The Body Builders

About this item

"I was enraptured by this book...[Clarke] is a fearless writer, and I felt a shiver of admiration as I read every page." —Katie Kitamura, author of Audition Named a Most Anticipated Book of 2026 by Debutiful, Lit Hub, and Our Culture For readers of Megan Nolan and Sheila Heti, a mesmerizing Borgesian literary debut about the frayed borders between our bodies and minds. Ada lives a solitary life. She spends her days in her London apartment building's swimming pool, occasionally visiting with her cousin Francesca and meeting her friends, each of them chatting, drinking, posing invitations Ada ignores. Ada's parents are recently divorced after her father became a bodybuilder: he spends his days at the gym, which is crowded and bright, warm with human proximity, infrequently calling to express minor concerns around his daughter's well-being. When she meets a man named Atticus by the pool, Ada