pickThis book is a series of interconnected stories told from the POV of an adult looking back at her childhood. The way these quiet stories unfurled reminded me a bit of Alice Munro's Lives of Girls and Women or Joan Chase's During the Reign of the Queen of Persia. I missed the wit, anger, idiosyncrasy & uncompromising vision that characterised the protagonists in A Jest of God and the Fire Dwellers, but these stories exerted a subtle, tender power.
batsy I found Isabel Huggan's Afterword thoughtful in how it outlines the "writerly eye" that Vanessa has, a character that partly reflects Laurence's own life. The way Vanessa, as a child who is largely alone with no particular confidante, absorbs the circumstances of her life & the people around her, & then sifts through the moods, emotions, & experiences to create stories out of them is an extended metaphor of the writer's creative coming of age. 3y
batsy But otherwise as @BarbaraBB and @vivastory have mentioned this one didn't quite hit the mark as the previous two I read with the group! @LeahBergen @merelybookish #manawakans 3y
Butterfinger I love reading your reviews. If you are not already, you should be professional. 3y
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LauraBeth Agree with @Butterfinger! 3y
batsy @Butterfinger @LauraBeth Thank you, you're very kind 💜💜 3y
nathandrake1997 Exquisite review ❤️❤️❤️❤️ I wish I could write even half as brilliant as this someday ❤️❤️❤️❤️ 3y
BarbaraBB You should, Suba, your reviews are always so on point! 3y
LeahBergen Lovely review! I‘m the slow poke reader of the group for this one. 😆 3y
CarolynM I agree with @Butterfinger too. Your reviews are always thoughtful and so well expressed. I wish I could put my thoughts into words the way you do. 3y
batsy @nathandrake1997 @BarbaraBB @CarolynM Thank you so much 😘😘😘 3y
batsy @LeahBergen Thank you! And I'm surprised at not being the slow poke this time 😁 #SlowPokesUnite 3y
merelybookish Great review! I just finished (count me with the slowpokes!) I didn't think of her as a writer when I was reading but agree the Huggan afterword made me reconsider. 2y
batsy @merelybookish Thank you! Yes, I found the afterword helpful in thinking through some of the stories; I went back to reread some passages because of it. 2y