Astray by Emma Donoghue

From the author of Room, this is a collection of fourteen short stories, some of which have been broadcast on BBC Radio 4.  The theme is travel to, within and from the United States and Canada.  The stories are inspired by historical facts and I liked reading the notes at the end of each story to see what lay behind it and what inspired the story and the characters.  My favourite was Counting The Days, a story told from the points of view of both a husband and wife.  Many of the stories are moving and thought provoking, some gave me an insight on a particular incident in history and others I found hard to believe, even though they are based on historical fact.  Without exception, each narrator tells the story in their own individual voice and style.     Reading the Afterword gave me an insight into life as an immigrant.   

Starter for Ten by David Nicholls

This was laugh out loud funny.  Set in 1985, it is the story of Brian as he leaves his home in Essex, his Mum and childhood friends to embark on his first year reading English at university.  Ever since he was a child he has dreamed of appearing on University Challenge and, it seems, his wish is about to be fulfilled or is it?  It is a coming of age novel.  I enjoyed it as much, if not more, as One Day.  

Falling Angels by Tracy Chevalier

I wasn’t sure of this at first as it is written from several viewpoints.  However, as each section is headed up with the narrator’s name it was clear who was narrating the story.  As the story developed so did the individual voices.  The story is set over a ten year period from 1901.  It is about two middle-class households whose lives become entwined due to the fact their family plots in the local cemetery rest next to each other.  The daughters of both families and the son of a gravedigger meet on the day of Queen Victoria’s death and there begins an unlikely friendship between the three children.  I enjoyed the attention to detail.  It captures the frivolousness of the Edwardian period when the rich were comfortable, but bored, especially the women, who longed for something more meaningful to enrich their lives with.  No wonder a lot of women at the time embraced the suffragette movement, which the story also touches on.  I liked all the characters and it was interesting seeing the same scene through different eyes.  

The Shock of The Fall by Nathan Filer

Winner of the Costa Book Awards 2013, this is the debut story by Nathan Filer.  The novel explores mental health in a sensitive but not an overly sentimental or bleak way.  It is also about grief and grieving.  It is the story of Mathew Homes and how he is haunted by the death of his older brother Simon who suffered from Down syndrome.  In the end, it is the memory of Simon that tips Mathew over the edge and the reader is taken on his emotional journey as he writes his story about living with mental health issues.  The story jumps about a bit just as if it is Matthew’s mind flitting from one subject to another and this gave it a unique style.  I found all the characters believable and I liked Matthew and found myself routing for him.  I look forward to reading more from Nathan Filer.           

The London Train by Tessa Hadley

The London Train consists of two novellas that are linked in a clever and unexpected way.  Both novellas could stand on their own as complete stories.  As the title implies, both have the London Train as a theme.  The first story is about Paul whose mother has just died.  Her death triggers a mid-life crisis and makes him question the direction his life is going.  A call from his first wife asking for help to track down their missing daughter seems to fulfil his restlessness and, as he goes to London to track her down, he finds himself drawn to her new friends, a group of Polish immigrants.  The second story is about Cora who is also facing a mid-life crisis.  She has moved back to her parents’ house in Cardiff, which she has inherited following their death, leaving her husband in London.  As she settles into her new life she is forced to question whether she should end her marriage.  As we discover more about Cora’s past and her reason for escaping to Cardiff, the connection between the stories is revealed.  The characters in both stories are realistically drawn.  It was an enjoyable read.

The Story of You by Julie Myerson

I have not read anything quite like this before and I was intrigued by the poetical style of the writing.  The story opens with a flashback of a snowy scene and two young students sharing a single bed in a cold room.  Then the story jumps to the present day, some 20 years later, and it is clear from the narrator’s halting voice that some tragedy has gone before.  The narrator, Rosy, is struggling to come to terms with the death of her baby daughter, although the reason for her daughter’s death is not revealed until much later in the book.  Her husband Tom has taken her to Paris in a bid to escape the past, but Rosy is unable to confide in him.  Instead, she returns obsessively to the memory of her younger self and the man she shared a cold night with 20 years previously.  In Paris, as if conjured up by her memory, she bumps into him.  They catch up over coffee and he tells her he has become a successful business man and how he has never forgotten her or the night they shared.  She is unsure whether it is really him or a figment of her imagination.  It is a story of loss and grieving.  I enjoyed the writing style, but felt let down by the ending.    

A Song for Issy Bradley By Carys Bray

This story follows a Mormon family and how they deal with the fallout from a tragic family event.  It is told from the point of view of all members of the family – Ian, a Mormon Bishop and maths teacher, stands firm in his faith, but his wife Claire has lost hers and has retreats inside herself.  We meet sixteen year-old Zippy who is experiencing first love and is desperate for some motherly advice; fourteen year-old Alma who finds the Mormon faith tedious and dreams of becoming a famous football player and seven year-old Jacob who thinks he can work miracles and hopes to mend his broken family.  It is an emotional read, but it doesn’t become too heavy as the author cleverly interlaces the sadness with moments of laughter and pure joy.  The characters were so realistically drawn that I felt I got to know each one.  I thoroughly enjoyed it and it gave me an insight into the Mormon faith, something I knew little about.  Carys Bray is one of the authors appearing at Parisot Literary in October this year and I’m looking forward to meeting her.