4 Stars
Today is Louise Doughty’s 52nd birthday; in her
honour, I’m posting my review of her latest book, Apple Tree Yard.
Dr. Yvonne Carmichael, a middle-aged geneticist, someone
with “status and gravitas,” finds herself accused of murder; her co-accused is
a man with whom she had a torrid affair. She narrates much of the story in
flashbacks detailing the events that bring her to a dock in Old Bailey.
Information is parceled out slowly. The identity of the
murder victim isn’t known until midway through the novel. Even the lover’s name
is not revealed until two-thirds of the way through the book; Yvonne addresses
her lover throughout, but only as “you” or “X.” This technique of withholding
information certainly adds to the suspense. And although there is a prologue
that hints at the verdict, suspense during the trial is maintained.
This book would probably be classified as a psychological
thriller/courtroom drama, but it has more serious elements. It is really a
novel about “the stories we tell in order to make sense of ourselves.” In the
end, Yvonne’s lover is described as “a fantasist, a person who could only
manage his normal life as long as it was propped up by a series of
self-flattering tales” but throughout the reader notices that his identity is
shaped by what she wants to believe about him rather than what she actually
knows about him. Yvonne claims to be self-aware (“Self-awareness: it is one of
the chief bonuses of advancing age.”), but the reader cannot help but wonder
whether she really knows herself. Is she perhaps deceiving herself about
herself as well as about others?
The problem is complicated when someone else is involved:
“Relationships are about stories, not truth. . . . the minute you enter an
intimate relationship with another person there is an automatic dissonance
between your story about yourself, and their story about you.” During the court
case, Yvonne also comes to understand that a series of facts can be arranged in
a variety of ways: she sees lawyers manipulating the jury through “the
misplacement of evidence from context” so they will interpret events in a
certain way. She also realizes that “as a scientist, I have told more stories
than I ever realized, or admitted to”: “I know how the whole point of
presenting a new theory is to anticipate the counter-citations from those who
will disagree with you and to have, up your sleeve, a list of counter-counter-citations.”
The novel also examines the treatment of women who are
victims of sexual assault. Any woman charging someone with sexual assault must
be prepared to have all secrets revealed by the defense attorneys: “’Internet
searches, questioning friends and family and work colleagues, starts with that.
If there’s nothing in your present life, they will get to work on your past,
starting with tracking down your sexual history . . . They can do anything. If
they are challenged, all they have to do is give a reason to the judge why it’s
relevant to the defence.’”
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