Stephanie Jane recenzis What Willow Says de Lynn Buckle
A stunning portrayal
5 steloj
I was impressed with Lynn Buckle's prose when I read her previous novel, The Groundsmen, in 2018. I'm now absolutely blown away by What Willow Says. I loved how this stunning portrayal of the relationship between a grandmother and the deaf granddaughter, for whom she is the primary carer, allowed me to genuinely see the world from their perspectives. The book is written as a series or journal entries that follow the passing seasons. At its heart is an exploration of communication, clearly demonstrating that the ways in which we 'talk' to each other need not be restricted simply to speaking and hearing, and that a child's own natural expressiveness can often be far clearer and deeper than any officially sanctioned language.
I felt some of the themes in What Willow Says reflect those of Jon McGregor's Lean Fall Stand, another of my recent reads that focusing around non-traditional communication …
I was impressed with Lynn Buckle's prose when I read her previous novel, The Groundsmen, in 2018. I'm now absolutely blown away by What Willow Says. I loved how this stunning portrayal of the relationship between a grandmother and the deaf granddaughter, for whom she is the primary carer, allowed me to genuinely see the world from their perspectives. The book is written as a series or journal entries that follow the passing seasons. At its heart is an exploration of communication, clearly demonstrating that the ways in which we 'talk' to each other need not be restricted simply to speaking and hearing, and that a child's own natural expressiveness can often be far clearer and deeper than any officially sanctioned language.
I felt some of the themes in What Willow Says reflect those of Jon McGregor's Lean Fall Stand, another of my recent reads that focusing around non-traditional communication methods, but emotionally I was reminded of The Beasts They Turned Away by Ryan Dennis. Buckle's evocations of the natural world and its historic Irish folklore transported me to those places. I felt as though I was alongside the grandmother and granddaughter as they each tried to explain their experiences to the other - feeling the rumble of a nearby tractor or portraying whispering leaves in sign language. Theirs becomes such an intense, yet beautiful relationship and Buckle kept me entranced throughout their story. For me, reading What Willow Says almost felt more like listening to music or watching dance than turning the pages of a book.