There is a lot in this book that I never thought about. Much of it covers familiar ground. It is a story of three characters at a crossroad whose lives converge. It is about forgiveness. It is about the long arm of incarceration. And of course, it is about the power of books. But most of all it examines how single, life changing moments may have the power to override all your life has been and will be. 

The three protagonists are Violet, Frank, and Harriet.

Violet is a 22 year old woman who has been convicted of vehicular manslaughter. Violet and her boyfriend, Troy, were drinking and doing drugs while driving. Troy insisted Violet take the wheel. Too impaired to drive, she couldn’t hold the road and in her erratic driving forced an oncoming car to swerve and hit a tree. The driver, kindergarten teacher Lorraine Daigle, was killed. 

Violet is released early from prison for good behavior. Her welcome to the outside world is harsh. Her sister picks her up, parks her in an apartment, tells her she is not forgiven and unwelcome in her hometown, and holds her responsible for her mother’s cancer death.

Somehow, Violet slowly gains momentum and tries to create a life.

While in prison, those with impeccable conduct can attend a book discussion group led by Harriet, a widow and retired teacher who is looking for purpose in her life. Violet is part of this group and Harriet loves her witty observations. The book group chapters are some of the best in the book. The women are fond of Harriet, who they call Bookie, and have interesting and saucy takes on many of the books they are reading. 

Harriet, new to this strict and unforgiving environment, shares information with them about her life on the outside which is not permitted but gives the women a sense of normalcy. The women share their opinions openly, and interestingly, prefer classics to contemporary books. The introduction of the romantic poets and Spoon River Anthology has much to offer them and they somehow find them relatable. Harriet’s opening questions stimulates lively conversation. Harriet stresses the idea that every story has a meanwhile. By this she means what’s also happening as the story unfolds. This is the structure of this story, as well.

I watched an interview with the author, Monica Wood, at the Rockland Public Library in Maine. She describes a book discussion program she conducted in a woman’s prison. As she described the amazing experience she had with these women, I understood why these scenes seemed so authentic. Also, she was able to realistically capture the prison environment with all the sounds, rules, and deprivation.

Frank Daigle is another character who needs to find purpose. It is his wife who died in the car crash. He is also retired and struggling with mixed emotions over his wife, Lorraine’s, death. He has feelings of guilt and grief that paralyze him. It was not a happy marriage and it was on its last legs. Lorraine, overbearing and controlling in Frank’s mind, was having an affair and half out the door. He was somewhat relieved by not having to deal with divorce. But his daughter, Kristy, is shattered by her mother’s death and Frank is ill prepared to deal with her.

He finds a job at a local bookshop as a handyman, the store that Harriet frequents for the book club and Violet goes for comfort in her lonely world. It is at this juncture that the characters lives become slowly intertwined.  

Harriet invites Violet to her house for dinner with her niece, Sophie, who is extremely rude to Violet. Understanding how difficult a time Violet is having trying to find a job as an ex-con, Harriet suggests Violet take Sophie’s position as a lab assistant (she is leaving town for grad school), Reluctantly, she gets her the job.

The research is with Dr. Petrov, a bird scientist, training African grey parrots. The birds are amazing and the lab, where Violet is a natural and her growing relationship with both the birds and the difficult lab director move her forward. 

Simultaneously, we witness the growing relationships between Violet, Harriet, and Frank. Each moving forward to deal with their own issues and then each other’s. 

The characters are beautifully developed. Their struggles felt real. Violet, Harriet, and Frank’s developing relationship is no surprise but is interesting to watch and despite the fraught circumstances is believable. The prisoners, particularly Dawna-Lynn are colorful and give you a peek into their experiences. These small snapshots really encapsulated what had happened to them in their before lives. 

On the other hand, the young characters, Kristy and the niece Sophie, were over the top. I was immediately put off by them and wished that Harriet and Frank would tell them to be quiet and grow up. Dr. Petrov, too, was a bit cartoonish and stereotyped but what was happening in the lab, both personally and professionally was intrinsic to Violet’s growth. The lab scenes were vivid and very entertaining. I, too, was falling in love with Ollie, the parrot!

Monica Wood is a novelist, playwright and memoirist. She is a recipient of the Maine Humanities Council Carlson Prize for the humanities. Her previous books include Any Bitter Thing, The One-in-a-Million Boy, When We Were The Kennedys: A Memoir from Mexico, Maine, My Only Story, and Ernie’s Ark.

I’d say this book is a winner. Highly recommend.