In Eva Menasse's new novel, you can smell the roses

Eva Menasse's latest novel, "Alleinruhelage," delves into the profound emotional experience of parting with a cherished family home. The narrative centers on an unnamed narrator who returns to the weekend house, a place of refuge and shared memories by a Brandenburg lake, with the sole purpose of preparing it for sale.

This house, once a sanctuary from Berlin's hustle, was transformed by the narrator and her husband into a home where their children grew up, summer parties were held, and friendships flourished. Now, with grown children, a dissolved marriage, and past relationships faded, the house stands as the last tangible link to a bygone era. The narrator's previous attempts to sell the property over a decade ago were met with last-minute hesitations, but this time, the farewell appears final.

As the narrator sorts through belongings and prepares the house, she engages in a quiet monologue with the familiar rooms. Her life story unfolds not in a linear fashion, but as a stream of consciousness, triggered by scents, garden views, or the creak of a floorboard. These recollections weave together past and present, touching upon themes of origin, aging, belonging, and the feeling of being an outsider. The novel also touches upon the challenges of settling in post-reunification Germany, the eccentricities of "Datscha" neighbors, and the lingering impact of past relationships.