Book Review: The End of Loneliness

German author Benedict Wells’ The End of Loneliness is a heartbreaking and captivating exploration of loss, grief, love, and loneliness. He tells the story of three siblings, Jules, Marty, and Liz, who experience the tragic loss of their parents at a young age. Wells writes with a tender style, focusing on Jules’ own experience of grief as an outgoing and adventurous child. The death of his parents prompts him to draw inwards and imagine a version of reality, separate from the tragedy he is living.

We follow Jules’ encounter with Alva at boarding school, a fellow lone soul, hiding a dark past herself. Wells navigates the sentiment “The only way we can overcome the loneliness within us is together,” throughout the novel, and takes us on a journey of love and isolation, within which Alva and Jules’ close bond grows. We see them mature and grow both apart and towards each other; a really beautiful example of two lonely souls finding solace in each other’s company.

The fractured sibling dynamic is also an important theme throughout this book: the awkward Jules, who dreams of becoming a photographer or a writer, in honour of his father; obsessive and socially awkward Marty, who often appears as cold or detached from the sibling dynamic, and Liz, whose self-destructive tendencies and mercurial behaviour present her as an example of the beautiful yet volatile experience of adolescence.

One of my favourite things about this book was Wells’ tender style. His character description, particularly of Jules, felt gentle and beautifully crafted. To describe the complex feelings of solitude and grief that Jules experiences, Wells is sure to recognise his awkward traits: maladaptive dream-like characteristics, which serve as coping mechanisms.

His relationships with his brother and sister continually highlight the unseen bonds of family and how, despite our differences, we often recognise parts of ourselves in those closest to us. A statement acknowledged in Wells’s dedication of the book to his sister.

The End of Loneliness beautifully explores life’s greatest struggles, including loss and grief, while celebrating the quiet brilliance of love. Wells refuses to shy away from the poignant themes of grief, loss, and love, but does so with such gentle passion that it doesn’t feel like we’re pacing our way through pages of dark, unnecessary pain; it is instead a real portrayal of the human condition. I would recommend this book to anyone in need of a moving story, which serves as a reminder of our own mortality. 

As Wells describes:

“You alone are responsible for yourself and your life. And if you just do what you’ve always done, you’ll just get what you’ve always got.”

Written by, Sophie Robinson