Saturday, May 15, 2010

The Title Alludes to SEX (Kind of, sort of, maybe)

The Book: The Lovers
The Author: Vendela Vida
The Cover (at least, of my uncorrected proof):


The link (to the publisher page w/ information about the book and pre-ordering)

The thoughts:

The Lovers is the tale of a woman named Yvonne and her trip to Turkey.

Yvonne is alone. Literally, she has no traveling companion. On a related note, as the novel progresses, her relationships with family, friends & acquaintances are examined, as well as the idea of relationships, in general.

While in Turkey, Yvonne befriends a young boy who sells shells on the beach (thus the picture on the cover of the book). This friendship is at one point compared to two people in a romantic relationship - an observation by a character in the book, not by the narrator. This passing remark sticks with the reader, both because of the book's title and the fact that numerous romantic relationships in the book have been mentioned. Yvonne and her young friend, while in no way romantically involved, get along in a way that none of the romantic relationships in the book do, but in a way that many romantic relationships are portrayed in the media.

I adored this book. The writing was concise - Vida utilizes her words beautifully. She writes simply about complicated manners, and the result is a poignant novel that stays with you after you've finished the last word. I love that this book makes the reader think and that it's well written - and I think you'll love that about this book, too.

The Release Date: July, 2010

2 comments:

Possum said...

I'm going to check this book out. Not just because of your review, but because it just seems interesting.

Also because books you like, are usually very good books! Which just goes into what I just said. Yeah.

Why would she be in a relationship with a very young boy? He looks like a child. Interesting! Although this woman was with a young man at my workplace, and I just assumed they were mother/son. BUT THEN I WAS LIKE WHAT IF THEYRE DATING? ETC.

And how it's all "oh is that your son?" and its all "oh, no, that's my LOVAH!" So I didn't want to be that person to them, so I just assumed they were dating after that.

WEIRD, huh? Useless story for you.

Shelly Quade said...

Hello, Possum. Yes, check the book out. I hope that you enjoy it as much as I did.

Well - he is a child. Protagonist Yvonne and the little boy become friends. They aren't lovers, but someone says they act like lovers. Not in a carnal sense, but with regards to the way they interact with each other.

I totally loved your useless story. :D