Writer explores the rocky terrain where politics and sex collide,
Novel uses age-old dynamic between a powerful man and younger woman to ask: Why?
The title of Kerry Clare’s new novel, “Waiting for a Star to Fall,” sounds deceptively like a sappy love story. Some might dismiss it because it concerns the fraught emotional life of a young woman. But then, dismissing the voices and experiences of young women is one of the very things the book explores.
Toronto author Clare, whose previous books explored territory she’s personally experienced, such as anonymous blogging (“Mitzi Bytes”) and being a mother (“The M Word: Conversations about Motherhood”), now leads us through the rocky terrain where politics and sex collide in this #MeToo era.
On the first page, we learn that Derek Murdoch, a rising political superstar who plummeted spectacularly due to accusations of sexual misconduct, is now back on top. Although he had to resign as party leader, he defied pollsters and has cruised to an easy win as mayor of his hometown.
But “Waiting for a Star to Fall” isn’t so much about Derek as it is about Brooke Ellis, his young staffer. At 23, she’s a good 15 years younger than he is, and strongly attracted to this smart, charismatic, older man with his self-deprecating humour. She’s sure Derek recognized her earnest ambition when he offered her a job after picking her out of a crowd in a dive bar.
“I don’t know a better place to find young, dynamic people who are looking for their first jobs,” he says. His office turns out to be full of young, attractive women.
Brooke and Derek become romantically involved and she persuades herself their relationship is unique. But when two young women accuse him of sexual misconduct that allegedly happened a decade ago, she’s thrown for a loop. She’s always been his fixer, making excuses for him, especially to herself. Of course he hires only women, she rationalizes; he’s a feminist who’s all about equality. Sure he flirts with other women; he wants their votes.
As Brooke haltingly tries to process it all, she bumps up against strong opinions from her sister, older female colleagues and her mother. When Brooke argues the allegations are just a woman’s word, her mother responds, “I think it’s interesting, the way a woman’s word counts for nothing.”
The book is a little too heavily laden with Brooke’s self-examining questions (“Was she even capable of presuming the truth of this woman’s story? … Whose side was she on?”) And the structure is occasionally shaky, with a best friend only making a jarring appearance two-thirds of the way through.
But the conversations between Brooke and Derek are disturbingly authentic. Brooke wants Derek to define their relationship; Derek says, “Definitions are limits … And I hate that.”
She needs to know his intentions; he says further analysis “will wreck the magic of it all.”
Derek’s handling of the sex scandal also rings true.
He quaveringly maintains his innocence, invokes the support of his two sisters, is forced to accept mass resignations of key staffers, flees a news conference and is chased by reporters down flights of stairs to a waiting car. It’s startlingly close to Patrick Brown’s handling of misconduct allegations in 2018 (he was never charged), his resignation as leader of Ontario’s Progressive Conservative Party and his quick comeback to become mayor of Brampton.
You won’t find much wit in this novel, and very little humour. But you will find authenticity, along with possible answers to questions such as why women are drawn to powerful older men or why they continue to pursue men who’ve hurt them.
“Waiting for a Star to Fall” may be both a cautionary tale and a basis for understanding, especially if somebody you know — a sister, a daughter, a roommate, a friend or possibly yourself — has ever been caught up in a dubious relationship. I wasn’t expecting to like the book, and I was frequently annoyed by the main characters. But “Waiting for a Star to Fall” surprised me. I read it in a day, and I’ve been thinking about it ever since.
You won’t find much wit in this novel, and very little humour. But you will find authenticity