There’s a difference between the intimacy of marriage and the intimacy of a close friendship. Katherine Ashenburg offers a nuanced and sharply observed depiction of both in her debut novel. Sofie & Cecilia is about two women, each of whom is married to an artist in early 20th-century Sweden. At the time, marriage was considered to be a woman’s aim in life and her role was to be a good wife and mother, but Sofie and Cecilia have greater aspirations — even as they act as helpmates to their famous husbands.
Katherine was interviewed by Shelagh Rogers on CBC’s “The Next Chapter.”