The Opposite of Success (Eleanor Elliott Thomas, Text)

Arianna Huffington’s quote, ‘Failure is not the opposite of success, it’s part of success’, is the essence of Eleanor Elliott Thomas’s debut novel and likely the source of its title. Set in Melbourne, The Opposite of Success follows best friends Lorrie and Alex as they attempt to navigate life nearing 40—sometimes with little luck. Lorrie is a mother of two, happily married, and is prepping for an event and a promotion she’s not sure she wants. Alex is passionate about the environment and fell into working in film production after dropping out of her fine art PhD in London. Struggling with the thought that her life means nothing, Alex decides to create a documentary about a radical environmentalist group that—unbeknownst to Alex at first—happens to be planning a protest at Lorrie’s event. The story is told in alternating perspectives and Lorrie’s and Alex’s narratives intertwine and culminate in one day that descends into comicality. The novel is primarily character-based, with a great deal devoted to establishing the protagonists’ backstories and personalities. The narrative pace is slow until the plot rapidly develops in the last third, and the characters are so fully formed that the slight ridiculousness of events can be seen as plausible. From motherhood and marital affairs to female friendships and fighting climate change, this book captures the messiness and absurdness of life to illustrate that failing is a necessary part of it. The Opposite of Success sits between the popular ‘sad girl’ books and commercial women’s fiction and has elements of Monica Heisey’s Really Good, Actually, Claire Christian’s It’s Been A Pleasure, Noni Blake and Liane Moriarty’s novels.

Books+Publishing reviewer: Lisa Schuurman is an editor, writer and book reviewer. Books+Publishing is Australia’s number-one source of pre-publication book reviews.

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Category: Reviews