This collection of short stories deals with the theme of memory – what it is, how it lives and how it dies, and its role in our lives.
I’m already a big fan of the author – his writing style really brings out the emotions while illustrating beautiful moments in people’s lives. This theme of memory really works well here. Of the six stories in these pages, the first and last had the biggest effect on me. The first story is the title of the book as well, and despite being a bit like the movie Memento it really struck me how precious some memories could be.
In the last story the author takes some chances with a slightly supernatural element, but he pulls it off perfectly and I’ll be thinking about the story for a long time.
I tend to like stories that span lifetimes, and due to the nature of the theme we can peek back and forth through memories and see how people have lived – without all the dreary repetitiveness of regular life. The writer provides the highlights for us, like a chef giving us only the best portions of the dish.
Another good point was that the stories take place all over the world, and each location is described so well that you feel like you’re there. Compared with some other books I’ve read recently with clumsy culture references dropped in – this author does it the right way.
Next for me is The River of No Return by Bee Ridgway.
