The possibility of discovering a fresh voice in fiction is why it is exciting for me to read debut novels. For example, I instantly became a fan of Amy Greene after reading her first novel Bloodroot. Now, I can't wait for her next book. I recently took on two other debut novels penned by women.
The Age of Miracles, written by Karen Thompson Walker, tells the story of a young female protagonist, set against a backdrop of a world being slowly but forever altered. Set on the California coast, the story explores an interesting concept the author calls "the slowing" wherein the days grow longer and longer, throwing off the number of daylight and evening hours contained in each day. This affects crops, animals, tides, and of course, humans. The humans are affected both physically as well as in their relationships with others. While this was a smartly written, easy to read novel, it missed the mark for me. I think the novel tried to do too many things - part coming of age tale, part sci-fi apocalypse tale, and part straightforward novel, by trying to do so many things I think this diluted the story overall.
Shelter, by Frances Greenslade, was a really wonderful book. Set in rural British Columbia, Greenslade tells the story of two sisters raised off the grid by a loving mother and father. After their father is killed in a logging accident, the girls are then abandoned by their mother. Left to fend for themselves, the girls forge different paths and discover the strength to navigate a different world than the one in which they were raised. I found the story to be very believable. Very well written and an easy read!
I picked up Richard Ford's latest novel, Canada, curious by the sweeping title. After reading the first two pages, I was hooked. Canada is a tale of a middle class family in Montana. The narrator, Dell Parsons, tells the story of his parents (his mom a Jewish erudite quiet woman, his dad a loquacious Southerner) who decide to rob a bank. After the robbery, Dell and his twin sister go in different directions, with Dell being driven across the Canadian border by a neighbor. I was riveted by the plot and the taut language, and was captivated until the last page. I loved Canada so much that I checked out another Ford novel published in 1990 called Wildlife, which I also really enjoyed. Similar to Canada, Wildlife explores a middle class small nuclear family in Montana. The insights of the teenage son as well as the dialogue between the family members were written in very simple but beautiful language. Both of these books are highly recommended!
Truman Capote is one of my top ten favorite writers of all time. I remember reading In Cold Blood for the first time several years ago. It was haunting, beautifully written, impossible to put down. A "non-fiction novel," In Cold Blood tells the true story of the 1959 murders of the Clutter family in Holcomb, Texas. Capote spent six years researching the book, which included extensive interviews with the townspeople and the murderers. The result was a great masterpiece, riveting in its intimate view of a close-knit small town community as well as of the histories of Perry Smith and Richard Hickock. While a very depressing story, I think this is a must-read in the canon of American literature.
