84-year-old Florence has fallen in her flat at Cherry Tree Home for the Elderly. As she waits to be rescued, Florence wonders if a terrible secret from her past is about to come to light; and, if the charming new resident is who he claims to be, why does he look exactly a man who died sixty years ago?
From the author of The Trouble with Goats and Sheep, this book will teach you many things, but here are three of them:
1) the fine threads of humanity will connect us all forever.
2) There is so very much more to anyone than the worst thing they have ever done.
3) Even the smallest life can leave the loudest echo.
Comment: This was one the Christmas gifts I got. Usually I can expect the minimum of two books per special occasion (my birthday and Christmas) and this book was one of those. I had never hard of the author so I had zero expectations about it but, as anyone can imagine, gifts have the collateral side of being given with the hope they will be good ones and if not, it's always quite a task to explain why they didn't felt good, especially to those who gave them to us...
In this book, the protagonist is 84 year old Florence Claybourne. Florence starts her tale while laying down on the floor of her apartment at the Cherry Tree Home for the Elderly and hoping for someone to help her. Throughout the story, we get to understand who Florence is, how her life has been and, to help move things along, about the secret from her past which a sudden situation has brought to the surface again. With the help of her friends Elsie and Jack, Florence has investigated certain details and finally her not as good mind has connected the clues. But what can that mean for Florence, waiting for help or why should that matter to who she used to be if she cannot change her age nor her health?
This book ended up being a very interesting one, especially because older protagonists don't exactly strike my fancy into reading about them. I was surprised this read well enough and that Florence has had a secret for so long and only now, when all clues point out to the fact her mental state is decaying and after the man who came to live at the facility seems to be someone Florence used to know, have things changed.
The plot is very interesting and Florence's secret is a little wider than what one would guess. The end has one or two twists that although not being that innovative, were in line with what one could expect.
However, this is a story narrated by Florence, with the exception of two other character whose perspectives we also have, but in third person.
This tactic, I feel, wasn't used to emphasize the reader's connection with Florence or, at least, I don't think that was the primary intention. Florence is the narrator so that we can follow all the steps as seen by her. The problem is that, because of this way of writing, the reader needs to grasps some situations in a very limited way and - here was my biggest issue with the novel - this means certain plot choices weren't well executed.
Probably the biggest twist of this novel, which readers only are supposed to discover almost at the end - and by having read some reviews, it seems it did work for many - was easily obvious to me around page 10 or close to it. The way the story is written, the way the author wrote several scenes, the twist is so obvious, I can't understand why others wouldn't see it. This meant that, for me, I already knew the biggest secret and while this didn't allow me to fully understand what was important about Florence's past, it did give me an idea about what was supposed to matter in the now and, for that, the eagerness wasn't the same for me. As anyone can imagine, Florence's friend Elsie has an important role too. But, running the risk of saying too much, the title is also very badly chosen because it implies one thing, which doesn't matter that much before the end of the story.
I think this a compelling story and theme. It's not that often the idea of getting old and facing the natural issues that come with age is used in stories. Usually older characters are just supporting cast or they mention the "old days" but the idea of letting go of who you used to be, of the feelings that made you a human being... it's a little frightening we can be this limited or definitive. Some elements regarding this were well done and I did like the subtle hints about what it means to become old and even the not so subtle ones. It's really a pity the execution of the novel wasn't better planned. Some differences here and there could have brought the surprise element to higher standards.
Still, quite an engaging read most of the time.
Grade: 7/10
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