You want something that puts down a slightly fresh marker’: judge Rowan Williams, former archbishop of Canterbury Photograph: Tim Ireland/PA One day however, a strange man turns up at Mrs Orchard’s house and starts moving some of his things in. Clara is furious, how dare he! Besides it’s her job to feed Moses, and he’s a very nervous cat when it comes to strangers. Told through three points of view, I listened to this on audio and was moved by the excellent performances by the three narrators. As Elizabeth lays in her hospital bed, she sifts through her memories, “talking” to her dead husband Charles about their life together and the little neighbor boy, Liam, who had a difficult home life, and was once such an important part of her life. She hints at a devastating event from the past, one she feels she must atone for before she dies. a character-driven story with a touch of mystery. The intertwining storylines of 7-year-old Clara, newly-divorced Liam, and elderly Elizabeth (Mrs. Orchard) are well-developed. I felt empathy for them at times; frustration at other times. I looked forward to see how their stories would evolve; and, It is a book with a strong sense of place – in a small, remote and very much enclosed community – one very different from anything I have experienced or will experience

They were childless (she having suffered many miscarriages) which leaves her with a profound sense of isolation and emptiness A Town Called Solace — the brilliant and emotionally radiant new novel from Mary Lawson, her first in nearly a decade — opens on a family in crisis: rebellious teenager Rose been missing for weeks with no word, and Rose's younger sister, the feisty and fierce Clara, keeps a daily vigil at the living-room window, hoping for her sibling's return.I loved reading A Town Called Solace ... It's beautifully written and so finely crafted; told in the kind of prose I most admire because it takes what appears to be complicated and makes it clear... These interwoven stories of three people at different stages of life, and yet each struggling with their own form of loss and grief, will stay with me the way good friendships stay with you. It's already one of my favourite books of the year. Lawson, as shown in previous books is at this a master. These characters are all facing difficult challenges and how they play out is the story. A captivating, easy flowing one at that. Friendship, family, caring, memories, comfort and redemption is at this books core, all things we all need and cherish or should. Sometimes what we are looking for it right under our noses, but takes a while to see. Hopefully mistakes are recognized before they can cause future regrets. A Town Called Solace, like her other books, is about family relationships. And even though it doesn’t delve into themes I’d call “Shakespearean” because of their complexity and universal truths—themes of her earlier books, Crow Lake, Road Ends, and The Other Side of the Bridge—it is no less affecting.

A Town Called Solace keeps you breathless with anxiety, then relief and finally even joy.”— Ferdinand Mount, author of Kiss Myself Goodbye: The Many Lives of Aunt Munca“I’ve been trying to tell everybody I know about [Mary Lawson]. . . . [Each of her novels is] just a marvel.”— Anne Tyler, author of Redhead by the Side of the Road I discovered Mary Lawson in 2015 with Road Ends and caught up with Crow Lake in the summer of 2019. All four of her books are set in fictional locations inspired by the villages and rural areas of Northern Ontario, where the author grew up before moving to England in 1968. So Solace, while not a real town, is true to her memory and, despite the sometimes gruff or know-it-all locals, an emotional landmark for the three central characters, all of whom are processing trauma and looking for places of comfort where they can start over. Poised, elegant prose, paired with quiet drama that will break your heart. The sort of book that seems as if it has always existed because of its timeless perfection.This is Mary Lawson’s fourth novel and I’d recommend a binge immersion. She has carved out a world in northern Ontario that’s vividly, absorbingly real; she captures tones and voices with exactitude in writing that’s idiomatic but never flashy and carries you along from midnight to dawn, oblivious of the time.”— Literary Review (UK) This is the setting for a book exploring connections between people, half buried memories, loneliness, heartbreak and peripheral characters that you come to love. Lawson even made me love the nurse that was taking care of Elizabeth in the hospital, even though she just flitted in and out occasionally. These people are real, and kudos to the author for portraying an 8 year old girl who is not exceptional in any way, but is dealing with the confusing world of adults who won't tell her the truth in an effort to protect her. Clara made me clutch my heart more than once. That isn’t to say that the book is a sunny read. Set in remote Northern Ontario in 1972, it is narrated by three characters. Seven-year-old Clara is alienated and mourning her missing teenage sister and finds solace in caring for the cat of her elderly neighbor who is in the hospital. That neighbor, Mrs. Orchard, harbors a secret from her past and is trying to make late-life amends. The third person, Liam, is emotionally

It is a priority for CBC to create products that are accessible to all in Canada including people with visual, hearing, motor and cognitive challenges. The most interesting aspect of the novel involves one woman’s unhealthy obsession with her neighbour’s child. Unfortunately, this wasn’t well-developed and played into some nasty stereotypes about infertile women. And by the time the storyline is fully unspooled… well let’s just say it left me feeling like the entire premise of the novel was one big plot hole. This is Mary Lawson's fourth novel and I'd recommend a binge immersion. She has carved out a world in northern Ontario that's vividly, absorbingly real; she captures tones and voices with exactitude in writing that's idiomatic but never flashy and carries you along from midnight to dawn, oblivious of the time. The story is told from three-character points of view. Clara, 7 years old, is a dutiful cat sitter who begins the story staring out her front window, watching her neighbor, Mrs. Orchard’s, home. Clara’s teenage sister Rose has just ran away, and Clara feels that she needs to keep her vigilance of the neighbor’s home to assure Rose’s safe return. I did want a bit more, which I suppose is better than wanting less. I wanted to hear from Liam’s mother, even if it had just been one chapter, and I wanted to know more about Rose. But those are minor complaints. The author beautifully captures small town life and the characters who inhabit the town. This is a quiet, lovely, and poignant look at lives that eventually intertwine in unexpected ways. Beautifully told, this is a deceptively simple story of flawed people (aren’t we all?) who live with regrets, and have known grief, but also joy. Solace is not just a town in Ontario, it’s what we can offer one another if we open our hearts. Highly recommended, this is a story that will touch your heart.

The story is gentle and quiet with moments of tension and also humour. I have not previously read a book by this author but I enjoyed her writing style very much and plan to look out for more of her work. All of her characters are delightful especially Liam and Clare who do eventually meet and develop a lovely relationship. Liam is in his thirties, an accountant who has recently separated from his wife and is newly unemployed, and is in Solace to take up temporary residence in a house that has unexpectedly been left to him by an elderly lady he has not seen for more than thirty years. Planning to refurbish the house, put it on the market and then leave with the proceeds, Liam finds himself feeling rather reluctant to commit to selling the house, especially when he becomes unintentionally involved with Clara and with her sister's disappearance. Lawson, Mary (16 February 2021). "Mary Lawson: Why I write about the Canadian Shield". Macleans . Retrieved 22 August 2021.