction. I have had a long nonfiction binge and I will probably still read those too, but I have to escape into fiction at the moment. Levitation for Beginners is overall, about a friendship between two girls that isn't really a friendship. As one of the girls starts to investigate the other, it creates a sense of unease and danger as affairs, identities and obsession begin to get in the way of everything. Strange as it may sound, it still has its moments of fun. A darkly comical book, let's take a look into what it is about in more detail. It is an odd book but it is still so good.

The story is set in 1972, where Deborah, a ten-year-old girl, is living a life filled with the simple joys and routines of childhood in a small rural community. However, this tranquillity is disrupted when Sarah-Jayne, a confident and glamorous new girl, arrives at her school. Unlike anyone Deborah has encountered, Sarah-Jayne quickly becomes the centre of attention with her lively personality and fantastical claims of being able to levitate. While the other girls are captivated by her charm and mysterious stories, Deborah feels uneasy, finding her overly theatrical and possibly insincere. This sets up a dynamic of fascination that will shape their interactions throughout the narrative. I think that this opening is great because there's a whole section about living in Britain in 1972 which the narrator describes in a hilarious and yet, sardonic way. It's simply brilliantly written.

Around the same time, a young bricklayer named Sonny appears at Deborah’s doorstep, carrying a stray tortoise. Sonny is an amiable but somewhat unconventional figure who soon forms a close bond with Deborah’s widowed mother. While her mother views his presence as comforting and refreshing, Deborah is mortified by the attention it draws. She worries that their household, already unconventional by local standards, might become a target of further gossip and judgement. Sonny’s presence acts as a catalyst for Deborah’s growing awareness of social dynamics and the weight of perceived norms - especially as her friendship with Sarah-Jayne also becomes a bit more wild.

This only steps into dangerous territory when Sonny begins working on a construction project near Deborah’s school, which inadvertently draws Sarah-Jayne into his orbit. She quickly declares him her latest infatuation, much to Deborah’s dismay. This connection between Sarah-Jayne and Sonny places Deborah in an awkward position, as it bridges her private family life with the dominating presence of Sarah-Jayne in her social circle. Deborah fears that Sarah-Jayne’s meddlesome nature might expose her family to scrutiny or ridicule. One thing that this novel has is people who are constantly afraid of what other people will say. In a rural area in England during the 1970s, you can see why they are all so afraid. This is also the part where we discover that Sarah-Jayne's character is a lot darker than initially thought - and as we meet her family, something definitely doesn't feel quite right.

Sarah-Jayne invites Deborah to her home, a move that seems to signal a shift in their dynamic. Sarah-Jayne’s family initially appears charming and their house exudes an air of sophistication and warmth. However, Deborah begins to notice small inconsistencies and peculiarities that suggest all may not be as perfect as it seems. This visit deepens the novel’s themes of appearances versus reality and introduces new tensions within the narrative​. During Deborah’s visit, Sarah-Jayne’s attention drifts towards Max, her older sister’s fiancé. This unexpected shift reveals Sarah-Jayne’s penchant for inserting herself into situations and relationships that are off-limits. Her fixation on Max adds a layer of unease to the story, further complicating her already contentious friendship with Deborah. This moment underscores Sarah-Jayne’s reckless disregard for boundaries and foreshadows potential conflicts. These 'potential conflicts' are going to be explosive to Deborah and yet, she remains under the manipulation of Sarah-Jayne who proves an imposing figure as we get further and further into the text.

As this book reaches its climactic point, we realise that there is a strange obsession that underlines the text and it is mostly about having the upperhand over others. From Sarah-Jayne's want to keep her social circle filled with people she can take charge of to Deborah's conflicts with her mother about her behaviour. The ending is a weird mix of 'what just happened' and 'there was really no other way this was going to go.' It is a truly greatly structured book.