Rachel Cusk’s 2026 Novel "Life of M" Probes Celebrity Through a Natalie Portman-Like Star
Updated
Updated · The Guardian · Aug 21
Rachel Cusk’s 2026 Novel "Life of M" Probes Celebrity Through a Natalie Portman-Like Star
3 articles · Updated · The Guardian · Aug 21
Summary
"Life of M" centers on M, a lifelong film star whose career closely echoes Natalie Portman’s, using that resemblance to examine fame, performance and the struggle to seem "real."
Cusk frames the story through a nameless narrator who briefly meets M to discuss an autobiography, then builds the novel from fragments of M’s life intercut with the narrator’s own reflections.
The review says the book’s strongest passages come from Cusk’s sharp, spare prose and highly specific scenes, which capture celebrity’s polished emptiness and its corrosive effects on family and identity.
It argues the novel is less successful when the narration shifts into an ambiguous collective "we," a device that can feel puzzling and emotionally distancing despite flashes of brilliance.
Overall, the reviewer judges "Life of M" as technically formidable and often striking, but ultimately more admirable than lovable.