There has been a subdued silence on my blog recently, which
I’m sorry for. I haven’t been ignoring you, I’ve been busy pursuing ideas
outside of the blog, but still connected to my writing. Despite this, I feel
the need to share a book with you that I have recently finished reading: The
Versions Of Us by Laura Barnett.
Following the lives of Eva and Jim, the novel begins with one
event, Eva riding her bicycle and almost colliding with a dog. What follows is
an absorbing love story describing three possible outcomes of that event and
how they change the course of the two characters’ lives.
Eva and Jim are nineteen when they meet, and both studying
at Cambridge University. The three stories describe their lives from 1958 to the
present day, recording their lives, their relationships, their families, their
careers. The ‘constants’ are the characters of Eva and Jim, but each ‘version’
is completely different.
Each chapter is labelled as either Version One, Two or
Three. Version One tells the story of Eva and Jim as a couple from when they
met at the collision with the dog; in Version Two, Eva and Jim just miss eachother, lead separate lives, but cross paths at regular intervals, finally convening in old age. and Version Three, tells the story of Eva and Jim starting a relationship at University, before parting and meeting later in life and starting an affair together.
For me, each version was as enveloping as the previous. I
felt the highs and the lows and I lived each version of their lives with them.
The version that I connected with most, and the one that affected me the most,
was Version Two, feeling the anticipation of their lives crossing and ultimately
ending up together.
Surprisingly, this is Barnett’s first novel, but it reads like
the work of a well-practiced veteran. I have rarely felt so connected to the
characters in a novel, so much so that I felt disappointment at their failures,
felt sadness at their loss, and victorious at their milestones. This was
particularly applicable to Eva’s character who was written so well that I could
relate to every aspect of her, but maybe that’s just because she was written
similarly to myself.
I would, and have, recommended this book to every one of my
fellow readers. Upon reading, you will feel included in the characters’
journey, wanting to take part in it up to the very last chapter, and beyond. I’m
still feeling the book hangover now.
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