Outline

by Rachel Cusk
Outline cover
Good Books rating 4.33
Literary Fiction
Technical:
  • ID: 737
  • Added: 2025-09-19
  • Updated: 2025-09-20
  • ISBN: 9780571346776
  • Publisher: Faber & Faber
  • Published: 2018-05-01
  • Formats: 26
  • Reviews: 3
Buy online
Waterstones
Paperback • £9.99

Outline is a novel that unfolds through a series of ten conversations, each revealing the lives, fantasies, and regrets of the people the narrator encounters. Set against the backdrop of a sweltering summer in Athens, the story follows a novelist teaching a creative writing course, whose interactions with students, writers, and strangers paint a vivid portrait of human connection and loss. Through these disclosures, the narrator's own story emerges by contrast, offering a poignant exploration of grief and self-discovery. The novel's spare and lucid prose creates a powerful synthesis of form and content, making it a deeply original and moving reading experience.

Reviews
Chris Gregory Books · 2022-04-18
contemplative 4.00

The novel is described as a contemplative and insightful exploration of human relationships. The reviewer finds it brimming with resonant insights.

The reviewer from Chris Gregory Books finds Outline to be a wonderful and contemplative novel that brims with resonant insights about what it means to be a person in relation to other people. They appreciate the novel's ability to capture the nuances of human interactions and the introspective nature of the characters. The reviewer also notes that the novel is a thought-provoking exploration of identity and self-reflection.

Quick quotes

    Outline is a wonderful, contemplative little novel that brims with resonant insight about what it means to be a person in relation to other people.

    The characters of Outline are very realistic, with wholly believable insecurities, self-reflections, and inner worlds.

    It's very well written with some truly brilliant observations, it's intelligent, it holds its focus.

The New York Times · 2015-01-11
heartbreaking 4.50

The novel is praised for its heartbreaking portrayal of human emotions. The reviewer highlights the powerful alternate route it suggests for understanding relationships.

The reviewer from The New York Times is struck by the heartbreaking portrait of poise, sympathy, regret, and rage that Outline presents. They appreciate the novel's unique approach to exploring human relationships and the powerful alternate route it suggests for understanding the complexities of human interactions. The reviewer also notes that the novel is a remarkable exploration of the human condition and the intricacies of self-reflection.

Quick quotes

    The result is a heartbreaking portrait of poise, sympathy, regret and rage.

    With this book, Cusk suggests a powerful alternate route for the novel.

    Outline is a novel in ten conversations. Spare and lucid, it follows a novelist teaching a course in creative writing over an oppressively hot summer in Athens.

The Guardian · Julie Myerson · 2014-09-07
enthralling 4.50

The novel is praised for its vivid and diverse voices that create a compelling narrative. The reviewer highlights the daring approach and the immersive experience it offers.

The reviewer from The Guardian is captivated by the cacophony of vivid voices that dominate the narrative of Outline. They appreciate the daring approach taken by the author, which submerges the narrator and allows the other characters to take center stage. This unique structure creates an immersive experience that resonates with the reader. The reviewer also notes that the novel is a remarkable exploration of human interactions and the complexities of relationships.

Quick quotes

    Rachel Cusk's daring new novel finds the narrator submerged by a cacophony of vivid voices off.

    Outline succeeds powerfully. Among other things, it gets a great variety of human beings down on to the page with both immediacy and depth.

    The result is a heartbreaking portrait of poise, sympathy, regret and rage.

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