The Innocents, by Michael Crummey
Doubleday Canada - 2019
Fiction - Literary/Historical
Print
Fiction - Literary/Historical
304 Pages
Longlisted for The ScotiaBank Giller Prize 2019
Longlisted for The ScotiaBank Giller Prize 2019
* I received this ARC courtesy of Doubleday/Penguin Random House Canada in exchange of an honest review. This does not influence the following opinions which are my own.
My Rating (out of 5)
⭐⭐⭐⭐
The Innocents, by Michael Crummey is a study in contrasts. At once heartbreaking and heartwarming, instilling both a sense of hopelessness and hopefulness in the reader. It has both a richness and a starkness to it.
Long ago, in a remote coastal area of Northern Newfoundland, far from any other people, a family struggles for survival. When first the mother, and then the father succumb to illness, their two young children Ava and Evared must fend for themselves in this unforgiving environment.
Before passing, their parents passed on what little key information they had time to impart. With no knowledge of the greater world beyond, Ada and Evared struggle to survive in the tiny shack, facing unpredictable feast and famine, short summers, long winters, illness, and raging storms.
Twice a year they are able to trade with a supply ship, but other than that, they are each other's only companions, and their relationship is both simpler and more complicated due to their isolation. Both their relationship and their struggle to survive is further complicated by the changes they undergo both physically and emotionally as they approach adulthood.
Historical fiction is not one of my go-to genres, but there was something about the synopsis for this story that intrigued me - and I am glad it did. Crummey's prose is rich with depth beauty even while painting a stark and unforgiving picture. It is easy to see how he has become one of Canada's most respected writers. Crummey's previous works have been shortlisted for some of the most prestigious awards in Canadian literature, including the Scotiabank Giller Prize, The Rogers Writer's Trust Fiction Prize, The Commonwealth Writer's Prize, and the Governor General's Literary Award, as well as others.
The innocents was a deeply engaging and moving novel of survival in a time as hard as rocky shores of Newfoundland where the story is set.
Long ago, in a remote coastal area of Northern Newfoundland, far from any other people, a family struggles for survival. When first the mother, and then the father succumb to illness, their two young children Ava and Evared must fend for themselves in this unforgiving environment.
Before passing, their parents passed on what little key information they had time to impart. With no knowledge of the greater world beyond, Ada and Evared struggle to survive in the tiny shack, facing unpredictable feast and famine, short summers, long winters, illness, and raging storms.
Twice a year they are able to trade with a supply ship, but other than that, they are each other's only companions, and their relationship is both simpler and more complicated due to their isolation. Both their relationship and their struggle to survive is further complicated by the changes they undergo both physically and emotionally as they approach adulthood.
Historical fiction is not one of my go-to genres, but there was something about the synopsis for this story that intrigued me - and I am glad it did. Crummey's prose is rich with depth beauty even while painting a stark and unforgiving picture. It is easy to see how he has become one of Canada's most respected writers. Crummey's previous works have been shortlisted for some of the most prestigious awards in Canadian literature, including the Scotiabank Giller Prize, The Rogers Writer's Trust Fiction Prize, The Commonwealth Writer's Prize, and the Governor General's Literary Award, as well as others.
The innocents was a deeply engaging and moving novel of survival in a time as hard as rocky shores of Newfoundland where the story is set.
Happy Reading,
Christine
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