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Smiling at Grief in a House in a Forest Where Life Grows
Beyond the end of the world, where is life to be found?
Summer Solstice 2065 and, awake before dawn, Viola knows that all her ghosts are with her as she sets off into the forest to forage the last of the ingredients for the Solstice feast that falls on her 40th birthday and on the birthday of Isabelle, the oldest member of the tiny hamlet at 93.
It’s sixteen years since the pandemic that wiped out huge swathes of humanity only to be followed by the collapse of the structures of daily life that once seemed unassailable. Tucked away in the forest, the inhabitants of Restidiou Vras have their herbalist, Viola; they have skills and animals, homes and loved ones. But they carry their ghosts into an increasingly uncertain future and, as the inhabitants of the surviving twelve households gather for the longest day, they bring stories of loss, their resentments and fears, their hopes and secrets. Thirty-three adults and eleven children who know that a single day can change everything.
But in the forest, the humans are not the only voices. The trees and plants have their own stories of loss and resurrection, of abuse and forgiveness, of another way of living.
A richly layered narrative that moves from stream of consciousness to immersive insights into what we mean by a life well-lived, whether human or non-human, smiling at grief in a house in a forest where life grows, weaves a powerful story of change and hope in uncertain times. An inventive, linguistically daring and deeply moving novel.
Summer Solstice 2065 and, awake before dawn, Viola knows that all her ghosts are with her as she sets off into the forest to forage the last of the ingredients for the Solstice feast that falls on her 40th birthday and on the birthday of Isabelle, the oldest member of the tiny hamlet at 93.
It’s sixteen years since the pandemic that wiped out huge swathes of humanity only to be followed by the collapse of the structures of daily life that once seemed unassailable. Tucked away in the forest, the inhabitants of Restidiou Vras have their herbalist, Viola; they have skills and animals, homes and loved ones. But they carry their ghosts into an increasingly uncertain future and, as the inhabitants of the surviving twelve households gather for the longest day, they bring stories of loss, their resentments and fears, their hopes and secrets. Thirty-three adults and eleven children who know that a single day can change everything.
But in the forest, the humans are not the only voices. The trees and plants have their own stories of loss and resurrection, of abuse and forgiveness, of another way of living.
A richly layered narrative that moves from stream of consciousness to immersive insights into what we mean by a life well-lived, whether human or non-human, smiling at grief in a house in a forest where life grows, weaves a powerful story of change and hope in uncertain times. An inventive, linguistically daring and deeply moving novel.
182 pages, Paperback
Published January 25, 2024
22 people want to read
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