Sara Highbury, the manager of a Cape Town, South Africa boarding house, lives her life in the past. She is haunted by a man named Herbert Wakeford, the love of her life who suffered from a degenerative brain condition. One day not long after Herbert's death, another of Sara's lovers, Amin Hafferjee, pays her an unexpected visit, and Sara proceeds to tell him her life's story.

Sara's story forms the basic narrative of Gill Schierhout's debut novel, The Shape of Him. Alongside her linear story are the very jumbled thoughts of Herbert, in his last days before his death. The two plots begin to blur, and Schierhout plays with the reader's concept of time, so that we have to put the story together on our own. As Sara and Herbert's life together is revealed, so is the fact that Herbert has a daughter—a child whose mother abandons her, forcing Sara to raise a little girl who is not her own.

Schierhout weaves the stories of Sara and Herbert together using sparse prose. Her writing mirrors the theme of the fragility of memory, as her spare sentences are just as fleeting as Herbert's thoughts. The reader is never really sure if Herbert is a reliable narrator, but it does not matter—The Shape of Him is just a beautiful walk through two characters' minds.

The various settings in Schierhout's novel add to its power. Sara lives in the bustle of Cape Town, and Herbert is confined to an asylum. They are disconnected, not just in their minds, but by the long distance separating them. The asylum is a sombre place driven by rules. In contrast, Sara and Herbert once lived in South Africa's diamond fields, where Herbert was employed. These fields call to Herbert in his last days, as he remembers the freedom he and Sara experienced there.

The Shape of Him is a strong debut with interesting characters. Schierhout writes with a beautiful rhythm, and her exploration of memory leaves the reader with lots to think about. I look forward to more by this exciting new author.