This book was an emotional tale of sorrow, loss and family.
Warning: it did contain multiple descriptions of both emotional and physical abuse, an aspect which surprisingly really touched me emotionally and even angered me at times. I was angered by Rick’s treatment of Tina, pantomime internally screaming “don’t do it!” when she returned to him. It so truly depicts the thought process of women in domestic abuse situations, of women who feel they should give another chance to their abusers,who just want what they think is best for their families, which I think is what makes this novel so heart wrenchingly powerful.
‘The Letter’ jumps back and forth from two key historical periods -1939 and the 1970s. I liked how it focused on the personal perspectives of the individual and how they dealt with the issues of their time, rather than an overall view on what was happening at the time like many other books tend to do.
The whole novel is based on the idea of the butterfly effect and what could have been. Just like anything in life, there are so many different strands or paths where the story could have gone, where Chrissie or William’s lives could have been totally different. It’s strange to think that a small little thing – a single action or decision- can alter the course of your life entirely. If Chrissie had known that Billy had tried to contact her, or even gotten his letter, her life could have been much more fulfilled and happy, but at the same time, that unopened letter was the cause of Tina (30 years later) finding happiness and fulfilment. It’s a two way thought process really, while you want to be angry at Dr Skinner for denying his daughter a chance at being happy (and boy was I!), you also have to think that BECAUSE of his very foolishness, Tina now has a chance at being happy with William, a man she would never had met had it not been for her persistence in tracing the recipient of the letter.
Overall, I think the actual story and characters are what pulled this novel through, as that is what kept me reading and connecting with it all. I recommend it to anyone who has some time and a heart ready to be tumbled into a washing machine of stirring and emotional weepiness.