Books
by Mary Lawson
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A Town Called Solace |
Seven-year old Clara is looking after next door's cat while trying to make sense of life, the grown-ups don't tell her anything: what happened to Rose her run-away sister, why doesn't Mrs Orchard come out of hospital and who is Liam, the solitary man now living in her house? Why are the police involved and what happened thirty years ago? With this redemptive tale of grief, remorse and love Lawson has once again made magic.
(Jenny Baker - bwl 102 Autumn 2021) |
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Crow Lake |
A first novel by a Canadian author who lives in England and writes British English (which I chauvinistically much prefer). The Morrisons live on a remote farming settlement in Northern Ontario - Kate the narrator, her small sister and two much older brothers. The parents are killed by a runaway truck. This heartbreaking tale of their struggle to cope is told without a trace of sentimentality, but I often had a lump in my throat.
(Wendy Swann - bwl 24 June 2004) |
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Road Ends |
One winter's day in 1966, 21-year-old Megan, the linchpin of her family, breaks free from their chaotic life in Canada's frozen north and flies to London in search of independence and fulfilment. But at home, without her, everything is falling apart. Step by step, through the eyes of Megan, her father and her brother, their stories unfold. Another totally absorbing read from the author of Crow Lake (bwl 77) and The Other Side of the Bridge (bwl 78).
(Jenny Baker - bwl 79 Winter 2016) |
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The Other Side of the Bridge |
Set like Crow Lake (bwl 24) in remote Northern Ontario: young Ian - the doctor's son, struggling to find his path in life - becomes involved with two brothers - one dutiful and kindly, the other duplicitous and charismatic. All three in thrall to one woman. The characters, the remoteness and beauty of the landscape cast their spell immersing us in a complex tale of loyalties and family divisions. And what about the Bridge? . . . . read it to find out more.
(Jenny Baker - bwl 78 Autumn 2015) |
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