A wide ranging, roaming perspective on the female condition broadly, but more specifically within art. This is my first time reading Cusk, so it was a bit of a learning curve to understand the shape shifting nature of her writing. Topics change within paragraphs and none of it is particularly connected, except that it is. I appreciate how unique Cusk’s writing is, and I definitely want to read her more popular novels.

Thank you for NetGalley and the publishers for my copy of this book!

Impossible to read Cusk without feeling challenged, frustrated, and inspired. I struggled to get through some parts but already want to read it again.

I was so excited to get my hands on a new Cusk novel, and was not disappointed. Parade is so beautifully complex in a very accessible way. Using overlapping and intersecting stories she examines themes of motherhood, womanhood, identity, art, performance, and more, all while effortlessly shifting perspectives, and maintaining her beautiful style of writing.

I always love coming back to Cusk and will certainly be doing the same with Parade.

This didn’t quite hit as well as some of her previous books. It was a solid OK - maybe that is on me but the story just didn’t grab me as well as I hoped. The premise was interesting though!

Rachel Cusk is an author that I usually admire, but I was not as enthralled with Parade as I have been with her other work. This is an extremely ambitious novel; but for me, the many parallel narratives felt disconnected and even, with the multiple characters named G, overly labored. For this reader the various strands ended up swirling into fragments, the novel's parts never quite adding up to a satisfactory whole. That said, Cusk is as always an observant and thoughtful writer, and I have no doubt that any failings in "getting it' this time around are likely my own.

My thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC review copy.

Tender, atmospheric, warm, and immensely thoughtful - these are the signatures of a modern Rachel Cusk novel evident again in Parade. This loose collage of stories profiles various artists known only as "G" as they navigate the meaning of art and the life of the artist. Like other Cusk works, many brood over ideas of worthiness, embodiment, creation, and (often) motherhood. The world around them feels quite real and lived-in, which protects their existential wonderings from leaning too pretentious.

Parade feels in line with Cusk's Second Place, but more accessible and less anxious. There are beautiful, inviting moments throughout (and a particularly enviable dinner party with artists), even if the master narrative takes a bit of thought to string together. Overall, it's a lovely new classic from one of my favorite modern writers.

Parade is a novel by Rachel Cusk that explores the lives of 4 artists called “G”. It looks at how different relationships, gender, parenthood, loss, and more shape their philosophy on art as well as the art itself.

Parade is a book that I’ve underlined and annotated (rare for me in a digital format) more than probably any other book I’ve received and reviewed recently (I think Practice is a close second). There is so much to think about on how/why we create art and the impacts our experiences and station in the world have on what we create. It reminded me a lot of reading Matthew Arnold, Oscar Wilde, and the other Victorian authors that had these conversations on the purpose of art. I feel Cusk takes this further by showing how that purpose changes the art as well as the artist based on identity.

This was a veryyyyyy academic book. I almost wish I was reading this with my MA cohort and discussing in a group setting because this isn’t an easy book and having other perspectives would have been nice (I did eventually look up other reviews to help piece out some of what I was feeling about this book afterward).

At times (most times) I was very lost. The four sections, the four artists with the same name, and the changing first person singular to the first person plural amongst other things, made it difficult to know what was going on and who was in the section. I also didn’t know the sections were for each artist until basically the 3rd or 4th section. A lot of the pastoral scenes run together and are hard to demarcate.

This book made me think, however I was left wondering if the inaccessibility muddies Cusk’s message or helps set her apart. I tend to be a more balanced academic where I hope for some level of accessibility for all with levels of difficulty that feel worth the endeavor.

I wish I had read a physical copy of this book. This would not be great on audio. If you like philosophical reflections on art and like authors that are pushing boundaries on the novel this book is for you.

I did not hate this book but I’m also not sure I loved it. That said it did make me think and reflect deeply as well as really pay attention to what Cusk was doing.

Cusk is a legend and really needs no notes. I enjoyed the one liners in this one ALOT. one of her best.

I was rather impressed by Second Place last year, it was the right mix of erudition and plot. Parade is more fragmentary and there was too little narrative for me to hold on to. It's a relentless stream of intellectual observations on art, death, roleplay, gender and much more.

I've known for a while I am a lazy reader who likes ideas to be attractively packaged in an engaging story. Like the latest Kunzru or Han Kang.

The prose is very clean, so it is not hard to follow, it is just the content and density of the ideas that requires work. And then, it is a peculiar and rather cold world view that Cusk has and not all of it resonates with me.

So, this was not for me and my rating reflects my personal enjoyment and not the quality of the book.

This should also definitely not be listened to on audio: it requires reflection, pause, concentration, patience, re-reading...much more so than Second Place.

PARADE is another ambitious, formally interesting book by one of our great living writers. As in her OUTLINE trilogy, Cusk eschews traditional storytelling and characterization, testing the limits of what we've come to expect when we pick up a novel. Despite an unusual, stilted structure, Cusk manages fluid, profound prose. Go into this one with an open mind, willing to work a little bit (or a lot!) for your experience, and I think you'll enjoy, or at least respect, Cusk's work. in PARADE.

A expertly written, cold, clever challenge of a novel. Cusk eschews the novel as a pleasant straightforward read in an attempt to seek deeper meaning. A novel that requires great focus but is well worth the effort.

Rachel Cusk's Parade is a book comprised of four loosely related stories, each focused on the relationship between art and life, artists and the "normals" in their worlds, and expectations around gender in art. Apparently if female artists don't make art about motherhood they're falling short? Lying to themselves? Huh?

Each artist (there are multiple, I lost count of how many in the first story alone) is named G, whether male or female. The art is described (upside down orientation, a church painted over and over, a spider in high heels, film, sculpture), the inspiration, the conflict (mostly from the female artists, the males are oblivious to their effect).

Within the stories we also jump back and forth between third person and a narrator. Sometimes the narrator is the artist(?).

I haven't read Cusk before and didn't know what to expect. I was confused for most of the first story, thinking initially G was one very fluid artist.

The Interchangeability, the gender assumptions, the almost total lack of named characters, all left me cold. I'm okay with weird, I'm okay with abstract and intellectual, but I struggled with the cold.

My thanks to NetGalley and Farrar, Straus and Giroux for the ARC.

I love reading a Rachel Cusk book. It gives me the same feels of watching dense European films or listening to classical music on a veranda full of vines and flowers. I could just sit in her prose forever. This book is definitely more on the experimental side I feel for Cusk compared to her more recent output. Though I found the writing superb as always, I won’t lie that I found myself lost at times within the book, which was maybe the point and maybe her build up to something more interesting as she continues her writing. If you are a Cusk reader I think you’ll enjoy, but if you are new to Cusk, I’d come back to this one after you’ve read some of her other works.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and FSG for the ARC. I love you so much for allowing me to get my hands on this one.

This unconventional method of storytelling is Cusk at her best, and she continues to add a twist to the literary fiction genre with her new novel, Parade. Four nonlinear sections focus on various artists, who all go by the name 'G', expertly navigate the shift between first and third-person narration, while Cusk explores a multitude of themes, from motherhood and gender, to artistry and reality. There is an autobiographical element to it as well, which I really enjoyed, and at times felt like it was a book of her personal essays, full of lyrical and insightful writing on the subject of the novel.

〝not to be understood is effectively to be silenced, but not understanding can in its turn legitimise that silence, can illuminate one's own unknowability. art is the pact of individuals denying society the last word.〞

★★★

thank you to farrar, straus and giroux and netgalley for providing me with this arc.

this is a novel that demolishes the conventions of storytelling. it surges past the limits of identity, character, and plot to tell the story of g, an artist whose life contains many lives. cusk is a writer and visionary like no other, who turns language upside down to show us our world as it really is.

I'll be honest, I didn't understand this at all. while I loved her writing like always and really appreciated how unique this novel is; it just wasn't for me. it's really hard to explain. I feel like I need to reread this over and over again for a whole year to fully dissect, analyze and understand everything that it's trying to say. I think my biggest issue with it is that there really isn't any plot or character, in the traditional sense, to follow through the whole book. g, the main character, is so abstract that it's not really a character you can anchor a whole novel to and like always in cusk's works there's not much of a plot. it was basically just a showcase of her amazing writing style which I do love but it gets a bit boring and hard to follow when that's all that motivates you though a whole novel. the quotes were great but I honestly can't really tell you anything else about it.

if you're interested in writing and literature I feel like this would be a really interesting read based on the sheer uniqueness of it. for the rest of us, I recommend sticking to the outline trilogy and her nonfiction works. that's what I'll be doing in the future anyways.

ig: @winterrainreads

Happy Publication Day to this beauty!

Cusk’s writing will never stop surprising me. I’m amazed at the journey I go through each time - I start with feeling like ok, that’s it, I finally cannot look past the pretentious writing then move on to hmm ok I see what she did there, to this isn’t so bad, until I’m finally, inevitably at - damn it’s like she’s reading my mind and nailing every thought.

Parade is divided into four parts or chapters. And every one of them (with the exception of one) has two parallel storylines which go back and forth with the help of paragraph breaks. The first chapter starts with a story about a male artist and how he has begun to paint everything upside down, including his wife, and the feelings this new reality elicits in her and alternates that to another woman’s story, who has emigrated to a new country (sounds an awful lot like America but could be the UK?) and an incident that takes place that forces her to ponder about the idea of representation - this and the artists wife’s narratives weave among each other to talk about how women have a real self vs a body-double / stuntman version of themselves that is brought out based on the demands of the external world. This one was the hardest for me to get into, maybe because of what I described in the earlier para, but also probably because it was the densest, most abstract / meta of the lot.

From here on it gets better, and a lot more enjoyable with Cusk’s characteristically incisive dialogue-work, creating pathos-laden environments but somehow managing to let the reader go through their own journey (all the while providing a low-hum-in-the-background kind of story). There’s a group of art-world people who are forced together into a riveting, revealing conversation in a foreign country after having to experience a tragedy together, and several bits about young and old artists (actual painters - so this really seems to be the theme for this book) who struggle with balancing their creative personalities with their familial / parental or other roles. The latter being another strong binding theme of this book.

Overall, I enjoyed this after the expected initial hiccup - as I do most Cusk works (have only read her Outline trilogy previously), once I settle in accepting that this is going to be ‘it’s a vibe’ reading and being seen reading her work in public may be a bonus in the ‘I’m a cool, edgy reader’ personality column.

Rachel Cusk’s “Parade” is a fascinating exploration of art, identity, and familial dynamics, told through a fragmented narrative that defies conventional storytelling. The novel is divided into four sections, each examining different artists referred to as ‘G,’ who grapple with their creative impulses and personal relationships.

The story begins with an artist who starts painting upside down, leading to unexpected acclaim. This act sets the stage for a broader discussion on the nature of art and perception. Cusk’s prose is both incisive and poetic, delving into themes of love, violence, freedom, and the role of the artist in society.

One of the novel’s most compelling aspects is its ability to provoke deep thought and introspection. Through shifting perspectives and a blend of fictional and essay-like elements, Cusk challenges readers to reconsider their understanding of reality and creativity. The characters are richly drawn, each facing their own internal and external conflicts, which are explored with a deft touch.

However, the novel’s non-linear structure and abstract approach may not resonate with all readers. Those familiar with Cusk’s previous works, particularly the Outline trilogy, will find a continuation of her stylistic and thematic concerns. Newcomers may find the narrative challenging but ultimately rewarding, as it offers a rich tapestry of insights and reflections.

“Parade” is a brilliant, thought-provoking novel that pushes the boundaries of traditional storytelling. Rachel Cusk has once again demonstrated her ability to craft a deeply engaging and intellectually stimulating work, solidifying her place as one of contemporary literature’s most innovative voices.

Thank you to Farrar, Straus and Giroux and NetGalley for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This novel (not sure when to call something a novella) is a series of short somewhat interconnected short stories - some are a bit abstract in concept but all are easily readable. I personally enjoy Cusk’s work, I think her writing is beautiful - you can spend your time highlighting so many sections just to go back to reread when you have time. While this latest novel can be a quick read because it’s a short 200ish pages, you really do want to savor it and think about it while you read; if you read too quickly (which I tend to do) you will miss something because of the way she uses language. I thought listening to some of it on audio would make me lose something but it actually worked wonderfully and the narrator did a great job. Her last trilogy was somewhat autobiographical so this new one was a bit different but I liked it. In my opinion, this author is a bit like Mint Chocolate Chip ice cream, not everyone likes her, but those who do will enjoy this novel.

Thank you to NetGalley and Farrar, Straus and Giroux for the ARC to review

This was incredible -- one of those rare books I wanted to reread the instant I finished it. Cusk's prose is dizzying but effortlessly profound. At times the repetition of "G" reminded me of Catherine Lacey's BIOGRAPHY OF X; the novels are interesting in conversation with each other.

Rachel Cusk’s Parade is an unabashedly feminist book about the intersection between artistic creation and the roles and expectations for women, most especially, but not only, motherhood. In four sections, we follow characters, eavesdrop on conversations, read artist profiles that read almost like mini-biographies. The narrative voice shifts from I to we and back again. Like a sculptor moving around to view their piece from every side, Cusk too moves readers around to look at issues of gender and the creative life from various angles. Parade is unlike any novel I have ever read.

Let’s get this out of the way at the start: if you decide to read Parade, you will not always be clear on who is speaking and if or how characters are connected a goodly amount of the time that you are reading this book. And you just have to let that go because it really doesn’t matter. It’s not surprising that there’s a 2018 New Yorker interview where Cusk says “I’m not interested in character because I don’t think character exists anymore.”

For example, in each section we learn about an artist named G but despite always being called G, the time, gender, situation seems constantly to change. Who is (or are) G? If you believe the book blurb, G is one person. But that doesn’t feel right. Does G contain multitudes? Is G an avatar for “artist” in general?

Despite the readerly urge to make it make sense, I had to loosen up and let it go and instead focus on the topics being brought up, the examples Cusk shares, the voices who speak (and who don’t), the doubling, echoing, and mirroring that goes on.

As is probably evident, Parade is not a book that’s going to let you off easily. Reading it with other people is a great way to approach it. I was fortunate to read Parade alongside bookish friends and the group chat was humming probably more than it has with any other book because, although short, Parade packs a lot in. There are references to many real artists though not usually by name so it can take a bit of googling to make the connections. It’s definitely worth looking up Cusk’s essay about women in German modernist art. Unsurprisingly, my first instinct when I finished Parade was to start it all over again to read it through my now-Cusk-educated brain.

Parade is a book deeply in conversation with other books on the subject of women and creativity like Olga Ravn’s My Work and Lydia Sandren’s Collected Works. It looks at how women balance creative or intellectual work with the work of being a parent. Or can’t. As I wrote in my post on Mother’s Day, I’m eager to read books that show the depth and breadth of what women can do and experience beyond their roles as carers. That said, I’m also all here for books that shine a bright and unforgiving light on that idea to get us to ask: why?

Parade also made me eager to dive more deeply into Cusk’s backlist. I read Outline with my IRL book club many (MANY) years ago and didn’t wholly get on with it then and so never completed the trilogy. But when Second Place came out in 2021, I guessed it would turn up on prize lists and it did, I decided to read it and really enjoyed it. I’m a different reader from the one that read Outline a way back when and I can’t wait to dive back into her world.

So I’m pretty sure 2025 is going to be a “Year of Cusk” for me. I’m aiming to read A Life’s Work first and then the Outline trilogy (Outline, Transit, Kudos) and we’ll see where I go from there. And yes, I’m shallow enough that I’m planning to get editions that match.