This is a delightful and somewhat magical book, set in 1947 in Cornwall, England. The writing is beautiful, just wonderful story telling. Winman previously wrote the delightful When God Was A Rabbit which is brilliant.
(Amy’s note: When God was a Rabbit has one of the funniest descriptions of a Christmas pageant that I’ve ever read)
As an aside, I have a goal of NOT reading any more WWII novels, but this book was recommended highly by a reading buddy in Ottawa, and I am very glad to have read this compelling story. The key feature is that the book is written from the perspective of two children and then young adults. There are two intersecting story lines: Marie-Laure in France and Werner in Germany. Werner’s decision to join the German army produces conflicted emotions. And the chaos of war is accentuated for Marie-Laure because she is blind and thus especially vulnerable. This is a very good read.
Exquisite writing about small-town and rural Saskatchewan in 1932 (dirty thirties and depression) and 1960. At the heart of the story is Elena, an enigmatic and mysterious woman. Much is left unsaid in this moving and poignant story.
A beautiful and moving story about ageing on your own terms. The novel is set in Northern Ontario where 3 elderly men can hide in the remoteness. But two women join the hideaway and life for all changes. The ending is wistful and transcendent. This was the second funner-up in Canada Reads 2015 (with Martha Wainwright as the proponent), a very well-deserved recognition of exceptional writing.
A short novel about life and love, introspective stream-of-consciousness rambling by a female character known only as The Wife. Wonderful musings about the all-consuming demands of parenthood and then a troubled marriage. In short, excellent writing.
This book is subtitled “wicked tales” and these 9 stories absolutely are wickedly entertaining. The first three stories are particularly good as they are linked by common characters. An attractive feature of this collection is that Atwood writes about mature older characters.
This book provides a demoralizing and disturbing view of young people in small-town Canada. Life is particularly dismal for Jude as a gay teenager who is bullied. This is an important book to read but it will be uncomfortable (but Ru still deserves to have won the Canada Reads competition).
This is an excellent book about two very different women of mixed background/race: an Afghani- American raised in Karachi who moves to Montreal, and a Chinese-Canadian raised in Hamilton. This is a story about relationships, between friends and husbands and children but above all else, it is about the love of music. This is worthwhile reading just for the description of NY jazz in the 1970s.
This story is told in tantalizing pieces/sequences, alternating between 1925 to 2012. The slow reveal of details is exquisite. The central character, Teddy, is complex, both a WWII hero and yet somewhat cowardly in other aspects of his life. His relationship with his daughter Viola is particularly fascinating; she resents his reasonableness. And there is a big surprise at the end but in retrospect, this should have not been surprising because this novel is a companion to Atkinson’s superb last book, Life After Life.
What David Read 