History of the Rain

'We tell stories. We tell stories to pass the time, or go more deeply into it. We tell stories to heal the pain of living.'

This is a book about stories, about retelling and the importance of books in the lives of the readers, about finding answers in the pages of books, in poetry, in the flowing of the river, as the salmon does, upcurrent.

Ruth is a teenaged narrator, telling the story of her family. The first one is her grandfather Reverend Swain and the 'Impossible Standard' he sets for himself and that sets the bar for the following generations. Later, grandfather Abraham, and his 'History of the Salmon in Ireland', struggling to find meaning in a place in which he seriously doesn't belong. Last but not least, Ruth's father Virgil, the poet who never stops working, who has 'ash in his soul'. From him Ruth and Aegny arrive, they own stories waiting ahead of them.

I 've found the story beautifully written. The poetic language makes the narrative flow, God becoming a fisher, hooking people to their destinies, to the after life, off the river.
The characters are described intelligently 'Young Father Tipp came, parked his Starlet the way priest park, on the outwr edge, carried his missal low down and a little behind him the way Clint Estwood carried his gun, loke he'd only use it if he had to.' You imagine them clearly, the humorous tone involving the most incredulous parts, making them believable and understandable.

Those who doesn't have 'Human-Glue', who hide themselves in books, who escape from reality sometimes, will feel totally connected to this story, to the idea that the answers to the big issues are found in books, in the lives of others, in other's adventures.

Ana Ovejero

mail: ana.ovejero@gmail.com

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