Review by anferneelusong -- Waves Break (on Unknown Shores)
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Review by anferneelusong -- Waves Break (on Unknown Shores)
[Following is a volunteer review of "Waves Break (on Unknown Shores)" by Barry Litherland.]
Waves Break (on Unknown Shores) by Barry Litherland confronts the psychological effects of growing up in a hostile neighborhood and understanding human flaw. It is an indelible portrait of a brotherhood torn apart by hatred and fear.
It follows the thrilling story of two young men born into false prosperity and brought up in the bitter realities of the world. None of them wanted to be a part of another war that will make everybody miserable. They wanted to be throwing footballs, running in the meadows and basking in the afternoon sun, not fearing for their lives ending at any given moment. The years fly by, their coming of age has come and gone but the shadows of their past still linger like bad perfume. They could run but only so far. In unflinching yet elegant prose, the author vividly captures the innocent moments that were shared in the reeds, the horrors of adulthood and the disillusionment of life in the nightfall. It is an eloquently written novel of hardship, resilience, love, anguish and redemption.
This book uncovers the repercussions of change and probes the mystery of how the lives of these lost stragglers, at the height of their achievements, could have propelled themselves into such a ruinous conflict that would change everything. The author takes us behind the scenes of the lives of these broken individuals and their doomed efforts to defuse a crisis that may never see the end of the tunnel. I love how the author subtly weaves in issues of class and politics without it overshadowing the rest of the story. He brilliantly combines poetic intensity with gritty realism and never loses momentum as he accelerates toward the story’s devastating denouement. His panoramic account of this vast and terrible conflict is destined to take its place among the classics of world history. As you flip through the pages of this book, you will be transported into the poignant beginnings of these lost stragglers through flashbacks and understand why they had to take the path they are currently treading on. It also shines a light on domestic abuse and the physical and mental toll it takes to a person.
I often wonder why people choose to hurt themselves by allowing certain individuals treat them like they’re nothing but damaged goods. When did that innocent child who used to create paper airplanes behind the windowsill become this rotten, talking, walking marshmallow peep without a soft place to land? What life choices did they live by that propelled them to fall into this never ending cycle of brokenness? These are only some of the thoughts that were running through my mind as I flip through the pages of this novel. It doesn’t escape me that there’s an ache in them put there by the ache in someone else’s. It’s crazy to think that these things actually happen to a lot of people. In every corner of the world, people are struggling and choosing fraudulence over what’s deemed as morally right in order to get by in this sweet and bitter earth. If there’s one thing that people should take away from this book is that life is impermanent and how the provenance of everything that’s good falters as the decades go by. Some people are forced to grow up a little too soon and see things little ones shouldn’t know. The saying, “Time and tide wait for no man” is engraved in the depths of this book. It’s on every letter of every word. People who will read this novel in the future will probably think it’s just your typical mystery novel with a tinge of poignance but it’s more than that. Yes, the Nordic noir vibes are there but the heart of this book is not the crimes, it’s the people and their life’s journey. I feel like this book would resonate to those who grew up reading Nordic noir type novels. All in all, this memoir offers a promise of a day that some may never see but also teaches us that you can’t move forward into the future without first knowing the past.
This book was painstakingly written and has no grammatical errors and for that I give it a 4 out of 4 stars.
******
Waves Break (on Unknown Shores)
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Waves Break (on Unknown Shores) by Barry Litherland confronts the psychological effects of growing up in a hostile neighborhood and understanding human flaw. It is an indelible portrait of a brotherhood torn apart by hatred and fear.
It follows the thrilling story of two young men born into false prosperity and brought up in the bitter realities of the world. None of them wanted to be a part of another war that will make everybody miserable. They wanted to be throwing footballs, running in the meadows and basking in the afternoon sun, not fearing for their lives ending at any given moment. The years fly by, their coming of age has come and gone but the shadows of their past still linger like bad perfume. They could run but only so far. In unflinching yet elegant prose, the author vividly captures the innocent moments that were shared in the reeds, the horrors of adulthood and the disillusionment of life in the nightfall. It is an eloquently written novel of hardship, resilience, love, anguish and redemption.
This book uncovers the repercussions of change and probes the mystery of how the lives of these lost stragglers, at the height of their achievements, could have propelled themselves into such a ruinous conflict that would change everything. The author takes us behind the scenes of the lives of these broken individuals and their doomed efforts to defuse a crisis that may never see the end of the tunnel. I love how the author subtly weaves in issues of class and politics without it overshadowing the rest of the story. He brilliantly combines poetic intensity with gritty realism and never loses momentum as he accelerates toward the story’s devastating denouement. His panoramic account of this vast and terrible conflict is destined to take its place among the classics of world history. As you flip through the pages of this book, you will be transported into the poignant beginnings of these lost stragglers through flashbacks and understand why they had to take the path they are currently treading on. It also shines a light on domestic abuse and the physical and mental toll it takes to a person.
I often wonder why people choose to hurt themselves by allowing certain individuals treat them like they’re nothing but damaged goods. When did that innocent child who used to create paper airplanes behind the windowsill become this rotten, talking, walking marshmallow peep without a soft place to land? What life choices did they live by that propelled them to fall into this never ending cycle of brokenness? These are only some of the thoughts that were running through my mind as I flip through the pages of this novel. It doesn’t escape me that there’s an ache in them put there by the ache in someone else’s. It’s crazy to think that these things actually happen to a lot of people. In every corner of the world, people are struggling and choosing fraudulence over what’s deemed as morally right in order to get by in this sweet and bitter earth. If there’s one thing that people should take away from this book is that life is impermanent and how the provenance of everything that’s good falters as the decades go by. Some people are forced to grow up a little too soon and see things little ones shouldn’t know. The saying, “Time and tide wait for no man” is engraved in the depths of this book. It’s on every letter of every word. People who will read this novel in the future will probably think it’s just your typical mystery novel with a tinge of poignance but it’s more than that. Yes, the Nordic noir vibes are there but the heart of this book is not the crimes, it’s the people and their life’s journey. I feel like this book would resonate to those who grew up reading Nordic noir type novels. All in all, this memoir offers a promise of a day that some may never see but also teaches us that you can’t move forward into the future without first knowing the past.
This book was painstakingly written and has no grammatical errors and for that I give it a 4 out of 4 stars.
******
Waves Break (on Unknown Shores)
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
