Fiona Shaw, Virago, 2005,
£14.99
hb, 352pp, 1-84408-000-5
In 1920s England, Jude is
working in a boring office job, drifting after her experiences as a nurse during
the First World War. She took photos while she was serving in Belgium, and one
of them brings Daniel to her door. Daniel, an ex-soldier who served in Ireland
in the Black and Tans, comes across the photograph at an exhibition. It shows a
man he knew, and brings back haunting memories so he finds Jude to get further
information. Then Daniel goes missing, and Jude thinks she knows where he’s
gone.
This book has a quiet, almost
dream-like quality about it. The scenes are acutely observed, though often a
sense of period does not come through strongly, from either the material
culture around them or the characters’ behaviour. However, the people are, for
the most part, vividly drawn. This is a tightly focused and absorbing tale of
two people finding their way after formative and devastating events.
S Garside-Neville
157 words