Stuart Evers

Shadows of the past

Danny Denton, Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi and Emma Glass explore the dramatic effects of past deeds on their characters’ lives

issue 10 March 2018

The Shangri-Las’ song ‘Past, Present and Future’ divides a life into three, Beethoven-underpinned phases: before, during and after. Each section turns in on the next, binding them together with devastating effect. It is one of the oddest and most radically structured moments in pop, and one that came to mind when reading these three very different debut novels.

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