Another disappointingly thin paperback month although it kicks off with a gem, recently longlisted for the Booker Prize, one of two wishes 
fulfilled for me. Fugitive Pieces author Anne Michaels’ Held is her third novel making three in almost three decades, an indication of the care and thought with which she approaches her craft. It opens with a wounded man, slipping in and out of consciousness on a battlefield in France in 1917, and ends in the Gulf of Finland where a spark of attraction is both made and remembered. Made up of a series of gorgeously poetic vignettes unfolding a family’s history over more than a century, Michaels’ narrative explores themes of war, love, loss, memory and connection. An extraordinary piece of fiction, and a hugely affecting one, it demands a great deal of thought and concentration from its readers but more than repays them.
I was delighted when I spotted a new Nathan Hill in the schedules having thoroughly enjoyed The Nix. Wellness weighs in at
roughly the same length, exploring a multitude of themes through a long relationship. Married with a child, they’re beset by the usual worries but Jack is still starry-eyed about Elizabeth twenty years after they met while her feelings have been tempered by the humdrum reality of childcare and domesticity. Hill uses Jack and Elizabeth’s stories to illuminate modern American society while flashing backwards and forwards between their respective childhoods and the years they’ve been together. Not quite a match for The Nix for me but I enjoyed this sprawling novel which ends on a note of hope, at least I chose to interpret it as such.
Lauren Groff’s Matrix was a surprising hit for me given that I’m not a fan of historical fiction, making it on to my books of 2023 list. Her new one, The Vaster Wilds, sees a servant girl escape her settlement, attempting to survive in the wilderness with few possessions but her faith to sustain her. ‘The Vaster Wilds is a work of raw and prophetic power that tells the story of America in miniature, through one girl at a hinge point in history, to ask how – and if – we can adapt quickly enough to save ourselves’ says the publishers. Can’t quite put my finger on why that blurb doesn’t appeal but given how much I enjoyed Matrix perhaps I should push aside my scepticism.
I have two Celia Dale novels sitting on my TBR shelves already thanks to Jacqui’s reviews but that hasn’t stopped me casting my eye at A Spring of Love which sees thirty-year-old Esther living an attenuated life with her grandmother until she falls obsessively in love with Raymond. For the first time, Esther feels fully alive, but her sudden happiness is threatened by a discovery about Raymond that horrifies her. ‘A beautifully observed novel about love in all of its guises this is a gripping and unforgettable story of tension, betrayal and, ultimately, how we can never truly know anyone’ says the blurb promisingly.
James McBride’s The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store is set in 1972 when construction workers in Pottstown, Pennsylvania discover a skeleton at the bottom of a well. Questions are inevitably asked about the skeleton’s identity and how it arrived in the well, secrets long kept by the residents of Chicken Hill where Jewish immigrants and African Americans lived alongside each other in the 1920s and ‘30s. ‘In this novel about small-town secrets and the people who keep them, James McBride shows us that even in dark times, it is love and community – heaven and earth – that sustain us’ according to the blurb which sounds a little sentimental but McBride’s novel was very well reviewed when it was first published.
In Amanda Peters’ The Berry Pickers a little girl disappears one afternoon in the 1960s as her Mi’kmaq family picks blueberries in Maine, leaving her six-year-old brother bereft and carrying a burden of guilt as the last person who saw her. Decades later, Nora unravels the secrets her parents have kept from her, growing up in an affluent suburb not too far from the blueberry farm. ‘The Berry Pickers is an exquisitely moving story of unrelenting hope, unwavering love, and the power of family – even in the face of grief and betrayal’ says the blurb promisingly but it’s Naomi’s review that’s persuaded me.
That’s it for September. A click on a title will take you either to my review or to a more detailed synopsis should you want to know more, and if you’d like to catch up with new fiction it’s here and here.
I loved Matrix (and I love Groff’s short fiction as well) but The Vaster Wilds mostly did not work for me at all. It’s a very different kind of novel, so I’d be wary!
Thanks for the warning! I may well avoid it.
I think you were also put off by the ‘visceral’ descriptor, which is accurate!
Well remembered! I’m a squeamish reader.
Most of these writers are new to me. Michaels and Hills books jump out as ones that I would be interested in reading at some point. I am deep in Everett’s James at moment and really enjoying his unique take on Twain’s classic.
The Michaels and Hill are the antithesis of each other! I enjoyed both but Held is my favourite. Pleased to hear you’re enjoying James, my other fulfilled Booker wish.
I can’t wait to read Held. I loved Fugitive Pieces so much.
Held is sublime. I enjoyed it even more than Fugitive Pieces.
From your list, Sept holds many temptations! Like you, I loved Nathan Held’s The Nix, so I’m a bit tempted by Wellness (but — too many books etc. We’ll see). To my surprise (I haven’t paid much attention to it in recent years), I’ve been reading several of the Booker nominees, so I’ll mostly likely get read Held; besides, it’s an excuse to try Ann Michaels, who’s new to me. Although I like Lauren Groff, I must admit I’ll probably pass on The Vaster Wilds (besides, I still have The Matrix sitting unread on the shelf!). With James McBride & Celia Dale — well, they’re both on my list! Thanks for the roundup; it was very enjoyable as always.
You’re welcome. Wellness was enjoyable but not up to the standards set by The Nix and, of course, very long. I loved Held. Not an easy read but beautifully written and well worth the effort. Hope you get around to Matrix. Happy reading!
I like that paperback cover for Wellness, and I’m awaiting a copy of Held through the library. I want to try the McBride at some point and I would definitely read the Peters if it came my way.
It’s much better than the hardback jacket, isn’t it. I’m keen to read both the McBride and the Peters. I hope you enjoy Held.
I’m late to The Nix but hope to read it later this month (eyeing the calendar in this moment, I can see it’s nearly LATER now). Though I can see where some would consider McBride’s novel sentimental, I think it avoids the negative aspects of that term as used in the industry: it’s good-hearted and a little hopeful even when there’s little room for hope. Your admiration of held reassures me; I just can’t imagine another Fugitive Pieces.
I so enjoyed The Nix! One to get your teeth into. I hope you can get to it. Always happy to read a novel that encompasses hope so I’ll be happy to read the McBride. Held is an extraordinary book. I do hope you love it as much as I did.
As always, very interesting selections. Is Wellness set in NYC? Former President Obama recommended Heaven/Earth Grocery Store–I should get it. Finally, The Berry Pickers brings to mind the childhood classic, Blueberries for Sal by Robert McCloskey. Good stuff as always
Thank you! It’s set in Chicago although much of it against the backdrop of a new suburban development. I remember that about McBride which swings me further in its favour.
Chicago makes it much more interesting to me
I’d looked forward to Matrix, but enjoyed it very little. The quality of the prose kept me reading, but I was entirely uninvested in the narrative, although I had thought the story was going to be right up my street. So Goff’s new one? Let’s see… I did enjoy Held however, very much, though I ought to read it again to get the most from it. All your other choices are – so far – new to me so … plenty to try here.
I read Matrix a little reluctantly so my expectations were quite low. Rebecca’s ‘visceral’ reminder plus a few other comments has made me think I’ll probably knock The Vaster Wilds of my list. I agree with you about Held. Definitely needs a reread or two.
Held is already on my list from a previous mention/review by you and I’m also going to look up the Celia Dale (though I haven’t yet read the other two like you) and Heaven and Earth, both of which appeal to me.
I think the Dale would be up your street, Mallika. I do hope you enjoy Held.
Must try them soon 🙂
I was going to make exactly the same comment as Claire Fuller! Michaels is such a wonderful writer.
She’s excelled herself with Held!
Thanks for the link, Susan, and I hope you enjoy those Celia Dale novels. They have some interesting (and shocking) things to say about how innocent-looking criminals / confidence tricksters prey on vulnerable older women.
Re: Held, you might be interested in this podcast from the LRB Bookshop on their event with AM.
https://www.londonreviewbookshop.co.uk/podcasts-video/podcasts/anne-michaels-stephen-dillane-held
I’m sure I shall, Jacqui, and thanks for the link. I have high hopes for the Booker for Held.
Susan, it is so interesting to read your appreciation of Anne Michaels. I saw her in London recently, speaking about this latest novel, just as I was (finally) in the process of reading the end of Fugitive Pieces! My closest friends adore her work whereas I feel challenged by it. I loved Michaels’s response to a question I asked, about the way that apologies, words, can never undo any of the damage done by violence (a view she posited through a rabbi character in Fugitive Pieces, and reinforced as a personally held view). What a fascinating person and writer, with such a sincere passion for overcoming tyranny.
I didn’t immediately get on with Lauren Groff’s The Vaster Wilds but will pick it back again eventually.
Oh, that’s fascinating, Jennifer. From her writing, I imagine she’s extremely intense. I think her wotk is challenging but well worth the effort. Held would certainly repay several readings.
There are some nice parts to The Berry Pickers … though some of the big hype makes you want it to be stronger than it is. I’m on the list for Anne Michaels book … and I wonder if I will find the vignettes enough. Hope so. We will see.
I hope so, too! They do give a great deal of food for thought. Not so much hype here in the UK for The Berry Pickers.