Big Little Lies is a highly entertaining novel set in a small community in contemporary Australia. The book focuses on three women who are sending their five-year old children to school for the first time: Jane, a young, single mom. Madeline, who has a teenage daughter from her first marriage and two children with her second husband. And Celeste, who has twin boys and an uber successful, well-to-do husband.
The story of Celeste, Madeline and Jane operates on three levels. At the first level, the novel is about what is happening within each woman's nuclear family. And let me tell you, it is not all good.
Second, there is the relationship between the three friends and the school, where there are cliques (for children and adults), bullying (again, children and adults) and lots of drama.
And third, there is the murder.
Murder, drama and bullying all sound serious. And they are. Yet this book is charming, funny (I laughed out loud. When does that happen?), and structured to create the maximum amount of mystery concerning both who is the victim of the murder and who is the perpetrator.
Big Little Lies is very good read. Check it out.
