The Buzz...About Books

Without planning to do so, I've recently picked up three novels that featured main characters who decided to leave on unplanned adventures.  All three also happened to be seniors.  I wonder if this is the start of a new trend.  If so, it's off to a great start.

The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce. Recently retired Harold Fry is jolted out of his quiet life by a letter from Queenie Hennessy, an old friend who he hasn't heard from in twenty years. She has written to say she is dying and wanted to say goodbye.  Quickly writing a reply, Harold tells his wife Maureen that he is walking to the corner mailbox to put the reply in the post.  When he gets there, he decides to walk to the next mailbox.  This happens several times until a chance encounter convinces him that he must deliver his message in person to Queenie–who is 600 miles away–because as long as he keeps walking, Queenie will not die.

So without hiking boots, rain gear, map or a cell phone, Harold begins his unlikely pilgrimage across England. While he is walking, he has time to think and recall many of the events, often painful, that he has tried to forget from his life with Maureen, Queenie and his son David.   Back at home, a bewildered Maureen is surprised to find that she misses him.   Will Harold be able to walk across England and will Queenie still be alive when he gets there? 

The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry was longlisted for the 2012 Man Booker Prize.  It is also available in Audiobook, eBook and eAudiobook and Talking Book (Restricted to Print Disabled Patrons) 

The 100 Year-Old Man who Climbed Out a Window and Disappeared by Jonas Jonasson and translated from Swedish by Rod Bradury.  Allan Karlsson decides that he does not want to stick around for his 100th Birthday party, so he climbs out the window.  He quickly makes his way to the nearest bus station to get a ticket on the first bus out of town.  While waiting for the bus, and young man with long, greasy blond hair asks him to watch his large suitcase while he went to the washroom.  Allan agrees.  But before the young man gets back, Allan's bus arrives.  and Allan impuslively decides to take the suitcase with him.    This  decision is the beginning of Allan adventure, where he meets new friends and tries to keep ahead of the people who are looking for him – the boss of the gang who is the true owner of the suitcase (which happens to hold a lot of money) and the police.

In between the numerous events in Allan's adventure, the reader learns more about Allan's most unusual life.  Allan is an explosives expert and (Forrest Gump-like) has travelled the world and met many world leaders, including General Franco, President Truman, Stalin and Kim Jong-Il (when he was a boy).  Quirky and charming, The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared is also available in eBook.

Mrs. Queen Takes the Train by William M. Kuhn.  Britain's Queen has successfully handled the many ups and downs in her life, but the cancellation of the Royal Train is  has her feeling a bit down.   To try to shake this rare feeling, she thinks back to the happiest times in her life and realizes that many took place on the former royal yacht, Britannia, which is now moored near Edinburgh.  So, when circumstances find her alone and outside the palace, the Monarch decides to leave immediately for an impromptu visit.  Soon her royal attendants discover that she is missing.  Putting aside their own squabbles, they set out to find her and bring her back before her absence becomes a national scandal.  

While the premise is unrealistic, Mrs. Queen Takes the Train is a delightful and humorous story which is told with great affection. It is also available in eBook, eAudiobook and Talking Book (Restricted to Print Disabled patrons).