Review: Akin by Emma Donoghue
by The Borrowers Book Group Kesgrave Library
Akin by Emma Donoghue
The Borrowers Book group at Kesgrave Library share their thoughts on Akin, written by award-winning author Emma Donoghue.
About Akin:
Noah is only days away from his first trip back to Nice since he was a child when a social worker calls looking for a temporary home for Michael, his 11-year-old great-nephew. Though he has never met the boy, he gets talked into taking him along to France. This odd couple, suffering from jet lag and culture shock, argue about everything from steak haché to screen time, and the trip is looking like a disaster. But as Michael's ease with tech and sharp eye help Noah unearth troubling details about their family's past, both of them come to grasp the risks that people in all eras have run for their loved ones, and find they are more akin than they knew.
Book Group Review:
Recommended for a Book Group, this is an enjoyable book, witty and humorous, with many laugh-out-loud exchanges, as well as being a poignant read. The book focuses on different family elements and the relationships between them, all with bereavement and loss at the core.
The main characters are all well observed and insightful. Noah, the 79 year old widower has wonderfully engaging mental conversations with his dead wife and her clever, no-nonsense advice. Michael, a disturbed 11 year old from Brooklyn, is spot on with his streetwise child’s voice and reminders of his late grandmother’s words of wisdom. The female characters are particularly strong, including those from the past.
As the relationship between the man and boy develops, their perceptions change and they grow more aware of the feelings of the other. The deeper story then emerges which is researching Noah’s mother’s past during the occupation of Nice in France in World War II. This and the photography element are based on real experiences and could have been developed further as both were interesting and we would have liked to know more. The different elements of the book come together well at the end.
Recommendation: A very enjoyable read which stimulated discussion.
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