Pipette

Written in short (page-long or less, usually) chapters of unflowered yet dramatic prose, Pipette starts with a woman on a train returning from the ballet to her dogs, her partner. Trouble at home escalates. The country is on edge. She tries to escape a threatening situation. Then comes a pandemic; our protagonist hangs out with her dogs, manages remote teaching. With leitmotifs of skiing, dogs, trains, waterways, birds, nature, spiritual guides, triathlons, she writes, she teaches, she swims/bikes/runs. The novel dips into her past--trauma, relationships, activities, working in the lab--which pendulums, then finally propels forward.