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A review by bookapotamus
Our Homesick Songs by Emma Hooper
5.0
Ahhh... I think I'm in love! Someone get me all the Emma Hooper books in the world, because I am so enamored with this sweet, adorable book - so lyrical and poetic and just enchanting. The characters are so quirky, the writing is fun and it reads like a fairytale.
Set in Canada, in a fishing village, the Connor family is one of the last families left in their town on the island of Newfoundland. The Cod has been over fished and there is just nothing left to catch to make a living. It's forced most of the residents to leave for work, uproot their entire families and the only lives they know as fishing families, and seek employment elsewhere. Aidan and Martha have lived there their whole lives, together since teenagers. They swap working off island - a month for him, a month for her, to leave for work, separated entirely from each other - but as to not disturb the lives of their two children, Cora and Finn. Cora wants off the island. She longs for friends, and schools full of children and streets of houses packed full of happily, employed families. Finn just wants the fish to come back, and he's determined to do whatever it takes to make that happen.
We follow some of their stories in the past - of the islanders and their families, and how Aidan and Martha met and fell in love - a fairytale of a love story in itself. Our Homesick Songs is peppered with folklore and songs of the island and there's a little bit of magic in every chapter. I loved following Finn and Cora's adventures, both filled with creativity, wonder and intense determination, as well as their parents, their love, loyalty, and bouts of weakness and indiscretion.
The descriptions of the island, it's shores and waters, and giant icebergs are gorgeous and you'll fall in love with every character. The snippets of folklore, and fishing tales are quirky, and heartwarming, including the tale Finn's accordion teacher tells him of sailors singing songs when they've been on the water too long and start to forget their families... the homesick songs, they're called.
I cherished every minute of this book and I delighted in it's refreshing character and uniqueness. And now I'm off to buy the rest of Emma's books.
Set in Canada, in a fishing village, the Connor family is one of the last families left in their town on the island of Newfoundland. The Cod has been over fished and there is just nothing left to catch to make a living. It's forced most of the residents to leave for work, uproot their entire families and the only lives they know as fishing families, and seek employment elsewhere. Aidan and Martha have lived there their whole lives, together since teenagers. They swap working off island - a month for him, a month for her, to leave for work, separated entirely from each other - but as to not disturb the lives of their two children, Cora and Finn. Cora wants off the island. She longs for friends, and schools full of children and streets of houses packed full of happily, employed families. Finn just wants the fish to come back, and he's determined to do whatever it takes to make that happen.
We follow some of their stories in the past - of the islanders and their families, and how Aidan and Martha met and fell in love - a fairytale of a love story in itself. Our Homesick Songs is peppered with folklore and songs of the island and there's a little bit of magic in every chapter. I loved following Finn and Cora's adventures, both filled with creativity, wonder and intense determination, as well as their parents, their love, loyalty, and bouts of weakness and indiscretion.
The descriptions of the island, it's shores and waters, and giant icebergs are gorgeous and you'll fall in love with every character. The snippets of folklore, and fishing tales are quirky, and heartwarming, including the tale Finn's accordion teacher tells him of sailors singing songs when they've been on the water too long and start to forget their families... the homesick songs, they're called.
I cherished every minute of this book and I delighted in it's refreshing character and uniqueness. And now I'm off to buy the rest of Emma's books.