A lively and well-researched tale for fans of mysteries and American social history.
The Vermont granite industry provides the backdrop for this debut historical novel set in the early 20th century in a fictional small town.
In Granite Junction, two rival granite companies are fighting for prominence: one run by the disgruntled Ernest Wheeler and the other by society leader George Rutherford. The story begins with a legal battle between the two men over Rutherford encroaching on Wheeler’s turf, all of which is reported by the Granite Junction Gazette.Young journalist Dan Strickland, the son of a stonemason, covers the story and the chain of events that follow. These include a suspected murder and business malpractice, pulling him further into the dark underbelly of the town despite his efforts to rise above his station. Pope’s novel grapples with several interconnected themes, all inspired by the author’s ownership of a local paper and its archive in small-town Vermont. This makes for a nuanced portrayal of a community that relies on a particular industry and what happens when the business faces a period of uncertainty. Most intriguing is the exploration of Strickland’s grappling with his identity and his attempts to ingratiate himself with the upper classes in Granite Junction (“If a farm boy like Ernest Wheeler could become the owner of a big company, then the son of a stonecutter could also achieve success”). This process begins with Strickland’s induction into the town’s Pedalers club, populated by his richer male peers. But it is ultimately symbolized by Strickland’s flickering romantic interest in school friend Molly O’Brien, the well-educated Camille Upton, and destitute widow Rosa Rosetti. Through these female characters and others, Pope also provides a convincing look at a cross section of women during the period, even if many of them are beholden to the men around them. Each character provides a particular perspective, making for an ensemble feel to the novel that is sometimes more compelling than the mystery at the heart of the story.
A lively and well-researched tale for fans of mysteries and American social history.Pub Date: Nov. 29, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-57869-118-0
Page Count: 276
Publisher: Rootstock Publishing
Review Posted Online: Oct. 28, 2022
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
An affecting portrait of a prickly woman.
A lifetime’s worth of letters combine to portray a singular character.
Sybil Van Antwerp, a cantankerous but exceedingly well-mannered septuagenarian, is the titular correspondent in Evans’ debut novel. Sybil has retired from a beloved job as chief clerk to a judge with whom she had previously been in private legal practice. She is the divorced mother of two living adult children and one who died when he was 8. She is a reader of novels, a gardener, and a keen observer of human nature. But the most distinguishing thing about Sybil is her lifelong practice of letter writing. As advancing vision problems threaten Sybil’s carefully constructed way of life—in which letters take the place of personal contact and engagement—she must reckon with unaddressed issues from her past that threaten the house of cards (letters, really) she has built around herself. Sybil’s relationships are gradually revealed in the series of letters sent to and received from, among others, her brother, sister-in-law, children, former work associates, and, intriguingly, literary icons including Joan Didion and Larry McMurtry. Perhaps most affecting is the series of missives Sybil writes but never mails to a shadowy figure from her past. Thoughtful musings on the value and immortal quality of letters and the written word populate one of Sybil’s notes to a young correspondent while other messages are laugh-out-loud funny, tinged with her characteristic blunt tartness. Evans has created a brusque and quirky yet endearing main character with no shortage of opinions and advice for others but who fails to excavate the knotty difficulties of her own life. As Sybil grows into a delayed self-awareness, her letters serve as a chronicle of fitful growth.
An affecting portrait of a prickly woman.Pub Date: May 6, 2025
ISBN: 9780593798430
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Crown
Review Posted Online: Feb. 15, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2025
SEEN & HEARD
A pleasant if not entirely convincing tribute to the power of art.
A French art historian’s English-language fiction debut combines the story of a loving relationship between a grandfather and granddaughter with an enlightening discussion of art.
One day, when 10-year-old Mona removes the necklace given to her by her now-dead grandmother, she experiences a frightening, hour-long bout of blindness. Her parents take her to the doctor, who gives her a variety of tests and also advises that she see a psychiatrist. Her grandfather Henry tells her parents that he will take care of that assignment, but instead, he takes Mona on weekly visits to either the Louvre, the Musée d’Orsay, or the Centre Pompidou, where each week they study a single work of art, gazing at it deeply and then discussing its impact and history and the biography of its maker. For the reader’s benefit, Schlesser also describes each of the works in scrupulous detail. As the year goes on, Mona faces the usual challenges of elementary school life and the experiences of being an only child, and slowly begins to understand the causes of her temporary blindness. Primarily an amble through a few dozen of Schlesser’s favorite works of art—some well known and others less so, from Botticelli and da Vinci through Basquiat and Bourgeois—the novel would probably benefit from being read at a leisurely pace. While the dialogue between Henry and the preternaturally patient and precocious Mona sometimes strains credulity, readers who don’t have easy access to the museums of Paris may enjoy this vicarious trip in the company of a guide who focuses equally on that which can be seen and the context that can’t be. Come for the novel, stay for the introductory art history course.
A pleasant if not entirely convincing tribute to the power of art.Pub Date: Aug. 26, 2025
ISBN: 9798889661115
Page Count: 432
Publisher: Europa Editions
Review Posted Online: June 7, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2025
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
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