Reading Letters

The title of this post may be somewhat misleading. Yesterday I picked up a book called ‘The Letters,’ co-authored by Luanne Rice and Joseph Monninger. Ever since I was young, I have really enjoyed novels that follow the format of writing letters back and forth, though I can’t really explain why. Perhaps it’s that feeling of having a inside look into a stranger’s life, even though that stranger is fictional. ‘The Letters’ has the additional element of one author for each letter writer, husband and wife who are in the process of a divorce. Sam is a sports journalist spending time in Alaska in an attempt to gain closure on what happened to their son, while Hadley is renting a house out on the Coast of Maine, and returning to her painting.

I’m only around fifty pages in and starting reading before falling asleep last night. I found myself entrenched in the world of this couples, in their bitterness and humour, their longings and sadness. Learning of their lives together through these letters makes them so real, and both Rice and Monninger write as their characters with strong conviction. I can’t wait until tonight, when I’m back in the world of Sam and Hadley. I really look forward to what will transpire. Another aspect that makes books like this interesting is that letters are a rare form of communication these days, and this seems to connect the characters in a way that I think e-mail could not. Sometimes the letters come in batches, and conflicts are resolved in a way they probably wouldn’t have been if the communication had been instant. I’ll write more on this novel once I finish, but I felt I had to lead my readers to this intriguing find. I realize that the writings of Luanne Rice are usually beach reads, but honestly that’s why I’m a fan of her writing. This book has layers and so far, is not overly sappy if that’s something that doesn’t agree with you. Give it a try and you just might be surprised.