{"product_id":"treading-water","title":"Treading Water","description":"\u003cp\u003eThe relationship with siblings can be tenuous to say the least. We so often take for granted that we understand each other, but when we really need each other, do we really know the other? Can we \u003cbr\u003erestore bonds broken or frayed by time and distance? Does being a blood relation tie you together? \u003cbr\u003eCan we heal from the wounds of the past? Can we accept that we do things differently?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eKay Brown, in her debut novel ‘Treading Water’, has written a strong, very readable, empathetic story \u003cbr\u003eexploring all these themes though the eyes of half-sisters Alison and Bridget. Now adults with their own \u003cbr\u003efamilies, the chasm between their lives has widened almost as much as the distance between Bridget’s \u003cbr\u003eSouth Africa and Alison’s Dallas, Texas. As children the two girls had strong bonds, their mutual father \u003cbr\u003eensuring that his three children should spend quality time together. Alison, the child of their father’s \u003cbr\u003esecond marriage - more indulged; Bridget and Justin coping with their increasingly chaotic and \u003cbr\u003edepressed mother. Alison’s talent for diving sending her from South Africa on scholarship to Dallas, \u003cbr\u003ewhere she eventually settles, marries and now has two small children. Bridget has her own teenage \u003cbr\u003edaughter and loving husband. But when Alison has a freak accident, is wheelchair bound, has thrown \u003cbr\u003ehusband Tom out because of infidelity, the only person she wants to help her is Bridget. Sacrificing her \u003cbr\u003eown family holiday to fly across the world, the practical Bridget arrives to confront a taut situation. Does \u003cbr\u003eAlison really want the help or to settle some of the resentments built up over the intervening years?  \u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWater is the element that is Alison’s safe haven. ‘Timing and focus’ her coach’s mantra, which seem to \u003cbr\u003ebe an undercurrent of the story. Because everything we do is about timing; and that focus of listening \u003cbr\u003ecarefully, hearing the meaning. Brown creates the two characters using different tenses which works \u003cbr\u003ewell. She constructs their formative years to give the reader a strong foundation of the past influencing \u003cbr\u003ethe present. Exploring the wave of emotions that threaten to engulf the half-sisters, she draws you in, \u003cbr\u003esurprises you. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFear, control, respect, learning to understand yourself before others. Healing. Brown has created an authentic story many will recognize. A good read, she delves deep into the ties that bind to bring a satisfying conclusion. \u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Kopano Print","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":45471826247856,"sku":"9780903733076","price":320.0,"currency_code":"ZAR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0632\/9181\/8160\/files\/TreadingWater.png?v=1784639886","url":"https:\/\/www.mzansibooks.co.za\/products\/treading-water","provider":"Mzansi Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}