Books like The sunken cathedral by Kate Walbert

Kate Walbert’s *The Sunken Cathedral* paints a lyrical portrait of four women living in the Chelsea neighborhood of New York City. Marie and Simone, shop‑keepers and widows in their seventies, have spent decades sharing a deep, resilient friendship. Both immigrants and survivors of World War II, they are still vibrant and open to new love. Elizabeth, a tenant of Marie’s home, balances motherhood to a thirteen‑year‑old boy while grappling with the uncertainties of her own life. The Art Historian, who joins Marie and Simone for a painting class, offers a quiet, reflective perspective as she sketches the city beneath its water‑logged skyline. Through shifting viewpoints and interwoven narrative threads, Walbert explores marriage, female friendship, and the enduring rhythms of family life, all set against the backdrop of a post‑Sandy New York.

First publish date: 2015