North Woods
Author: Daniel Mason
Published by: John Murray Press
Pages: 372
Format: Hardback
My Rating: ★★★★★
Published by: John Murray Press
Pages: 372
Format: Hardback
My Rating: ★★★★★
Four centuries.
A single house deep in the woods of New England.
A young Puritan couple on the run.
An English soldier with a fantastic vision.
Inseparable twin sisters.
A lovelorn painter and a lusty beetle.
A desperate mother and her haunted son.
A ruthless con man and a stalking panther.
Buried secrets.
Madness, dreams and hope.
All are connected.
The dark, raucous, beautiful past is very much alive.
Four centuries.
A single house deep in the woods of New England.
A young Puritan couple on the run.
An English soldier with a fantastic vision.
Inseparable twin sisters.
A lovelorn painter and a lusty beetle.
A desperate mother and her haunted son.
A ruthless con man and a stalking panther.
Buried secrets.
Madness, dreams and hope.
All are connected.
The dark, raucous, beautiful past is very much alive.
My thoughts:
Following the cycles of history, nature and the changing seasons, North Woods is a captivating read that I was both eager to finish and yet not wanting it to end. It is clever, interconnected story that is charming, haunting, engaging, and full of emotional depth.
North Woods tells the story of the different occupants of a house in the woods, through the ages. Featuring a huge cast of characters, Daniel Mason brings an innovative approach to his historical fiction, and here he writes with such love about nature: the trees, the flowers, and the seasons in this specific area of New England Forest; a patch of ground in western Massachusetts. The novel is so atmospheric that it stimulates the reader’s senses and transports us to the land with the smell of earth and sounds of birdsong and whispering trees.
The narrative begins in the 1760s and continues through to the present day – then moving further into some undated moment in the future. Throughout the centuries, the house sees murder, love, despair and thwarted hopes, and the presence of each inhabitant lives on. The story is told in fragments that capture the lives of the different inhabitants of this place. The novel has a historical ground that is also expressed through Mason’s use of language. The characters are brilliantly conceived and brought to life, so that when referenced later in the book, each one is very easily and vividly called to mind.
I have never read anything quite like this before. Every chapter reads like a gothic vignette and the power of the stories are haunting. The tales are fascinating as individual pieces but are also beautifully tethered. I loved how the different narratives are layered over each other to create a totally unique story to get lost in.
North Woods truly is an extraordinary book. I finished reading a little while ago and I’m still thinking about it now. It’s a stunning read, highly original and one of my favourites of the year.
Overall reaction:
Following the cycles of history, nature and the changing seasons, North Woods is a captivating read that I was both eager to finish and yet not wanting it to end. It is clever, interconnected story that is charming, haunting, engaging, and full of emotional depth.
North Woods tells the story of the different occupants of a house in the woods, through the ages. Featuring a huge cast of characters, Daniel Mason brings an innovative approach to his historical fiction, and here he writes with such love about nature: the trees, the flowers, and the seasons in this specific area of New England Forest; a patch of ground in western Massachusetts. The novel is so atmospheric that it stimulates the reader’s senses and transports us to the land with the smell of earth and sounds of birdsong and whispering trees.
The narrative begins in the 1760s and continues through to the present day – then moving further into some undated moment in the future. Throughout the centuries, the house sees murder, love, despair and thwarted hopes, and the presence of each inhabitant lives on. The story is told in fragments that capture the lives of the different inhabitants of this place. The novel has a historical ground that is also expressed through Mason’s use of language. The characters are brilliantly conceived and brought to life, so that when referenced later in the book, each one is very easily and vividly called to mind.
I have never read anything quite like this before. Every chapter reads like a gothic vignette and the power of the stories are haunting. The tales are fascinating as individual pieces but are also beautifully tethered. I loved how the different narratives are layered over each other to create a totally unique story to get lost in.
North Woods truly is an extraordinary book. I finished reading a little while ago and I’m still thinking about it now. It’s a stunning read, highly original and one of my favourites of the year.
Overall reaction: