The idea of a voyage as a way to truth, freedom and happiness is present throughout the novel. Glass, too, lends itself to metaphor, with Clotilde’s delicacy and the fragility of the marriage being just two examples. The dark underworld of Whitby echoes and reinforces the characters’ hidden emotions. Descriptions of craftsmen’s workshops, scientific curiosities, and street life let readers glimpse the lives and preoccupations of some Victorians.
Category: Literary Fiction Reviews
A review of Maddaddam by Margaret Atwood
The world of Maddaddam is harsh and often ugly world – particularly the Painballers – a group of criminals who have survived their Hunger Games style imprisonment a number of times and have lost their ‘humanity’ in the process. However, in spite of some pretty gruesome episodes, ultimately the story is a redemptive and satisfying one. The Craker’s naivety is charming, and beyond Toby and Zeb, the characters are delightfully Dickenesque – turning to fizz, flirting in scientific jargon, and cooking up a storm with weeds and lab-grown splices.
A review of The Chaperone by Laura Moriarty
Laura Moriarty’s three earlier novels are well worth reading. My favourite of these earlier works is While I’m Falling. The Chaperone, however, is broader in scope and required more research than the earlier works. It is a maturation story which interweaves the themes of racial equality, adoption policy, human sexuality and women’s autonomy. The Chaperone will make readers question their assumptions and preconceived notions.
A review of The House at the End of Hope Street by Menna Van Praag
The presence and influence of so many great women, nearly all of whom reveal their own struggles with insecurity and self-doubt, only strengthens the book’s overall message. This is a delightful, one-of-a-kind book. I rarely find a book where I actually want to crawl inside of the place, listen in on some conversations, and get to know some of the characters, but I found myself doing that with The House at the End of Hope Street.
The Bookman’s Tale with Charlie Lovett
The author of The Bookman’s Tale talks about his new novel, about his multinational settings, the book’s structure, the joy of libraries and bookstores, book restoration, his characters, the nature of fiction (versus nonfiction and plays), his upcoming work, and…
A review of The Bookman’s Tale by Charlie Lovett
Peter’s healing develops naturally through the chapters, and ultimately makes The Bookman’s Tale an immensely satisfying and pleasurable read that combines a range of genres and above all else, celebrates the beauty and wonder of the literary word.
A review of The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman
The Ocean at the End of the Lane has been touted as Mr. Gaiman’s first book for adults in eight years. True, it does not quite fall into the “All Ages” category that separates his works from “Adult” because a six-year-old would probably be scarred for life reading (or listening) to the scene where our hero (a seven-year-old boy) is almost drowned in his Safe Place (the bathtub where he reads) by his own father.
Bread of the Lost with Philomena Van Rijswijk
The author of Bread of the Lost talks about and reads lots of poems from her new poetry collection, discusses the notion of the ‘metaphorical feed’, the genesis of the book, the natural world as character, the wild animal beneath the…
A Review of Lifesaving Lessons: Notes From An Accidental Mother By Linda Greenlaw
She survived the storm that claimed the lives of the ill-fated fishing boat Andrea Gail’s crew (the Perfect Storm that inspired the book and film). But nothing prepared her for an even greater challenge—motherhood. Greenlaw chronicles her rapid journey from a self-sufficient, adventurous fisherman to the legal guardian of a teenager in Lifesaving Lessons: Notes from an Accidental Mother.
A review of Elemental By Amanda Curtin
Elemental is an exquisite novel. Every word of it is tightly crafted and pregnant with possibility. It is self-referential and post-modern in the way it undermines time, creating a genetic and emotional link between characters in multiple times and places.