The Life and Death of Sophie Stark

The Life and Death of Sophie Stark by Anna North

Published by Weidenfeld and Nicolson

19th May 2015

Hardback Edition

 

The Life and Death of Sophie Stark is the story of an enigmatic film director, told by the six people who loved her most. Brilliant, infuriating, all-seeing and unknowable, Sophie Stark makes films said to be 'more like life than life itself'. But her genius comes at a terrible cost: to her husband, to the brother she left behind, and to the actress she can't quite forget.

This read came about via my Twitter feed - it's amazing how books take hold over on there and I requested it immediately.  It's an interesting story, in some ways similar to that of Night Film by Marrish Pessl but not quite as dark.

It tells the story of film director Sophie Stark (not her real name).  We follow her through high school, of her unrequited crush on the football star, and the subsequent film she makes about him - Daniel.  She continues making films that are not of the norm, but avant garde in genre, and of their popularity and intrigue within society.  But does anyone actually know Sophie and what has led her to make her films in this way?  Anna North takes six different points of view, from people that all know Sophie, and her work, and retells her life and, of course, her death.  (By the way this is not a spoiler - the clue is in the title)!

This isn't a huge book and it didn't take me long to finish it.  By the end I felt like Sophie was a real person though, and that I'd just been on the journey of her life.  A remarkable book that I'm sure will call for much discussion - a great book group read I think.

Happy Reading

 

Miss Chapter x