We walked through town. Sylvie fixed her gaze six inches above eye level, but in fact no one stared, though many people glanced at us, and then glanced a second time. At the drugstore we passed Lucille and her friends, though Sylvie seemed not to notice. Lucille was dressed like all the others in a sweatshirt and sneakers and rolled-up jeans, and she looked after us, her hands stuck in her hip pockets.

This had been recommended to me here and here, so thanks to , and , though of course it also pops up on various Lists Of Great Books. It’s a rather subversive feminist novel about a household who dare to be different in a small Idaho town; The narrator’s eccentric aunt becomes her adoptive mother, and they determinedly find their own way outside the social norms. There is a very memorable lake. Much is told with few words.