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The Postmistress
April 29, 2011 09:56PM | Registered: 16 years ago Posts: 603 |
Another book I absolutely must recommend: The Postmistress by Sarah Blake.
Set in 1941, in the village of Franklin on Cape Cod, and in London during the Blitz and war-torn Europe, it tells the story of how Emma Fitch, the young doctor's wife, Iris James, the postmistress, and Frankie Bard, a radio journalist, are brought together over a letter, what it means to tell the truth, to seek it or to hide it, and how America gets drawn into a war fought on the other side of the world.
I will freely admit that the book had not hooked me instantly. I had taken it out from the library because of the cover (a thoughtful young lady in front of St Paul's Cathedral under fire) and because the author's name seemed vaguely familiar. For the first half or so, I liked how the narration flowed, the little stories the narrator told about the characters and how she developed them, but I could not yet quite see how everything would come together and thought the story lacked suspense, so I kept picking it up, reading a few pages and putting it down again. Then, however, the author's carefully picked threads finally ran together and made an absolutely compelling and fascinating picture; one, moreover that leaves you much to think about what it means to tell the truth, and if the truth should be told at all costs. There is no definite answer at the end; it is, rather, something that everyone must weigh for themselves.
The author says in her afterword that she 'wanted to write a war story that did not take place on the battlefield, but showed us around the edges of a war photograph or news report into the moments just after or just before what we read or see or hear.' She has succeeded beautifully.
This is a slow read, almost melancholic, but ultimately, I find, very rewarding - take your time getting into this book, getting to know all the characters and seeing how their stories run together and I hope you won't be disappointed!
"I want you to know that you matter. I want you to know that your lives matter, that your dreams matter." (Barack Obama, 03 June 2020)
Set in 1941, in the village of Franklin on Cape Cod, and in London during the Blitz and war-torn Europe, it tells the story of how Emma Fitch, the young doctor's wife, Iris James, the postmistress, and Frankie Bard, a radio journalist, are brought together over a letter, what it means to tell the truth, to seek it or to hide it, and how America gets drawn into a war fought on the other side of the world.
I will freely admit that the book had not hooked me instantly. I had taken it out from the library because of the cover (a thoughtful young lady in front of St Paul's Cathedral under fire) and because the author's name seemed vaguely familiar. For the first half or so, I liked how the narration flowed, the little stories the narrator told about the characters and how she developed them, but I could not yet quite see how everything would come together and thought the story lacked suspense, so I kept picking it up, reading a few pages and putting it down again. Then, however, the author's carefully picked threads finally ran together and made an absolutely compelling and fascinating picture; one, moreover that leaves you much to think about what it means to tell the truth, and if the truth should be told at all costs. There is no definite answer at the end; it is, rather, something that everyone must weigh for themselves.
The author says in her afterword that she 'wanted to write a war story that did not take place on the battlefield, but showed us around the edges of a war photograph or news report into the moments just after or just before what we read or see or hear.' She has succeeded beautifully.
This is a slow read, almost melancholic, but ultimately, I find, very rewarding - take your time getting into this book, getting to know all the characters and seeing how their stories run together and I hope you won't be disappointed!
"I want you to know that you matter. I want you to know that your lives matter, that your dreams matter." (Barack Obama, 03 June 2020)
| Subject | Author | Posted |
|---|---|---|
| Mari A. | April 29, 2011 09:56PM |
