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A review by okiecozyreader
Drinker of Ink by Shannon Castleton
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.5
1991 - Vivienne Lebrun is in a poetry class with a Yugoslavian graduate student teacher, Peter. He is moved by her writing and tries to push her further in her writing. She is torn between school and her family. Her mother struggled with cancer, and she lives in constant fear that her family isn’t telling her when things are hard.
This book is just lovingly written through journal entries. It is such a joy to read and just makes you feel good. There are parts of the story that are difficult, of course (there has to be some conflict, right?), but for people who love books and writing, this is a fantastic read - esp for a debut. I think you can see the author’s love of poetry, which is also fun.
“…to dwell on the origin of pain is to become trapped in a loop—to circle the trauma as if in a semi-truck, until the tire grooves grow so deep, you can’t turn out to drive forward.” January 7
“He says that a poem must serve as a map to a world outside itself—it cannot be just a cute story or lovely images. It must guide readers to what feels like a shared experience.” January 11
“It is terrifying to be a parent. To choose to behave one way with your child, and then watch what comes of it. It is like planting a garden with aster and dynamite, but you never know which, and either sprouts up at the oddest times to remind you of what you did well or poorly.” March 14
“To Vivienne, mon buveur d’encre. “Your drinker of ink.”
The name was perfect—a more elegant version of rat de bibliothèque—“library rat,” or “bookworm.” April 25
“I guess perfection is just . . .” …“Not thinking of what could be different.” May 2
“…to write is to allow pain and love and memory and time to exist outside yourself. You breathe when the words are out.”
This book is just lovingly written through journal entries. It is such a joy to read and just makes you feel good. There are parts of the story that are difficult, of course (there has to be some conflict, right?), but for people who love books and writing, this is a fantastic read - esp for a debut. I think you can see the author’s love of poetry, which is also fun.
“…to dwell on the origin of pain is to become trapped in a loop—to circle the trauma as if in a semi-truck, until the tire grooves grow so deep, you can’t turn out to drive forward.” January 7
“He says that a poem must serve as a map to a world outside itself—it cannot be just a cute story or lovely images. It must guide readers to what feels like a shared experience.” January 11
“It is terrifying to be a parent. To choose to behave one way with your child, and then watch what comes of it. It is like planting a garden with aster and dynamite, but you never know which, and either sprouts up at the oddest times to remind you of what you did well or poorly.” March 14
“To Vivienne, mon buveur d’encre. “Your drinker of ink.”
The name was perfect—a more elegant version of rat de bibliothèque—“library rat,” or “bookworm.” April 25
“I guess perfection is just . . .” …“Not thinking of what could be different.” May 2
“…to write is to allow pain and love and memory and time to exist outside yourself. You breathe when the words are out.”
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief
Moderate: Cancer