Book Review: Rare Objects by Kathleen Tessaro

I will do my best with this book review. I am starting this blog post late after entertaining this evening, but am committed to publishing something tonight since it’s Tuesday, therefore a requirement of my current blogging challenge. I’ve been busy on the weekends lately and have been failing to work on my blog daily like I wanted. Plus, this is a novel I read months ago. After briefly skimming a description and a few reviews, I’m trying to remember it and what I wanted to say! When I posted my Winter Reading List back on January 3rd, I mentioned that I had already read the eBook version borrowed from the library.

I recommend Rare Objects: A Novel by Kathleen Tessaro. Although, I did enjoy another one of her works of historical fiction The Perfume Collector more. I enjoy the author’s writing style, which is vivid. The story captivates you. Her writing made me care about the main character, Maeve, an Irish immigrant struggling with life in Boston during the Great Depression. I cared for her even though she digs herself into a deep hole and the story is pretty depressing at times. Plus, I cared for the protagionist even though I didn’t like her friend much at all. One of the ways she tries to improve herself is scoring a job in an antiques store. Since I am the daughter of an antique dealer, I love that. Another thing I am drawn to is that Maeve and her mother do not live among the Irish, but the Italians! In the North End, my favorite area in Boston. The author does depict the setting well, but does not hold your hand in regards to background. It helps to know some US History and also a bit of World History as well so the reader can really understand what’s going on in the novel. It’s a good story that is well written and has a few details that pique my interest.

There was a detail in this book that I believe was also included in a book entitled Letters from Paris by Juliet Blackwell from my fall reading list that I would have read just a few months before. (Read my review here.) This fascinating concept was Kintsugi, the Japanese practice of repairing an object broken into pieces with gold (mixed into an adhesive) with the thought that the break and repair are part of the item’s history, events that make the piece more interesting and beautiful, not less, not meant for the trash. That translates to a wonderful life lesson. Flaws, issues and just feeling broken shouldn’t be covered up and/or dismissed, but when recognized and action is taken can possibly yield something bigger: beauty, growth, and triumph. It’s a vulnerable way to be, but when embraced can be so rewarding.