Recent Reviews
Stone Yard Devotional by Charlotte Wood
Reading Charlotte Wood’s Stone Yard Devotional was a wonderful way to start the new year. The recommendation came from Julie, my kindergarten friend, and I am grateful for the suggestion. Shortlisted for the Booker Prize in 2024, this contemplative novel describes one woman’s effort to come to terms with her life. Much of the story’s strength lies in Wood’s beautiful writing and her remarkable ability to give meaning to all that is unspoken.
The narrator of Stone Yard Devotional is an unnamed woman who find herself amid a personal crisis. This is not the impulsive, reckless midlife crisis often depicted in fiction; rather it is a profound moral reckoning. Having left both her husband and her job in Sydney, she seeks solitude and reflection in an isolated religious community in New South Wales, close to where she grew up. Although she does not consider herself religious, she discovers a sense of peace through the daily rituals and practices of the nuns with whom she now lives. The story is intentionally sparse in its cast of characters and plot developments. Some might say little happens, but in the empty quiet space of her new life, the narrator has time to think. Her thoughtful and incisive reflections form the inner engine that propels the book forward.
Throughout the novel, the narrator contemplates the choices she has made and the ways she’s treated people over the course of her life. The enduring weight of grief and guilt over her parents ‘deaths is a constant presence in her thoughts. Meanwhile the minor events and conflicts within the community take on new meaning. Ultimately the book is a mediation on both living and dying. The slow pace and emotional clarity of Stone Yard Devotional make the novel feel almost like a meditation. A thoughtful and moving read. 4.5/5
HAPPY HOLIDAYS!
Happy Holidays. Hoping that 2025 was filled with family, friends and many enlightening books. Thanks for visiting
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Warmly, Kathy
“I declare after all there is no enjoyment like reading!” — Jane Austen
“Reading fiction not only develops our imagination and creativity, it gives us the skills to be alone. It gives us the ability to feel empathy for people we've never met, living lives we couldn't possibly experience for ourselves, because the book puts us inside the character's skin.” — Ann Patchett
The Correspondent by Virginia Evans
Virginia Evans’s novel The Correspondent radiates warmth, wisdom, insight, and humor. Structured as a collection of letters and emails, the narrative beautifully explores the inner world of a woman’s life while offering her unique perspective on the human experience. The book also celebrates the value and magic of the written word making this novel my favorite of 2025.
Each morning, 73-year-old Sybil Van Antwerp sits down to write letters, a daily ritual she has maintained for much of her life. Her correspondence includes neighbors, colleagues, authors, her brother, her children, her best friend, and one person to whom she writes without ever sending the letters. Expressing her thoughts and emotions through correspondence s becomes her way of connecting with others, while also maintaining distance. Sybil is divorced, a mother of two living children and a retired lawyer. Her personality is marked by stubbornness, sarcasm, and sassiness, yet she also possesses a strong sense of manners and decorum.
Self-sufficiency has long been her pride, but she is gradually losing her sight. Uncomfortable as it is, she finds herself needing help from other people. Ironically, as her vision narrows, her world broadens. This vulnerability seems to make her correspondence more revealing. She seems to be gaining deeper insights about herself and the people in her life. She writes to her daughter, “I know you think of me as your mother only, but please remember, inside, I am also just a girl.”
This period of change leads Sybil to seek forgiveness and to forgive those who have wronged her. She writes with increasing humility and grace. As the narrative unfolds, readers become acquainted with her family and associates, witnessing her steady personal growth. The novel ultimately celebrates the power of writing as a tool for self-discovery.
The Correspondent is an uplifting and perceptive book, offering readers a heartfelt celebration of emotional evolution and the enduring significance of the written word. Highly recommend. 5/5.
