Tropicana Nov-Dec 2020 #133 The Festive Issue

CULTURE | BOOK
Books To Make You Happy
This past year may not have inspired much mirth but fret not,
these uplifting reads are sure to put a smile on your face.
Five Steps To Happy
Ella Dove
When struggling actress Heidi has a life-changing accident at the age of 32, her world falls apart. Stuck in hospital
and unable to walk, her only companion is Maud, the elderly lady in the bed next to hers. Heidi misses her flatmate,
her life, her freedom - surely 32 is too young to be an amputee? But when Maud’s aloof but attractive grandson Jack
pays a visit to the ward, Heidi realises that her life isn’t over just because it’s different. There’s a lot she still wants to
tick off her bucket list. With Jack at her side, will Heidi take the first step back to happiness? Based on the title, the
answer is a resounding yes. This uplifting novel is actually based on the author’s own life.
The Authenticity
Project
Clare Pooley
Eccentric and lonely artist Julian Jessop
believes that most people aren’t really
honest with each other. So he writes - in
a plain, green journal - the truth about
his own life and leaves it in his local
café. It’s run by Monica, who furtively
adds her own entry and leaves the book
in the wine bar across the street. Before
long, others who find the green notebook add the truths about their
own deepest selves. Its cast of characters - including Hazard, the
charming addict who makes a vow to get sober; Alice, the fabulous
mummy Instagrammer whose real life is a lot less perfect than it looks
online; and their other new friends - is by turns quirky and funny,
heartbreakingly sad and painfully true-to-life.
The Unlikely
Pilgrimage Of
Harold Fry
Rachel Joyce
Meet Harold Fry, recently retired. He lives
in a small English village with his wife,
Maureen, who seems irritated by almost
everything he does. One morning, a letter
arrives, addressed to Harold in a shaky
scrawl, from a woman he hasn’t heard
from in 20 years. Queenie Hennessy is in
hospice and is writing to say goodbye. A chance encounter convinces
Harold that he must deliver his message to Queenie in person.
Determined to walk 600 miles to the hospice, Harold believes that as
long as he walks, Queenie will live. A novel of humour and profound
insight into the feelings we all bury deep within our hearts; this book
introduces Rachel Joyce as an irresistible storyteller.
The Keeper Of
Lost Things
Ruth Hogan
Forty years ago, Anthony Peardew
carelessly lost a keepsake from his
beloved fiancée, Therese. That very
same day, she died unexpectedly.
Broken-hearted, Anthony sought
consolation in rescuing lost objects
- the things others have dropped,
misplaced, or accidently left behind -
and writing stories about them. Now,
in the twilight of his life, Anthony bequeaths his secret life’s mission
to his unsuspecting assistant, Laura, leaving her his house and
all its lost treasures, including an irritable ghost. A charming,
clever, and quietly moving novel of endless possibilities and
joyful discoveries.
One Thousand
Stars And You
Isabelle Broom
Alice is settling down. It might not be the
adventurous life she once imagined, but
more than anything she wants to make
everyone happy - her steady boyfriend,
her over-protective mother - even if
it means a little part of her will always
feel stifled. Meanwhile, Max is shaking
things up. After a devastating injury, he
is determined to prove himself, to escape his smothering family and
go on an adventure. A trip to Sri Lanka is Alice’s last chance to throw
herself into the chaos and colour of a place thousands of miles from
home. It’s also the moment she meets Max. Alice doesn’t know it yet,
but her whole life is about to change. Be prepared to swoon as this book
will pick you up and sweep you into its pages. Passport not required.
TM | NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2020
11