Click on a thumbnail to go to Google Books.
|
Loading... A Short Walk Through a Wide World: A Novel (edition 2024)by Douglas Westerbeke (Author) Carpe_Librum | Jul 19, 2024 |   Aubry is just a little girl of 9 with two older sisters. With the threat of war heavy on their minds, they go to a nearby well to sacrifice their favorite things in order to show they are willing to sacrifice, too. It's a silly, childish idea and Aubry refuses to part with the funny wooden puzzle box she's recently found. But that night, Aubry is sick. She is sick in a way that she never has been before. She's engulfed in pain, bleeding and crying she just has the urge to RUN. As her family panics, she tumbles out of their arms and flees. And the farther from home she gets, the more her symptoms go away. Aubry learns she can't stop moving, can't stay anywhere long. I found this to be a beautifully written story about Aubrey's struggle to never stay anywhere long, to be surrounded by people and curious to a fault, but never get to have friends or anyone who knows her. It's told, initially, as small stories she tells others to explain about her way of living. She must learn languages, customs, and how to survive on the fly. She is exiled and alone and, yet, she goes on. I loved that the story kept me guessing. I never knew where it was going, never had any idea of how Aubry's story would continue and I loved the twists and small moments of both sadness and happiness - little things that I never realized Aubry would experience (or not) by living the life she did. I felt so many emotions reading it, I was completely sucked in. I laughed, I got teary-eyed and I just hung on every word. I absolutely loved this one. I look forward to reading it again! A huge thank you to the author and publisher for providing an e-ARC via Netgalley. This does not affect my opinion regarding the book. (  ) Trisha_Thomas | Nov 14, 2024 | I was initially drawn to this book because its premise was billed as occupying a similar space to that of The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue, which was easily one of my favorite reads of all time. While the storytelling here wasn't terrible by any means, I do think the book does itself a disservice by aligning itself with Addie LaRue, purely on a stylistic basis. The writing was just too dense and monotonous to keep muddling through in order to get at the heart of the story, which frustrated me enough to make it feel like a chore having to return to this book rather than the adventure I wish it had been. Hopefully this resonates better with other readers, but unfortunately this one just wasn't my cup of tea. (  ) teantomes99 | Oct 13, 2024 | It's 1885 in Paris and our protagonist Aubry Tourvel is a precocious young girl of just nine years of age when she falls inexplicably ill. Suffering excruciating pain and bleeding from the nose and mouth, the only thing that soothes her seems to be movement. In the first few pages the author convinces the reader of the seriousness of Aubry's condition with powerful descriptive writing that I'm not likely to forget. Here's a taste: "And then the pain strikes - a terrible, venomous pain - a weeping pain, like an ice pick through a rotten tooth. It drives straight down her spine, from the base of her skull to the small of her back. She shudders as if electrified, then stiffens up, crushing all the slack out of her body. The old man stops his chattering, watches her face turn cold and pale, watches her lips form soundless words." Page 5 Forced to travel to keep her illness at bay from that point on, days and weeks pass but the narrative doesn't unfold in a strictly chronological sense. Given her circumstances change every 3-4 days, it would be impossible to include her journey and experiences throughout the course of her entire lifetime. Instead the reader experiences her travels in flashbacks and when sharing her encounters with people she meets along the way. One such person is an old man in Chile who engages Aubry in conversation and explains why he detests travel. He tells Aubry he once fancied a trip to Santiago to see what the fuss was about but it didn't exactly go to plan. "After an uncomfortable carriage ride to the station, where he discovered his train was running three hours late, he became hungry and ordered sweet potato empanadas. To his horror, he discovered these empanadas were not to his taste at all, far too sweet, and the cafe did not carry his favourite tea - in fact, no tea at all. He was forced to try a sweetened tonic water imported from America, which he'd heard of but never pursued. It was a disastrous meal. He thought if a mere trip to the train station had caused him so much unpleasantness, what horrors might a trip to Santiago inflict? He threw his ticket away and headed straight back home." Page 74 Perhaps you can relate to this sentiment, or - like others she meets on her travels - imagine Aubry's life of continual travel to be adventurous, spiritual or romantic. The old man continues to chat with Aubry, asking: "And really, was there anything in Santiago or Havana or Madrid - any artwork or museum or towering mountain - he could not simply read about in a book?" The author's vocation as a librarian in Ohio shines through this book in a huge way. I can only imagine the plethora of books which have inspired his writing style and fuelled his imagination because his own work was perfection on the page. As well as containing engaging travel adventures that are often dangerous, sometimes desperate and occasionally warm and emotional, Westerbeke also manages to write some entertaining dialogue, particularly when it involves children or a language barrier. Stories and doorways are important within the narrative and reading A Short Walk Through a Wide World by Douglas Westerbeke reminded me of The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix E. Harrow meets The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab. It also reminded me of my idealised version of One Thousand and One Nights; idealised because I've never read them but this is how I imagine them to be, only in more detail. For example, Aubry tells a woman from Heshou that she has "crewed with the cinnamon traders from Seychelles", "built a house in the Hawizeh marshes" and "slaughtered whales in the Faroe Islands." (Page 245) A Short Walk Through a Wide World by Douglas Westerbeke could be categorised multiple ways, it's a travel story, historical fiction, action adventure, science fiction and urban fantasy. It contains a mystery puzzle ball and a secret library, I mean what more could you want? If anyone possessed the talent to bring Aubry's story to the big screen it would be epic. Highly recommended! * Copy courtesy of Penguin Random House * ( ) Carpe_Librum | Jul 19, 2024 |  ) quondame | Jun 27, 2024 | I received a review copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley. ( ) Dokfintong | Jun 17, 2024 | *I received an arc from the publisher through NetGalley for an honest review ( ) KimMcReads | May 28, 2024 | ) KallieGrace | May 8, 2024 | ) RyanTice | Apr 18, 2024 | “Perhaps her illness is a rejection of the sedentary life, her body rebelling against an inertia that mankind has, over the millennia, eased itself into.” It is Paris, 1885 and we are introduced to Aubry Tourval, a headstrong, precocious nine year old. Soon after she finds a strange wooden puzzle ball in her backyard, she becomes seriously ill and begins to bleed out. After medical treatment fails to cure her, her parents move her outside the city and she recovers immediately. She discovers she cannot stay in one place for more than a few days at a time, so this begins Aubry’s lifelong journey, staying ahead of this dreadful disease. She travels the world many times in the next 60 years, meeting scores of different people, finding romance and adventure, along the way. This was a fun ride. An easy, narrative to follow, with plenty of colorful characters and places to visit on her serpentine voyage. (  )1  msf59 | Apr 16, 2024 | In 1885, Paris, nine-year-old Aubrey Tourvel finds a wooden puzzle ball on the side of a road - an incident that changes her life forever. Her discovery and inability to dispose of this “magical” puzzle ball will lead her down a fantastical dream-like journey that will last decades -- a journey that Aubrey is compelled to embark upon on account of the life-threatening affliction that strikes after she stays in the same place more than just a few days. I found the premise of A Short Walk Through a Wide World by Douglas Westerbeke fascinating and was drawn to it because of its comparisons with The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue and Life of Pi , both of which I’ve enjoyed. I enjoyed Audrey’s journey as she explored the world in its wonder and beauty, facing precarious situations while learning valuable life lessons from her experiences along the way. I admired her resourcefulness and resilience in the face of adversity, loneliness and the constant fear of succumbing to the strange disease that plagues her. Aubrey’s encounters gain her recognition and though she meets a fair share of people in the course of her travels, not all of her experiences are pleasant. While she does meet some who betray her trust , she also finds people whose generosity and kindness overwhelm her. The author keeps us interested in Aubrey’s life with a flow of interesting characters and enthralling adventures along the way. I was curious to know how her life would eventually turn out. Unable to return to the same place twice, we can't help but wonder what will become of her once she has nowhere else to go to outrun her affliction. The magical realism aspect was well executed in the story and I found the concept of the magical library and Aubrey’s connection with it quite intriguing. The narrative does suffer from pacing issues and slows down considerably in parts with a lot of telling rather than showing which is to be expected on account of the narrative following Aubrey over seven decades. We don’t get to explore Aubrey’s connection with the other characters simply because of the limited amount of time she spends with them. Reading about these brief encounters, a few that are more impactful than the others, soon became a tad tedious. The non-linear narrative detracted from my overall satisfaction in that though I was curious and could sympathize with Aubrey’s plight, the slightly disjointed nature of the narrative and the emphasis on other aspects of the story kept me from connecting with the character on an emotional level. Perhaps a deeper exploration into Audrey, the person, would have enriched my reading experience. I did enjoy the ending despite the ambiguity. Overall, this was a skillfully crafted, wondrous story that touched upon themes of survival, belongingness and human connection that I liked but did not love. I should mention that there are episodes of animal hunting/cruelty featured in the narrative (one particularly graphic description of the same that I found particularly disturbing!). Many thanks to Avid Reader Press for the digital review copy via Edelweiss+. All opinions expressed in this review are my own. This novel was published on April 2, 2024. ( )1 srms.reads | Apr 8, 2024 | |
Current DiscussionsNonePopular covers
 Google Books — Loading...GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)813.6Literature American literature in English American fiction in English 2000-LC ClassificationRatingAverage: (3.85)
Is this you?Become a LibraryThing Author. |
1
It's 1885 in Paris and our protagonist Aubry Tourvel is a precocious young girl of just nine years of age when she falls inexplicably ill. Suffering excruciating pain and bleeding from the nose and mouth, the only thing that soothes her seems to be movement.
In the first few pages the author convinces the reader of the seriousness of Aubry's condition with powerful descriptive writing that I'm not likely to forget. Here's a taste:
"And then the pain strikes - a terrible, venomous pain - a weeping pain, like an ice pick through a rotten tooth. It drives straight down her spine, from the base of her skull to the small of her back. She shudders as if electrified, then stiffens up, crushing all the slack out of her body. The old man stops his chattering, watches her face turn cold and pale, watches her lips form soundless words." Page 5
Forced to travel to keep her illness at bay from that point on, days and weeks pass but the narrative doesn't unfold in a strictly chronological sense. Given her circumstances change every 3-4 days, it would be impossible to include her journey and experiences throughout the course of her entire lifetime. Instead the reader experiences her travels in flashbacks and when sharing her encounters with people she meets along the way.
One such person is an old man in Chile who engages Aubry in conversation and explains why he detests travel. He tells Aubry he once fancied a trip to Santiago to see what the fuss was about but it didn't exactly go to plan.
"After an uncomfortable carriage ride to the station, where he discovered his train was running three hours late, he became hungry and ordered sweet potato empanadas. To his horror, he discovered these empanadas were not to his taste at all, far too sweet, and the cafe did not carry his favourite tea - in fact, no tea at all. He was forced to try a sweetened tonic water imported from America, which he'd heard of but never pursued. It was a disastrous meal. He thought if a mere trip to the train station had caused him so much unpleasantness, what horrors might a trip to Santiago inflict? He threw his ticket away and headed straight back home." Page 74
Perhaps you can relate to this sentiment, or - like others she meets on her travels - imagine Aubry's life of continual travel to be adventurous, spiritual or romantic. The old man continues to chat with Aubry, asking:
"And really, was there anything in Santiago or Havana or Madrid - any artwork or museum or towering mountain - he could not simply read about in a book?"
The author's vocation as a librarian in Ohio shines through this book in a huge way. I can only imagine the plethora of books which have inspired his writing style and fuelled his imagination because his own work was perfection on the page.
As well as containing engaging travel adventures that are often dangerous, sometimes desperate and occasionally warm and emotional, Westerbeke also manages to write some entertaining dialogue, particularly when it involves children or a language barrier.
Stories and doorways are important within the narrative and reading A Short Walk Through a Wide World by Douglas Westerbeke reminded me of The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix E. Harrow meets The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab. It also reminded me of my idealised version of One Thousand and One Nights; idealised because I've never read them but this is how I imagine them to be, only in more detail.
For example, Aubry tells a woman from Heshou that she has "crewed with the cinnamon traders from Seychelles", "built a house in the Hawizeh marshes" and "slaughtered whales in the Faroe Islands." (Page 245)
A Short Walk Through a Wide World by Douglas Westerbeke could be categorised multiple ways, it's a travel story, historical fiction, action adventure, science fiction and urban fantasy. It contains a mystery puzzle ball and a secret library, I mean what more could you want? If anyone possessed the talent to bring Aubry's story to the big screen it would be epic.
Highly recommended!
* Copy courtesy of Penguin Random House * (