Father's Day: A Novel by Simon Van Booy

(Thank you to the publisher and TLC Book Tours for providing me with a copy of this book!)

about book:

When devastating news shatters the life of six-year-old Harvey, she finds herself in the care of a veteran social worker, Wanda, and alone in the world save for one relative she has never met—a disabled felon, haunted by a violent act he can’t escape.

Moving between past and present, Father’s Day weaves together the story of Harvey’s childhood on Long Island and her life as a young woman in Paris.

Written in raw, spare prose that personifies the characters, this remarkable novel is the journey of two people searching for a future in the ruin of their past.

my thoughts:

Everything Beautiful Began After is one of my favorite books.  Its a beautifully written story that made my heart hurt, my head spin, and haunted me for months after. I loved it to bits! Van Booy's writing was ACE and I couldn't get enough of it.  So, when I heard about his new novel, Father's Day, I immediately asked to review it. I was so excited to read it.  A new book by one of my favorite writers - what more could I want? I just knew I was in for a treat.

Father's Day is the story of Harvey and Jason, a father/daughter duo, reuniting  in Paris to celebrate Father's Day.  Harvey lives in Paris now and wants her dad to see where she lives, where she works, and how well she is doing. She also wants to share with him a secret she uncovered - something she is convinced he knew, but never told her.  Jason just wants to spend time with his daughter in this new world she's created for herself.  Their story unfolds slowly, and the narratives time jump from past to present helping to explain their relationship further - it all makes for quite an affecting read.  I loved getting to know Harvey as a kid and Jason as her uncle who takes on the role of "dad" when she loses both her parents in a car crash. These two lost souls find comfort in each other and their new relationship.  Jason makes sacrifices the way any good father would for his daughter's medical (in this case dental) care.  Harvey provides the teen-aged angst that tests any father's patience.  Its fascinating, relatable, and mesmerizing to read.  The more details that emerge about this family, the more you can't help but figure out the secret that Harvey is waiting to ask her father about.  I have to admit that I suspected what the secret was long before Harvey mentioned it, because from the beginning there is just something in the writing that spells out the truth ( or at least I saw it ).  Either way, I have to admit that this predictable secret/reveal was the only aspect of the novel that disappointed me ( but only slightly ).  In the end, I still managed to tear up reading the truth of Harvey, Jason, and their relationship.  Van Booy's words swept me away into these characters' lives, their past, their present, and the people around them. His penchant for creating a rich, vivid, and emotional story with such simple and sparse story lines is truly breathtaking. I loved this beautiful book to bits. 

I would happily recommend Father's Day to fans of Simon Van Booy's writing and fans of great reads - you will LOVE this book!

Here's the link to the TLC Book Tour schedule for: Father's Day

Thank you to the publisher and TLC Book Tours for providing me with a copy of this book!

Everything Beautiful Began After: A Novel by Simon Van Booy

From book flap:

Rebecca is young, lost, and beautiful.  A gifted artist, she seeks solace and inspiration in the Mediterranean heat of Athens - trying to understand who she is and how she can love without fear.

George has come to Athens to learn ancient languages after growing up in New England boarding schools and Ivy League colleges.  He has no close relationships with anyone and spends his days hunched over books or wandering the city in a drunken stupor.

Henry is in Athens to dig.  An accomplished young archaeologist, he devotedly uncovers the city's past as a way to escape his own, which holds a secret that not even his doting parents can talk about.

...And then, with a series of chance meetings, Rebecca, George, and Henry are suddenly in flight, their lives brighter and clearer than ever, as they fall headlong into a summer that will forever define them in the decades to come.

My Thoughts:

I'm in love with this book.  I want to keep this book in my handbag all the time, so that I can re-read it and memorize passages from it and quote it to my friends and loved ones (which sounds annoying, but I just feel like the words that Simon Van Booy has written need to be heard).  I don't think I've encountered a book that has left me feeling this way, since I read Jean Rhys', After Leaving Mr. Mackenzie (just so you know, it left me awestruck).  And so, I now realize that I must read everything Simon Van Booy has written, because I've been missing out. 

As for this particular story, its about three lost souls, who move to Athens in the hopes of escaping secrets from their past.  Along the way the stumble into each other's paths and soon find themselves working together at an archaeological dig.  Confusion and tension abound at first, when it comes to light that George is in love with Rebecca, who is now involved with Henry (who happens to be George's new best friend).  Awkward love triangle? Nope.  Not for this unlikely trio, who somehow manage to push past all the uncomfortable feelings and form a deep bond of friendship.  Its almost unreal how these intense and intimate connections appear to blossom so quickly, but somehow Van Booy makes it all work.  And then tragedy strikes and you are soon mired deep in a sadness and despair so heartbreakingly real that you can't help but shed tear after tear as you read on. 

Simon Van Booy has written a wonderfully rich novel that will leave you more than satisfied.  It will remind you just how good literature can be.  Now, I've purposely didn't delve any deeper into what happens within the novel, because you have to read it for yourself, ASAP!!  Suffice it to say that themes of love, loss, sadness and friendship are explored through three unforgettable characters' journeys to self-discovery.  You will not be disappointed!

Thank you to TLC Book Tours and the publisher for providing me with a copy of the book.