Category: fiction (Page 1 of 4)

I Hope This Finds You Well by Natalie Sue | Book Review

December 5, 2024 / Monique

I Hope This Finds You Well is a Canadian version of The Office. Jolene hates her job but she needs it. Her colleagues drive her mad and she does, what any reasonable employee does, she snarks about them privately. Well, maybe not privately enough. Jolene has taken to responding to emails with her actual thoughts typed below her professional response. She whites out the text so that it’s white on white and invisible to the recipient. Until one day, she forgets.

As expected, Jolene finds herself in a disciplinary hearing with her boss and the new HR guy Cliff. Cliff is tasked with putting monitoring software on her computer and running her through some mandatory training sessions. Thing is, Cliff makes a mistake and instead of dialling back what Jolene can do, she suddenly has access to everything. Everyone’s inbox, everyone’s chat, everyone’s shared drive is accessible from her computer. With the cheatcodes to office life, Jolene figures out how to win friends and influence people.

As Jolene is drawn into the drama of each of her colleague’s lives, she learns their secret fears and some of the motivations behind their actions. They say hurtful things about her, but she can’t resist reading everything and then adjusting accordingly.

You know as the reader that this is all going to bite her in the arse, but it is a hilarious adventure. Jolene has a ton of snark and her word sparring with Cliff in HR is top notch.

This is a sad book but also a laugh-out-loud book. I Hope This Finds You Well has a cast of characters found in any workplace and a list of puny chapter titles. It’s like getting the last donut at the office party and it’s your favourite flavour.

If you liked How to Pronounce Knife then this story reflects the same tender comedy about loneliness and love, and immigrant parents. If you like debut fiction or the eccentricities of second-generation Canadians or wacky coworkers then this work culture, semi-romcom set in Calgary is a satisfying read.

The Double Life of Benson Yu by Kevin Chong | Book Review

August 19, 2024 / Monique

The Double Life of Benson Yu by Kevin Chong is a layered and thought-provoking novel that blends reality and imagination, fiction and autobiography. The story follows Benson Yu, a comic book artist who is grappling with the trauma of his past. As he begins to write a more serious autobiographical work, the lines between his life and his comic book creations start to blur. The narrative toggles between Benson’s present-day struggles and the fictionalized account of his younger self, which reveals painful truths he’s tried to bury.

The novel explores themes of identity, memory, and the ways in which we try to rewrite our own stories. I recently saw Kevin Chong present at the Sechelt Festival of Writers and he described it as a story about storytelling. And that’s 100% true. The novel is about how the past can haunt the present and the cathartic power of storytelling.

Chong’s writing is vivid yet introspective. The chapters focus on different perspectives and that forces the reader to question the boundaries between author and character, reality and fiction.

If you enjoy novels that challenge narrative conventions and explore complex emotional landscapes, The Double Life of Benson Yu is a compelling read. It’s reminiscent of works like Paul Auster’s The New York Trilogy or Kazuo Ishiguro’s The Unconsoled in its blending of the real and the surreal.

I really enjoyed listening to the audiobook but given the complexity of the story narration, it may have been a better read vs. listen. But Eric Yang is a great reader so the audiobook offered a lot too. It was also fun to hear author Kevin Chong talk about his writing process and how the ideas for this book came together. He’s not a planner, but instead starts writing and lets the ideas and problems/solutions present themselves. I found that intriguing and can see why it works for him.

A Slow Fire Burning by Paula Hawkins | Book Review

August 19, 2024 / Monique

You’ve probably hear of the bestseller The Girl on the Train? This is Paula Hawkin’s latest, A Slow Fire Burning, and it is equally entertaining with its various twists and turns.

Laura is a hot-tempered, troubled loner who ends up in the wrong place at the wrong time. Her typical refrain is, “it wasn’t my fault.” But maybe people hear that too often? They want Laura to accept responsibility. At the same time, they disregard that she has a brain injury due to a childhood incident where she was hit by a car. Unfortunately for Laura, she was last seen with Daniel Sutherland. Now he’s turned up dead.

Miriam recognizes Laura is troubled. It takes trouble to know trouble. Miriam is the first to report Daniel’s death but she hides evidence and isn’t truthful with the police. Miriam knows Daniel’s uncle Theo, whose runaway thriller is actually based on her teenage years. Miriam has tried to bring legal action against Theo but he’s got money, and she doesn’t.

Carla is Theo’s wife, Daniel’s aunt. And she has been grief stricken for 18 years. Her 3 year old son Ben was being minded by Angela (Carla’s sister), and he fell to his death. Angela’s son Daniel was young at the time but whether it was his alcoholic mother or witnessing his cousin’s death, Daniel has always been a handful. Carla has secretly stayed in touch with Daniel.

Irene is Angela’s former neighbour. Turns out Angela died in a freak accident shortly before Daniel. But the police have ruled that death an accident. Also turns out, Laura befriended Irene on the day Angela died. Mm. So many layers.

A Slow Fire Burning is a great muddle of a mystery with revenge, heartbreak, and secrets galore. Great for fans of Little Fires Everywhere and other family dramas, psychological thrillers.

The Phoenix Crown by Kate Quinn and Janie Chang

June 13, 2024 / Monique

The Phoenix Crown is a spectacular confluence of two excellent historical fiction authors. I’m a big fan of Kate Quinn and had not heard of Janie Chang—even though she is a bestselling Canadian author. Oh goodness, I have a more to explore! (Thanks for the tip Rachael.)

The novel is set in San Francisco, 1906, just a before and after the earthquake, and subsequent fires, that devastated the city. Four women’s lives are intertwined based on their loose connections to a charming railroad magnate named Henry Thornton. Thornton claims to not be a very nice man, and that turns out to be the truth. He’s a collector and his objects are his heart. Too bad he collects women the same way he collects stolen Chinese treasures.

Thornton offers his patronage to Gemma (under-appreciated opera singer), Suling (Chinese embroidery legend and otherwise non-descript manager of the laundry), and Reggie (unknown yet phenomenal artist). His patronage represents career opportunities of a lifetime, but these women hardly escape with their lives. The forth woman? Botanist Alice Eastwood, who is a globetrotting, self-taught scientist, who is interested in Thornton’s prized plant, the Queen of the Night.

If you like historical fiction, then definitely give this book a read: The Phoenix Crown by Kate Quinn and Janie Chang.

Maame by Jessica George | Book Review

April 3, 2024 / Monique

This book is as beautiful and colourful as its cover.

Maame (ma-meh) has many meanings in Twi, but for Maddie, it means woman. That is her family nickname. She is not the head of the household, but she is the most responsible. Her mum regularly spends a year in Ghana running a family business, then returning to London for a short time. Maddie’s older brother James is away working and travelling in the music industry, and he never picks up on the first ring. Maddie is busy working as PA in a hectic theatre company but is otherwise at home caring for her retired dad who has Parkinson’s.

This is a smart, funny, sad, beautiful book about a young woman growing up, and fighting microaggressions at work and family friction at home. In some ways Maddie is comforted by the sheltered upbringing orchestrated by her religious mother and her Ghana traditions, but in other ways Maddie is ready to break out on her own.

When her mum returns this year from Ghana, she encourages Maddie to move out of the house. The rollercoaster that ensues has a hint of Bridget Jones’s Diary as Maddie aims to reinvent and improve her social life (and love life). It’s joyous, funny, awkward and heartbreaking. But it’s also a story of depression, social anxiety, and grief. It’s about growing up Black and dealing with stereotypes.

Maddie’s parents moved to London as an opportunity for their children. But with an ill father and an absent mother and brother, Maddie has to navigate her identity solo. Her ability to speak Twi is mocked by various aunties, she has to deal with the “I’ve never dated a Black girl before” comments, a roommate questions her full-day of hair washing. The beauty of Maame is that Maddie loves to write and she has stories to share; the novel is presented as her telling her story through a mix of interior monologue, emails and texts, and background stories.

I think ultimately this is a story about belonging and the relationship you have with yourself. Maddie is worthy of so many things—especially positive attention from family, coworkers, and friends. I’m so glad she comes into her own.

The audiobook is great: https://www.audible.ca/pd/Maame-Audiobook/B0B1KJ4M3X?eac_link=mJg7UvxCdz4Q&ref=web_search_eac_asin_1&eac_selected_type=asin&eac_selected=B0B1KJ4M3X&qid=3FCSwMGe0W&eac_id=145-2640021-0791633_3FCSwMGe0W&sr=1-1

The Great Believers by Rebecca Makkai | Book Review

March 1, 2024 / Monique

The Great Believers is a beautiful, gentle, heart-wrenching novel about a group of friends decimated by the AIDS epidemic in the 1980s. The story is told from two perspectives and timeframes. The Chicago 1980s story focuses on Yale Tishman and his boyfriend Charlie, who’s the editor of Out Loud magazine. They have a tight-knit group of friends who are quickly dying from AIDS. They are realizing too late that some earlier cases of pneumonia were likely the virus. Condoms and safe sex are new conversations and not everyone is onboard. It’s all a mess—and eerily similar to the shame and blame game of the early COVID days. The second storyline is Paris 2015 and is told from the perspective of Fiona, or Saint Fiona as her grown daughter likes to moan. Fiona’s brother was one of the first in the 80s friend-group to die and Fiona ended up being power of attorney for many of his friends. Fiona is reconnecting with another member of the group in Paris and it’s clear that she’s carried the burden of burying those beautiful boys for decades.

Beautiful boys abound in this novel. Yale is working on acquiring a private collection of works done by artists in Paris just before and after World War II. The donor is Fiona’s grandmother and she specifically wants Yale to have the works for the gallery he manages. She sees the connection between Fiona and Yale losing their friends to the same loses she suffered during the war. Likewise, Fiona’s stay in Paris coincides with the 2015 terrorist attacks on nightclubs and other venues, again where young lives are cut short.

This is a novel about love and all its forms. There’s clearly the love among friends, in particular the familial love you feel for your chosen family vs. your biological family, especially in the case for most of these boys who are estranged from their parents. There’s romantic love, unrequited love, self-destructive love, and self-love.

There are a few Shakespeare references to Hamlet, in particular the role of Horatio as the deeply trusted friend and, after Hamlet’s death, the keeper and teller of Hamlet’s story (insert Fiona here). But given the themes of love, I can’t help but think of Romeo and Juliet. Fiona as the nurse. There’s a Roman and Julien, there’s thugs and street battles, beautiful parties and costumes, the tragedy of young lives sacrificed. Surly there’s a joke about dying on one’s sword to be made?

Like other fans of this book, I can’t heap enough praise on to it. I found it emotionally moving but not distressing. The reverberations of the 80s are felt from the first page through to the death metal bass drop of the Paris nightclub in 2015. Oh boy, this was a good book.

Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin | Book Review

February 26, 2024 / Monique

A rollercoaster of a novel about friendship and ambition.

Gabrielle Zevin’s Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow takes readers on an emotional journey through the intertwined lives of two friends, Sam and Sadie, as they navigate the complexities of their friendship and their shared ambition to build amazing video games.

Sam and Sadie meet as kids in a hospital rec room where they quickly bond over video games. Sam is a patient and Sadie is visiting her sister. Their friendship blooms until Sam discovers that Sadie is also getting community service credit for their time together. They have a falling out and don’t reconnect until university when through happenstance they spot each other in a subway tunnel.

Sam and Sadie re-bond over video games. Sam is studying mathematics and Sadie is studying video game design. Sadie shares one of her games with Sam and it kicks off a grand adventure, which involves them quitting school (or deferring a semester initially) in order to create their game. Their game ends up having mass appeal and launches their careers.

This is the story about two best friends, who often fight like siblings but love each regardless. It’s about the enduring power of connection we have to friends who have known us since childhood. There’s a ton of emotional depth as Sam and Sadie explore the bittersweet nature of human relationships. Tragedy and poor communication pulls them apart multiple times but they always find a way back to each other.

Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow delivers! This novel is a must-read for anyone who has ever cherished a friendship that transcends time and distance. The cultural references from 80s and 90s art, music, and entertainment will provide anyone who grew up during that time a great sense of nostalgia. Highly recommended.

Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver | Book Review

February 7, 2024 / Monique

Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver is a heartbreaking reimagining of Charles Dickens’ David Copperfield. This is institutional poverty American style, set against the backdrop of the rugged Appalachians, with Hillbilly racism and an unhealthy dose of opioid crisis.

Damon (nicknamed Demon) Copperfield, is a young man navigating the trials and tribulations of growing up in a small Appalachian town. Much like his literary predecessor, Demon encounters a cast of colourful characters who shape his journey, from the enigmatic Mr. Peggot to the sinister U-Haul Pyles. Damon is knee deep in poverty, over his head in opioids, and caught in the middle of America’s clash between rural and urban values.

Demon loses his family to poverty and pain pills, he loses his school friends and sense of belonging as quickly as his caseworkers lose his files, and he’s invisible and then far too visible as he moves from orphan to football star, where he then loses everything again. This novel is about survival, and you are never quite sure if Demon is going to make it. Indeed, his narrative throughout is about trying to pinpoint where his great unravelling begins. Is it when he’s born to the drug addict mother or is it at some point along the way—because this kid is let down so many times, it is hard to put your finger on just one moment.

Hillbillies, crackers, rednecks, and white trash. There are so many labels for poor and working-class white southerners. Demon Copperhead forces the reader to think about those labels, where they came from, and what they mean for the those folks who have a love-hate relationship their culture and the place they live. Kingsolver won the 2023 Pulitzer Prize for this novel and it’s no surprise. She’s deftly woven Appalachian history with that of the coal, tobacco and pharmaceutical industries to reveals the lost boys and cursed places left in the wake of the great American dream.

Barbara Kingsolver is the award-winning author of a great number of books, including The Poisonwood Bible. Check out her official site for more.

The Syrian Ladies Benevolent Society by Christine Estima | Book Review

December 1, 2023 / Monique

Christine Estima’s debut work is a wonderful read. The Syrian Ladies Benevolent Society weaves together the stories of many generations of women from an Arab family as they flee the Middle East in the nineteenth century, settle in Montreal, and then visit or return to their roots. These women are connected through time by their culture, their bravery, and their tenacity. The book is a collection of short stories but they feel connected like chapters of a novel. This is an impressive work.

Christine Estima draws on her own Lebanese, Syrian and Portuguese heritage to write incredible multicultural portrayals, especially of living in Montreal. There is also a dark undercurrent of cultural stereotypes and biases about women, but Estima’s characters challenge those notions and find a place for themselves.

The Syrian Ladies Benevolent Society is a serious yet delightful book. It has an unusual trim size (7″ x 6″) making the whole package unique.

If you liked How to Pronounce Knife then give this a read.

Mad Honey by Jodi Picoult and Jennifer Finney Boylan | Book Review

October 31, 2023 / Monique

This jaw-dropping novel is about families being upended by violence. Olivia McAfee has escaped her abusive husband and has found a way to settle back into life in her hometown. Her son Asher is a hockey star and well liked. Ava Campanello has also escaped a violent husband and has settled in the same small town as the McAfees. Everything seems to be working out until her daughter ends up dead and the boyfriend is accused of her murder. The boyfriend is Asher.

Mad Honey covers so much ground. What is secret vs. private. What actually happens in the US legal system. How well kids mature or don’t, and the problem with gossip. There’s also a lot here about honey and beekeeping.

This is a novel that kept me up at night. There are so many questions. So many twists and turns. Will we ever know what happened to Lily? Is Asher innocent?

Spectacular book by two amazing authors.