Half a World Away by Mike Gayle

Again Mr Gayle gives us another emotional rollercoaster of a ride in this tale of family, love and loss and how the roots that connect us are deeper than we can ever truly know...

...written from the points of view of Kerry and Noah, which Gayle does extremely well, we get to understand the complexities of the two characters and the very different paths that life has offered them. 

We become submerged in their highs and lows, we get to know and genuinely feel for their situations and how their very different upbringings influence the way they cope with life's many obstacles.

There is a great deal to love about this story, it is uplifting and heartbreaking at the same time and I will happily say....

...yes I cried.

The Library Enthusiast & books...

When I Was Ten by Fiona Cummins

Fiona Cummins allows us to watch from the side lines as each element of this story unravels, although we know it is fiction, Cummins talent is in how she manages to transport us into the very centre of her story...we feel the vibrations of the emotions, we can almost taste the iron in the blood...we are in one word...there...

When I was Ten is a tale of two sisters, Sara and Shannon and their childhood friend Brinley...

...but when Sara was ten, she killed both her parents with a pair of scissors....or did she? 

What I particularly enjoyed was how Cummins kept the narrative fast paced, without too many unnecessary characters or wild cards. The focus is on the sisters and Brinley, and for me it really helped to give the story its realistic dimension.

The Library Enthusiast & Book Collections....

Dear Emma Blue by Lia Louis

Dear Emmie Blue is an emotional ride...full of longing and what ifs, sadness and missed opportunities. The strong and heavy emotions literally ooze from its pages. 

Louis writing makes connecting with Emmie Blue very easy, we feel her pain and understand how her decisions are affected by this pain.

This is probably not a book I would have usually picked up to read, after all it is a romantic comedy at heart, with a delicate twist of darkness....I have never willingly chosen a romance novel in my life! 

However, this tale of love, loss and resilience made an enjoyable change of reading material for me.

The Library Enthusiast on words...

The Reader on the 6.27 by Jean-Paul Didierlaurent

 

I so enjoyed this little gem of a book, it is a quick and easy read with a sprinkle of French magic that makes it just a little bit different ...

The book translation was done well, often translations don't make sense, but I'm delighted to say the essence of this story was not lost in its translation.

It's a gorgeous yet simple book, with likeable characters and an interesting setting.

So trust me when I suggest you grab yourself a cuppa or a glass of vino, settle back and immerse yourself in this book.

(I know which one I prefer!)

The Library Enthusiast and Netflix...

Because She Loves Me by Mark Edwards

 

Another psychological tale, with plenty of misdirections to keep you guessing from Mr Edwards...

Andrew thinks he has met the love of his life, but as always with an Edwards story, not everything goes smoothly, in fact more and more things go very wrong and Andrew has serious concerns about who he has fallen in love with...

...but let's be honest here, Andrew is what is known as 'nice but dim' and Charlie has all the makings of a 'bunny boiler' ...so their relationship shows all the signs of a disaster waiting to happen. And as always, Edwards gives us a cluster of characters, all of which play an important part in the misdirection of this tale.

A readable psychological story with an ending you probably won't see coming... 

The Library Enthusiast & Librarians...

All The Lonely People by Mike Gayle

 

I do enjoy Gayles tales...go me for the rhyme!

He really manages to to offer up some amazingly vivid and multi dimensional characters that we really get to connect with.

All The Lonely People is, as always with Mr Gayles stories, about the very humanness of people, it is a book about...

*life

*love

*loss

*friendship

*family

and that sense of hopelessness...

....but also that feeling of hope.

I felt so much love for Hubert Bird, an 84 year old Jamaican widower, and as Gayle chose to tell this story by using alternating time frames, we get a real sense of who Hubert was and is. 

The hostility and racism that was so very much the case in the 1950's feels a little uncomfortable to read at times, however the determination of Hubert not to give up, and find only positives in often unsettling situations is inspirational. The emotional journey Gayle takes us on increases when Hubert falls in love with Joyce, a British white woman. Together they are constantly faced with ignorance and bigotry, however their utter devotion to each other is a joy to read.

This is a really wonderful book....I miss you Hubert Bird.

The Library Enthusiast and Bad News....

A Home Like Ours by Fiona Lowe

 

An easy read that captivates you from the first chapter, it has plenty of small town drama to keep you interested, from homelessness to thinly disguised prejudices.

Lowe gives us well thought out portraits of the main female characters and her depth of understanding of the value or friendship and acceptance is a pleasure to read. 

The Library Enthusiast on Quotes...