Thursday 3 September 2009

Life on the Refrigerator Door by Alice Kuipers

From Amazon: Mom, I went to the store. See inside the fridge. I watered the plants. I cleaned out Peter's cage. I tidied the sitting room. And the kitchen. And I did the washing up. I'm going to bed. Your live-in servant, Claire. "Life on the Refrigerator Door" is told exclusively through notes exchanged by Claire and her mother, Elizabeth, during the course of a life-altering year. Their story builds to an emotional crescendo when Elizabeth is diagnosed with breast cancer. Stunningly sad but ultimately uplifting, this is a clever, moving, and original portrait of the relationship between a daughter and mother. It is about how we live our lives constantly rushing, and never making time for those we love. It is also an elegy to how much can be said in so few words, if only we made the time to say them.

I was really interested in reading this but not convinced that the concept of notes left on a refrigerator door would work. I thought that it would be impossible for the characters to feel developed enough for me to care about them. Boy, was I wrong! I really loved this and was amazed at how well it was put together. I could imagine each character perfectly and found myself completely engrossed. Granted it doesn't take long to read but I would recommend that you do.

2 comments:

prophecygirl said...

This is such a sad book! I usually avoid reading anything that involves parents dying (scary subject) but had to read this. And I'm glad I did!

Unknown said...

Sounds interesting! Thanks for pointing it out.

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