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Loading... Leaving Earth (1997)by Helen Humphreys
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Ein Roman ohne jede Effekthascherei, sachlich und doch gefühlvoll, sinnlich und präzise. Helen Humphreys writes remarkably spare, uncluttered prose; she has a great knack for evoking unspoken love and finding stark beauty in matters as diverse as the sight of a burning ship at night or the creation of a silent language. Ultimately, Leaving Earth is a perfectly good snack of a book – well-written enough to be intellectually satisfying, interesting enough to keep the reader’s attention, salty, and sweet – yet light enough that few readers will feel full when they’re done.
Set in 1930s Canada, this novel tells the story of Willa and Grace, two female pilots attempting to break the world record for non-stop flight. No library descriptions found. |
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Google Books — Loading... GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)813.54Literature English (North America) American fiction 20th Century 1945-1999LC ClassificationRatingAverage:
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Humphreys' approaches her story from a number of different perspectives: Flashy and confident Grace who is used to the world being her stage; the younger and more inexperienced Willa who is lacking in confidence but eager to please; Grace's older, wiser and somewhat jealous husband Jack who holds the current endurance record his wife is determined to break and young 12-year old Maddy, one of Grace's biggest fan. These character dynamics and differing points of view are enough to create an interesting story but Humphreys goes one further by adding in the growing tide of antisemitism, giving us two stories: one story playing out in the sky, with spectators watching from the ground and a second story focused firmly on the ground, trying to see into the future. Ambitious undertakings for a debut novel but Humphreys doesn't stop there. Oh no, she proceeds to add an examination of language in a visual tactile form (as opposed to our usual spoken or written form) to the mix as well as an examination of love. In the end, this ambitious first novel has a lot going for it, including Humphreys wonderful prose but its a bit too much crammed into one package, and at the expense of any solid character development. I am also annoyed that some of the story lines just 'end', leaving me hanging.
Overall, a good female aviation story with great depiction of Depression-era Toronto. ( )