''Let Go My Hand'' is the fourth novel by British author
Edward Docx.
Plot introduction
Louis Lasker his father Larry is in his seventies and suffering from
MND. Together they accompany in their
VW camper
The Volkswagen Transporter, initially the Type 2, is a range of light commercial vehicles, built as vans, pickups, and cab-and-chassis variants, introduced in 1950 by the German automotive industry, automaker Volkswagen as their second mass ...
from
Dover
Dover ( ) is a town and major ferry port in Kent, southeast England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies southeast of Canterbury and east of Maidstone. ...
to
Dignitas in
Switzerland
Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...
. Louis older twin brothers Ralph and Jack join his father as they visit champagne-producing châteaux, ancient caves and go to concerts of classical music, but as they journey to
Zürich
Zurich (; ) is the list of cities in Switzerland, largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is in north-central Switzerland, at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich. , the municipality had 448,664 inhabitants. The ...
to consider euthanasia...
Reception
"This is surely one of the first novels to face squarely the issue of assisted dying, and it is equally unflinching in its examination of family dynamics. After a few days in his brothers’ company, Louis wonders: “Is it normal to love the idea of people more than their actuality?” It's a guilty thought that's probably not uncommon, but it takes a writer of Docx's eloquence to articulate it. His lucid prose makes the characters’ complex thoughts engaging, and there are times when the Laskers’ voices are so distinctive that you can almost hear them talking."
References
{{reflist
External links
Author websiteGuardian reception
2017 British novels
Fiction about euthanasia
Picador (imprint) books
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
Works about motor neuron disease