In The Grey Wolf by Louise Penny, the knights of Quebec’s Sureté once again leave the magical village of Three Pines to slay dragons. Someone is leaving clues for Inspector Gamache hinting that something dire will happen in Montreal, something connected to the water system.
He and his second in command, Jean-Guy, and Inspector Isabelle Lacoste must decipher the cryptic clues in time to prevent a catastrophe. Who exactly can they trust? Old friends appear but they might be lying. Sanctuaries, monasteries hidden from the world, find themselves not as safe and removed as they thought. Domestic terrorism leaves no place to hide.
Balancing the fear and danger of their work is the refuge of home. Readers of Penny’s books will be familiar with this cast – loving spouses and children, noisy small grandchildren, the eclectic residents of Three Pines who are best friends as well as neighbors.
Her descriptions of place capture the mood and flavor. Here is the monastery of Saint Gilbert Entre les Loups: “Even in the weakening light, the place was magical. From the outside it looked frightening, foreboding. But inside? It was glorious. The windows high up in the long, long corridor captured every last ray available in the dying light and magnified it, brought it to life. The stone hallway was giddy with the evening sun.”
Louise Penny is at the top of her form. She has written a thrilling page turner, a mythic story about the battle between good and evil, symbolized by two warring wolves.
Partially narrated in first person by Marcellus, the giant Pacific octopus, Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt is a story about humans, their sorrows and loneliness, but also, once in a while, their unexpected good fortune.
Minutely observed by the octopus in captivity, Tova works at night cleaning the aquarium. She needs the job for something to do, not the money. A recent widow, Tova also still mourns a beloved son who died at 18. The second main character, Cameron, has just been fired, again. His girlfriend threw him out. Marcellus, near the end of his four-year life span, realizes he can give them a gift.
This is an especially well plotted novel. All the information is necessary and fits together into a satisfying whole. No excessive rambling! The human characters at junctures in their lives are sympathetic. And who could not like the feisty being with three hearts who thinks that humans can occasionally, just occasionally, be remarkably bright creatures. The point of the novel – how an act of kindness can change a life – makes this a beautiful heart-warming story.
The Cat Who Saved Books by Sosuke Matsukawa, translated from the original Japanese, is deceptively simple. Since the opening is about a high school student, I wondered if it was meant for young adults. When the cat started to speak, fantasy??
This multi layered novel is definitely adult fiction. It is philosophical and peppered with pointed observations. “Logic and reason are never the best weapons in an irrational world. It’s humor” (An apt suggestion for our current time.)
Reclusive Rintaro Natsuki has spent as much time as possible with his grandfather in his secondhand bookshop. The store is unusual in that it doesn’t contain best sellers, but classics from around the world. When the grandfather dies and leaves the shop to him, Rintaro must figure out how to make his way in this altered world. Unexpectedly, there are helpers – a pretty girl from school, a popular athletic senior, a kindly aunt, and yes, a talking cat.
Rintaro undertakes the hero’s journey where he must find his way through the labyrinths and confront the monsters, both physical and metaphorical. All the monsters are connected to the mistreatment of books. But more deeply, this mistreatment is a commentary on modern society.
Finally, there is the exploration of the value of books. What good are they? At the end, Matsukawa provides a satisfying answer. “Books teach us empathy, how to care about others. That’s the power of books. We learn about the hearts and minds of other people besides ourselves.”
Echoing the sentiments above, Margaret Renkl, opinion writer from The New York Times, wrote an article about how birds cope in the wintertime, On a Cold Dark Inauguration Day, A Message from the Birds.
Birds who compete for resources during breeding season, band together during the dark days. “They cooperate as compensation for leafless trees and cold temperatures, working together to find food sources and evade predators, staying warm by flocking up…In the dark days already gathering, we will need to do our best to look out for one another and for the creatures we love.”
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I really enjoyed this book.