Review: The Changing Room by Christine Sykes

Title: The Changing Room

Published: November 1st 2019, Simon & Schuster Au

Status: Read October 2019, courtesy Simon & Schuster/Netgalley

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My Thoughts:

The Changing Room focuses on three very different women who are brought together by by their involvement in ‘Suitability’, a program the author models on Dress For Success, a worldwide non profit organisation launched in 1987 whose broadest aim is to empower and support women in need by providing them with professional attire, with whom Christine Sykes herself has been a volunteer for several years.

Conscious of her privilege as a wealthy, successful businesswoman married to a surgeon, Claire is the driving force behind the founding of Suitability.

Anna, in her late 50’s, becomes a volunteer with Suitability when she is abruptly fired from her position as an Executive Assistant and at a loose end.

Molly becomes a client of Suitability when she is in need of appropriate clothing to attend court while trying to regain custody of her four young children.

Exploring a myriad of themes women might confront at various stages of life Including relationship breakdown, unemployment, domestic violence, ill health, new love, and loss, I enjoyed the individual stories of these women. Despite their disparate circumstances and experience, Claire, Anna and Molly develop a friendship and provide support for one another when in need as their participation in Suitability proves to be a catalyst for change, occasionally in unexpected ways.

Generally I thought The Changing Room was well written, however I wasn’t keen on the over-broad speech denoting Molly’s disadvantaged social status. Not that it could be considered inaccurate as such, but it’s awkward to read and could have been toned down without compromising the character.

Still this is a strong debut from a new Australian author, and I thought The Changing Room was an engaging and ultimately uplifting contemporary women’s fiction novel.

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