I’ve recently had my notion of a “good” book challenged and realized the criteria I had been using focused on quick, dynamic plots, compelling character arcs, and big twists. I’m glad that I read this book during my process of re-evaluation because it would not have stacked up to my previous criteria, and the book is the better for it.
It’s 1944 and Ulysses Temper, a young British soldier, meets Evelyn Skinner, an art historian, in a Tuscan village. Although their paths diverge after that first fateful meeting, their paths lazily loop closer and closer as the story unfolds. The story, however, is not about Ulysses or Evelyn, but rather about the life around them.
The book is not restricted by standard timelines, spending ages in a year or traversing years in a few sentences. It is not encumbered by expectations of pace nor is it confined to standard character development. I loved the change of pace and narrative, and I loved the family Winman creates along the way.
This book had all the potential to be a five star, and that was honestly the rating I was going to give it until the last 50-ish pages. The book is broken into “phases”, and the last phase is all about Evelyn. While I loved Evelyn’s character, I felt focusing on her after building the dynamic family of characters was a lurching way to bring the book to a close. After having flown through the book, I had to drag myself through the last bit which was such a disappointing way to end to an incredible book, and thus leaves it at four rather than five stars.
2% Rating: 8/10
Recommend? Yes
Re-Read? Maybe
Time: 1:46