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As we take a rest in the comforting month of December and also begin the work of planning out 2023, we’d love to hear from you, darling readers, as to what you’d like to read with us during Virtual Book Club! You know the drill on how to get in contact with us, so do that in your preferred manner. Smoke signals not suggested during a snowstorm. Cuddle up!

I am so thankful for my book buddy and her habit of listening to Anne Bogel, who had author Jon Cohen on episode 160 of her podcast What Should I Read Next? and repeatedly recommends his books to other podcast guests. That includes today’s comforting read, Harry’s Trees, but Cohen has written two other novels, The Man in the Window, and Max Lakeman and the Beautiful Stranger. Of note, Cohen is also co-writer for the Steven Spielburg directed Tom Cruise movie Minority Report based on the Philip K. Dick short story of the same name. A former critical care nurse, Cohen is the recipient of a creative writing grant from the National Endowment for the Arts. 

Darling Readers, I am going to should on you. Not because I didn’t do what I’m telling you to do, but because I did. READ. THE. MARKETING. COPY. Harry’s Trees does not start out being a book that is comforting. There is so much tragedy interlacing this story because of  the sudden deaths of the spouses of two of our main characters. Harry is a widower and Amanda is a widow with a young daughter, who find each other a year after their tragedies occur. The whole story, though, is one of hope and the comfort of a good story, especially one given by a trusted librarian. Let me just tell you, I want to be librarian Olive Perkins when I grow up. She knows how important the power of story is to Oriana who is grieving the death of her father, no matter how much Oriana’s mother Amanda thinks the fantasy world Oriana has been inhabiting takes her away from real life. 

From the first page, Cohen will have you believing in the power of signs and coincidences that can and do direct our very real human lives. I’m giving Harry’s Trees a 4.5 star review. I’ll go ahead and round it up to five, not because I think I’ll be re-reading it anytime soon, but because it’s a big contender for top book of the year. I enjoyed every tug of my heart string, every sarcastic comment from librarian Olive Perkins, and am going to be recommending it to all readers everywhere for all the reasons.

What book took you on an emotional rollercoaster ride and left you with a book hangover?

~Ashley

Darling readers, I listened to Anne Bogel discuss Harry’s Trees on multiple occasions, and I’ve listened to the author, Jon Cohen, discuss this book with her, and I’ve probably even read the marketing copy, but I WAS NOT READY for the first 15% of this book.  Trigger Warning: Those two deaths discussed in the aforementioned marketing copy are heavily discussed on the page as our main characters are still grieving their spouses, and those first 15% suck you in and are tragic.  After that though, this book is as comforting as an afternoon curled up on the couch in front of a fire, with a dog warming your feet, a beverage warming your hand, and the view of a crackling fire and soft snowfall outside.  Yes, that is my goal for this weekend (except the fireplace is gas), and it’s also the most comforting reading experience I could conjure in my mind’s eye.  Also, I did warn Ashley of the gut-wrenching beginning of this book, and still, you saw what she said (after she complained that I didn’t remember the marketing copy).  

And yet, without that first heartbreaking chunk of the story, I don’t think I’d love the rest as much.  Anne and Jon described Harry’s Trees as magical realism, and I don’t think that’s quite it.  It’s more serendipity or a series of amazing coincidences.  Perhaps there is magic making these things happen, but that magic is not on the page.  I did read this book, which does include Harry healing himself through reconnecting with nature and helping Oriana on her healing journey, shortly after finishing Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer and I adored the connecting points.  Braiding Sweetgrass is about First Peoples in the present United States and the ways their culture protects and supports nature.  Harry’s Trees include a lot of time spent in the woods (also in the marketing copy) and discussing trees, and the idea of tapping a maple tree linked both of these titles in my head.  

I’m giving Harry’s Trees 4.5 stars for a fantastic story that’s stuck with me, picturesque writing that had me envisioning the scenes on the page, and an amazing cast of characters, most of whom I’d like to be friends with.  But really, what made this novel for me was the theme of hope, the book within the book, and the healing that comes to the characters as they process through their grief and keep putting one foot in front of the other.  I’m also going to round up for all those reasons.  This well-rounded novel is definitely on the long list of favorites of 2022, and we’ll see how it comes out in a few short weeks.

What is a novel that surprised you with its immersive writing?

~Nikki 

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