Starred review from January 11, 2016
Swedish author Bivald's debut novel is a delight. Erstwhile bookseller Sara Lindqvist has traveled from her home in Sweden to the tiny town of Broken Wheel, Iowa, in order to spend time relaxing and reading with her pen pal, Amy Harris, but what she finds upon arriving is that she's just in time for Amy's funeral. Sara is bewildered but the townsfolk insist that she stay in Amy's house and generally refuse to let her pay for anything. She decides to give back by opening Amy's old store and sharing Amy's books with the community. Bivald fills the pages with book references, chief among them Austen and Bridget Jones, but it is her characters that will win readers over. Sara is unassuming and, as an outsider, provides a wonderful view of the Iowans. Amy's nephew, Tom Harris, Poor George, Caroline Rohde, and the rest all bear their own hurts and each is, in some way, healed by Sara's presence and her books. As in Austen, love conquers but just who and how will come as a pleasant surprise.
April 4, 2016
In Swedish author Bivald’s debut novel, erstwhile bookseller Sara Lindqvist has traveled from her home in Sweden to the tiny town of Broken Wheel, Iowa, in order to spend time relaxing and reading with Amy Harris, her pen pal, but what Sara finds upon arriving is that she’s just in time for Amy’s funeral. Sara is bewildered, but the townsfolk insist that she stay in Amy’s house and generally refuse to let her pay for anything. She decides to give back by opening Amy’s old store and sharing Amy’s books with the community. Hardingham, a British actress and veteran audiobook narrator, provides most of the book’s narration, which is written from Sara’s perspective. Hardingham has a beautiful voice, but she renders all the intervening characters’ voices as if the story took place in southern Georgia rather than the Midwest. The only believable Midwestern accent in this audiobook comes in Sara’s letters from Amy, who is splendidly portrayed by American actress King. King’s performance is neutral, down-to-earth, and slightly nasal: pitch-perfect in terms of what people in Iowa tend to sound like. A Sourcebooks Landmark paperback.