Sophie, Standing There
Sophie, Standing There
by Meg Mason
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About the Book
“So smart, so funny, so moving. I absolutely loved it.”—Bonnie Garmus, New York Times bestselling author of Lessons in Chemistry
The “brilliant” (Ann Patchett) and much beloved author of the critically acclaimed Sorrow and Bliss returns with a tender and hilarious novel about heartbreak and the journey from isolation and loneliness towards love.
Sophie Pattison loves books. And as well as a dream job at a local book festival, she has a husband she adores, a lifelong best friend, Emma, and a brother she’s always been close to. Which makes you wonder why since Christmas Sophie has been living alone, estranged from Emma, avoiding her brother, and about to be fired.
Now it feels like the only thing she has left is reading. When Sophie re-discovers an author she first read in her twenties, the words on the page reach her in a new way—becoming both solace and company. Sophie devours every one of the author's novels and begins to dream of meeting her, but knows they never will. But what if she did? What if, by then, the author feels like a friend? What if, for Sophie, it feels almost like love?
In this much anticipated novel, Meg Mason captures the heartache and dark humor of our relationships in all their complexity, with a story about the power of connection and an ode to the inexplicable nature of the human heart.
About the Author
Meg Mason is the author of You Be Mother and Sorrow and Bliss, which became an international bestseller after it was published in 2021. Winner of the 2022 Fiction Book of the Year at the British Book Awards, and shortlisted for the 2022 Women's Prize for Fiction, it has since been translated into thirty languages. Meg's first career was in journalism, beginning at The Times of London and later writing for Vogue, Elle, GQ, Sunday Style and the New Yorker's 'Daily Shouts and Murmurs' column. Born in New Zealand, she lives in Sydney with her husband and two daughters. Her third novel, Sophie, Standing There, will be published in 2026.
Editorial Reviews
“So smart, so funny, so moving. Mason has done it again, this time using the behind-the-scenes mechanics at a literary festival to reveal the complexity of loneliness and how one woman attempts to dig herself out. I absolutely loved it.” —Bonnie Garmus, New York Times bestselling author of Lessons in Chemistry
“The lucky reader of Sophie, Standing There peers at the world through Sophie's eyes, and wonders how her life shaped this view. When the answers are revealed—about her marriage, her childhood, the gaps in her understanding—we experience a kind of wholeness with her. Or at least the possibility of wholeness. I loved Sophie, and I love Meg Mason’s brain and the strange, wonderful, funny stories she gives us.” —Ann Napolitano, New York Times bestselling author of Hello, Beautiful and Dear Edward
“Sophie, Standing There unfolds like a strange origami crane in reverse--so achingly tender and so brilliantly subtle that I could never put it down. The loneliness of our inner world and the quiet movement towards connection--nobody evokes it as breathtakingly as Meg Mason. And by ‘it,’ I guess I mean simply being a person. Dazzling.” —Catherine Newman, New York Times bestselling author of Wreck and Sandwich
“Deeply witty and hard to put down, Sophie, Standing There is a piercing, achingly human novel about the enormous courage required to step out of the wings and into your own life.” —Booklist (starred review)
“Sophie, Standing There is a moving examination of what it means to be alone in the world, and what it means to find connection. It is, by turns, heartbreaking, hilarious, and deeply hopeful. Meg Mason is a dazzling talent.”—Ann Patchett, award-winning and New York Times bestselling author of Whistler and Bel Canto