Reading by the water, can it get any better?
Hello Fellow Readers!
If you recall, a few weeks back I talked about how I was having trouble sitting down and reading. I did finally break through that draught and have been reading since. There seem to be a lot of good books coming out this summer.
The Canterbury Sisters will be released on May 19th. When I first saw the title, I must admit that in my reading slump, a story about some sisters in England did nothing for me. BUT THAT IS NOT WHAT IT IS ABOUT.
You can’t judge a book by its cover. I have heard that somewhere…
Synopsis
The Canterbury Sisters is the story about Che Milan. Che has hit a slump. Her erratic mother has died and while trying to accept her death she receives a letter from her boyfriend. He has decided to split up with her. (In a letter!) Now they have to split up the vacation home that they bought and it is all just a bit much. Then her mother’s ashes arrive with a note from her mother. Her mother can’t leave her alone even after she is dead! The note reminds Che that since they didn’t make the promised trip to Canterbury together that Che will have to do it with the ashes.
There are two ways to get to Canterbury from London. The way that her mother wanted to go was to walk. This involves getting a guide (the trail is not well marked and it is 60 miles) The second way is to take the train there in a couple of hours.
Che finds a private guide who will take her on the waking tour and gets ready to go to London. Right before she leaves, she finds out that the guide is sick. The guide offers tells her she can join a group of women that are leaving at the same time she was going to leave. She is not really interested in joining a group but decides to go to the bar where they are meeting to check them out before she makes her final decision.
Does she take the train or join the group? The rest of the story is for you to discover.
Opinion
I enjoyed the book. I thought that the background of the places and events were interesting. The characters were well drawn. I could identify with Che – not sure if she wanted to go, not sure if she wanted to join a group, and wondering how she let herself get into this situation to begin with.
As much as I liked the book as a whole, I will say that I was not crazy about the very end. My disagreement with the end does not affect the book overall and it is a very small part of the story.
I would say that you should read it as one of your summer reads. It has a touch more history than you will find in most summer reads but it is a good thing.
Carol Early Cooney 