February
Books | Fiction / Literary
3.6
Lisa Moore
In the wake of an oil-rig disaster, a widow tries to rebuild her life in this novel by “an astonishing writer” (Richard Ford). Inspired by the tragic sinking of the Ocean Ranger during a violent storm off the coast of Newfoundland in 1982, February follows the life of Helen O’Mara, widowed by the accident, as she spirals back and forth between the present day and that devastating and transformative winter. As she raises four children on her own, Helen’s strength and calculated positivity fool everyone into believing that she’s pushed through the paralyzing grief of losing her spouse. But in private, Helen has obsessively maintained a powerful connection to her deceased husband. When Helen’s son unexpectedly returns home with life-changing news, her secret world is irrevocably shaken, and Helen is quickly forced to come to terms with her inability to lay the past to rest. An unforgettable examination of complex love and cauterizing grief, February investigates how memory knits together the past and present, and pinpoints the very human need to always imagine a future, no matter how fragile. “Lisa Moore’s work is passionate, gritty, lucid and beautiful. She has a great gift.” —Anne Enright
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More Details:
Author
Lisa Moore
Pages
320
Publisher
Open Road + Grove/Atlantic
Published Date
2010-02-09
ISBN
0802197906 9780802197900
Ratings
Google: 4
Community ReviewsSee all
"I'm at a loss for what to say on this one... I thought I was picking up a book about an oil rig sinking in the 1980's and how the wife managed her grief after her husband was killed but this feels like so much more than that. I mean... Yes, Helen's husband is one of the people killed on the Ocean Ranger when it sinks. And yes, we follow her through her grief, but the grief isn't written how it usually is, as crying and emotional outbursts. Its a hollow grief, an isolation from the world while being trapped in your memory. The reader is given these snapshots of Helen's life; from the mundane everyday scenes, to the life altering moments that come when least expected. She carries on with a resiliency that can probably only be found in a person who has four children that rely on them for everything. Lisa Moore transports you into Helen's head and makes you feel all of the things. The early days of marriage, the heartbreak of losing that love, the struggle of surviving the grief, the challenges of raising four kids alone, the attempts to re-enter the world, and the solitude of living alone when the roller coaster finally stops. This is an incredible work of fiction, but it reads like an actual persons life. I enjoyed this book and wish I could describe how it made me feel better than this..."
Nicole Falche
