What if you are cleaning the basement of your family home after the death of your mother, and you find the bodies of two foster-children in a basement freezer who went missing 28 years ago? This is an intriguing book that examines family secrets and the social welfare system. Some of the ideas reminded me of Zoe Whitall’s book The Best Kind Of People where suspicion is directed to “good” people. What is the cost of bringing foster children into a home for all concerned? Highly recommended.
Category: Book themes
Precious Cargo – Craig Davidson
Davidson usually writes gritty guy-books (e.g. Cataract City) that are fiction. In contrast, this new book is non-fiction, an account of a year spent driving a school bus for five special-needs kids in Calgary. There are some very funny parts, such as the perils of substitute driving a school bus at Halloween, but Davidson takes a thoughtful look at how people with disabilities are viewed by the non-disabled, in school and in society in general. The book also includes an introspective examination of himself as a struggling writer at the time – overall, a very worthwhile read.
Wolf Winter; The Midnight Sun – Cecilia Ekback
I read these two books back-to-back so my comments will be combined. My friend Hilary introduced me to this author, described as a master of Nordic Noir. The best aspect of these two books is time and place. Both books are set in Northern Sweden where Norway and Finland converge. WW takes place in 1717; MS takes place in the same location 140 years later, in 1856. Living in this isolated setting is exacerbated by weather: bitter winter cold in WW and insomnia for one key character in MS due to continuous summer sunlight. In both books, murders are committed and solved by amateurs, the inhabitants (settlers) in WW or visitors in MS. The chief protagonist in WW is Maija, a woman with two children struggling to survive in the absence of her husband. Both books, but especially WW, have a mystical element (the old religion, aka witchcraft) from the wandering Lapp inhabitants of the region (now Sami). Both books are highly recommended.
The Dust That Falls From Dreams – Louis de Bernieres
De Bernieres wrote the delightful Corelli’s Mandolin, and his latest book is also excellent. The setting is Britain in 1914. The horror of WWI, the mud and stink and brutal death, is described vividly. Also, very precise details of flying are detailed. But this is a book about relationships within the McCosh family, in particular the 4 sisters. At times, the book is a tender love story that also touches on grief and religion. The relationships are often complicated: a sister loves someone who does not love her in return, and vice versa. There is some wry humour, particularly the class-conscious matriarch Mrs. McCosh who should be played by Maggie Smith if this story is ever adapted for film or theatre. Overall, a very entertaining story.
The Island Of Books – Dominique Fortier
Also from the CBC Books winter reading list: Most of this short but exquisite book takes place in the 15th century Mont Saint-Michel monastery: books and grief are the eternal themes, in the era of libraries as the keeper of knowledge just before the Gutenberg press invention.
Stag’s Leap – Sharon Olds
I read novels almost exclusively because generally short stories are too short for plot development and context (Alice Munro’s writing is an obvious exception). And because I read quickly, I typically do not read poetry where so much meaning is often attached to a single word. However, a fellow reader (Renee) who I respect greatly told me about Stag’s Leap, a Pulitzer Prize winner, and it is fantastic. The poems tell the story of the ending of the author’s 30-year marriage. The poem “Last Look” will take your breath away and probably make you cry. The poems are an insightful look at loss and resulting invisibility – remarkable emotional poetry.
Serial Monogamy – Kate Taylor
This is a new author for me, from the CBC Books winter reading list (thank goodness for CBC’s literary interest). This is an excellent book about relationships, my favourite topic. The central character is a wife/mother/author who writes a serialized fictional account of a long-standing affair that Charles Dickens had with Nellie, a young woman. This seems an unlikely focus for a novel but the writing is flawless with some time wrinkles that sometimes makes the reading complicated but very enjoyable.
The Little Red Chairs – Edna O’Brien
An astonishing book: the seduction by an evil person, the desperate lives of the displaced and dispossessed. The title refers to a 2012 commemoration of the siege of Sarajevo: 11,514 red chairs were placed in rows, one for each person killed in the siege that lasted for almost 4 years. What is remarkable about this book is that it is an Irish woman, Fidelma, who is the central core to the story which takes place in Ireland and England. Thanks Mike, for this recommendation.
Her – Harriet Lane
A dark psychological drama about the relationship between two women, based on a one-sided memory. This is a sisterhood story with a riveting examination of the tyranny of motherhood. Really fascinating how the story unfolds.
What David Read 