Published in 2020, Graham Swift’s eleventh novel,

, explores recurring themes in this author’s work: the fragility of human bonds; transience and mortality; reconciling with the past; the significance of memory and of vigilance; trust and togetherness; betrayal and guilt; authenticity and performance. Asking that most fundamental of questions—what it means to be alive—through the emphatic title,

is concerned with the significance of presence and absence for everyone across ages, classes, and roles: as children and parents, as spouses and friends, as professionals and social beings. Evoking the necessity of accepting mystery as essential to being alive, the novel affirms the transformative power of creativity.

Here We Are focuses on the changing relationships

4071 words

Citation: Logotheti, Anastasia. "Here We Are". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 27 August 2021 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=40549, accessed 19 April 2024.]

• View recommended reading for this article