The engrossing true-crime classic that follows a man and his broken life, a community wracked by tragedy, and the long and torturous road to closure

Dua Lipa's Book Club Pick for August 2025
One of the Guardian's 100 Best Books of the 21st Century

'A true-crime classic and literary masterpiece' ANNE ENRIGHT
'Bears comparison with In Cold Blood' KATE ATKINSON
'It grabbed me by the throat' GILLIAN ANDERSON
'Sharp and forensic' DUA LIPA

Father's Day, 2005. Just after nightfall, a discarded husband was driving his three young sons back to their mother's house.

On that dark country road, barely five minutes from home, the old white car swerved off the highway and plunged into a dam. The father freed himself and swam to the bank, but the car sank to the bottom, and all the children drowned.

The court case that followed became Helen Garner's obsession, one that would take over her life until its final verdict.

The resulting book, This House of Grief, is a true crime classic and literary masterpiece, which examines just what we are capable of and how fiercely we hide it from ourselves.

A W&N Essential with an introduction by Rachel Cooke