Book 31 - Carys Davies "West"
May. 27th, 2024 04:00 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
jazzy_daveCarys Davies "West" (Granta Books)
A decade or so after the Lewis and Clark expedition, Pennsylvania widower Cy Bellman is captivated by their description of one of their discoveries ‘…monstrous bones…sunk in the salty Kentucky mud’. He becomes obsessed with the idea that the huge creatures that left these bones might still be found somewhere out in the far West and is determined to find them. Despite all the predictions from neighbours and family that he is embarking on a fool’s errand that will surely end in his death, he can only say ‘I have to go. I have to go and see. That’s all I can tell you. I have to’. He leaves his ten-year-old daughter, Bess, in the care of his sister and sets out on a journey that will take him across thousands of miles. Along the way, he hires a guide, a young Shawnee boy and the pair develop a very complex relationship, one that transcends their lack of common language.
When I saw West, the debut novel, by the author in paperback in Waterstones one day , I will admit it was the cover more than the description that caught my eye. I will also admit I doubted the story would match the promise of that art but oh, that cover! So did the novel match the promise? In a word, yes. West is a beautifully written often lyrical and completely engrossing story. It is quite short, more novella than novel but it carries quite a punch. It alternates between Bellman’s story and Bess’, a lonely girl who must fend off dangers of her own after her father’s departure. But it is the relationship between Bellman and the Shawnee boy – sort of Don Quixote set in the early 19th century. American West - that kept me glued to the pages.
Highly recommended.
A decade or so after the Lewis and Clark expedition, Pennsylvania widower Cy Bellman is captivated by their description of one of their discoveries ‘…monstrous bones…sunk in the salty Kentucky mud’. He becomes obsessed with the idea that the huge creatures that left these bones might still be found somewhere out in the far West and is determined to find them. Despite all the predictions from neighbours and family that he is embarking on a fool’s errand that will surely end in his death, he can only say ‘I have to go. I have to go and see. That’s all I can tell you. I have to’. He leaves his ten-year-old daughter, Bess, in the care of his sister and sets out on a journey that will take him across thousands of miles. Along the way, he hires a guide, a young Shawnee boy and the pair develop a very complex relationship, one that transcends their lack of common language.
When I saw West, the debut novel, by the author in paperback in Waterstones one day , I will admit it was the cover more than the description that caught my eye. I will also admit I doubted the story would match the promise of that art but oh, that cover! So did the novel match the promise? In a word, yes. West is a beautifully written often lyrical and completely engrossing story. It is quite short, more novella than novel but it carries quite a punch. It alternates between Bellman’s story and Bess’, a lonely girl who must fend off dangers of her own after her father’s departure. But it is the relationship between Bellman and the Shawnee boy – sort of Don Quixote set in the early 19th century. American West - that kept me glued to the pages.
Highly recommended.
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