Mad Honey
A new book from Jodi Picoult is an immediate must-read for many – but a novel co-written by her and another star author is a rare and intriguing prospect. When Jennifer Finney Boylan contacted Jodi about creating a story with alternating narratives, she responded with excitement. The result is a brilliant novel about secrets, privacy and the difference between who we want people to be and who they are. Set in a sleepy New Hampshire town, the story picks up with beekeeper Olivia, who moves back to her parents’ house with her teenage son Asher, following the breakdown of her marriage with Asher’s father – a high-flying surgeon that physically and emotionally abused Olivia for years. The other narrator is Lily, Asher’s girlfriend, who also recently moved to the small town. Both narrators are starting again – yet one afternoon it all falls apart, when Asher finds Lily’s body at the bottom of the stairs and is accused of her murder. Olivia rushes to her son’s defence, but internally worries: might it be true? How much of his father’s violence did her son internalise? The story unfolds like the process of checking a beehive: you take out each frame, hold it up to the light, and gradually the bigger picture reveals itself. This is a gripping thriller about the power of second chances. It feels a little like listening to a true crime podcast; the switching narratives slowly reveal concealed truths and brilliantly unexpected twists – providing every element you could require for a winter read. BY JODI PICOULT & JENNIFER FINNEY BOYLAN
A Down Home Meal for These Difficult Times If you’ve been struggling to reconnect with reading, short stories could be your salvation, offering bite-sized slices of fiction that present a chance to dip your toes into another’s life for a few short moments, before being whisked off to the next tale. Meron’s confident stories segue from heartbreak to opportunity in mere sentences; these tiny, glowing vignettes sweep you up before handing you to the next hero, and larger themes emerge from the disparate tales. BY MERON HADERO
All her characters are searching for home, whatever that means, whether immigrants, refugees or food truck vendors. They share beautiful, universal truths about race, equality and grief, presenting sentences that’ll see you reaching for your notebook or phone notes app to capture their intensity. Like the finest stories of any length, you are left wanting a second serving, but must be content with what you’ve been given by this gifted author.
This unforgettable collection is the first book from Ethiopian-American writer Meron Hadero, and includes several of her award-winning shorts – like The Street Sweep , winner of the 2021 AKO Caine Prize for African Writing. In this story, we’re introduced to Getu, a young street sweeper in Addis Ababa who must find a solution to the threat of losing his home, while navigating the foreign aid-filled backdrop of his city.
SWEPT AWAY Meron Hadero’s award-winning short stories effortlessly transport the reader
CAMBSEDITION.CO.UK NOVEMBER 2022 27
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