As is often the case for me around the turn of a year, I am not sure whether to count a book as read in the past or the current year. This one, for instance, I finished reading on the 2nd of January, but had started much earlier in December. It's a paperback I found at the 2nd hand book sale that takes place by the church once a month on a Saturday, and there is usually a good selection of paperbacks in English for just 2 euros each.
Rosie Thomas
It was my first read by this author, but it is likely that I'll buy more of her books should I happen to come across more paperbacks at the church sale. Although at first I struggled getting into the story - I simply didn't find the main character very interesting, or cared about her - that changed after a while, and I am glad I persisted.
The family of a British scientist transfer to the US for the scientist's work. The wife does her best to make a new home in the foreign country for their two boys, but keeps longing for what she left behind in England - and not just their house, friends and family, but also a big secret:
15 years ago, the couple had their first child, a daughter with Down syndrome. Just like now, their lives revolved around the husband; his work and what he needed in order to rise in brilliance and become a highly regarded scientist was their focus. A child that wasn't "normal" and that would always require a lot of attention and care didn't fit in with their plans, and so the baby was given up for adoption.
They knew that the girl was happy and well cared for and carried on with their lives - HIS life, mainly -, never talking about their first child.
Their plan worked out, but the longing for her daughter never left the woman. She loved her husband and the two boys they had afterwards, but there was still this gap, this big secret they were too ashamed of to talk about to anyone, not even with each other.
Eventually, the wife can't put on the facade of a perfect life any longer. She leaves for England on a quest to find her daughter, to see her, to get to know her.
I am not going to tell you how things go from there, in case you wish to read it for yourself. Not being a parent myself, sometimes I found it hard to relate to the mother's actions that were irresponsible and irrational, nor entirely to the father who wanted to let the past be the past and continue his life the way it was.
Let's just say that it isn't a smooth ride for anyone, and after this trip nothing will stay exactly the way it was before for the family and the others involved.
Something I liked about the book was the choice of settings for its scenes. The author plays the landscape and weather very well to fit in with what's going on. And while nowadays much of what happens would be different due to the almost constant availability of people via their smartphones, the book was written in the 1990s when yes, you could book a flight and travel between the US and UK at the drop of a hat (if you had the money), but you could easily be completely off the radar if you wished to. I also liked the actual writing, the language and choice of words.
Rosie Thomas has her own website here, where you can find out more about herself and her books.
