This novel by David Adams Richards was a difficult read. It surprised me because I like mystery stories. How the author has travelled from beginning to end. All the nuances of character and mystery fascinate me. Without telling you the specifics of the story ending, I can tell you that the beginning was an unpleasant foster home event. A hint that social services were involved, I passed over without much thought. The end completed what became very convoluted stories and to my satisfaction.
Missing the discussion at this month’s book club was a disappointment to me as I had several concerns. My concerns were that the story seemed quite choppy to me, moving suddenly from a foster home in New Brunswick to the devastation of Rwanda and back again repeatedly. Then there was the disappearance of two unrelated children, one Canadian and the other from Africa. There were also an abundance of characters, which felt rather too much, however in retrospect were all necessary to these intertwining stories. The main character, John Delano, an RCMP officer at the end of his career, struggled doggedly through all these complexities. His reputation in question did not deter his focus to find the facts and to locate the children. Any complexities not only involved two children, but individuals at the highest political strata both in Canada and in global affairs.
A very intriguing read that I highly recommend.
"But there is something about it I never figured out
- that is, I am not sure if it happened that way or not.”
~ John Delano, fictional RCMP officer
Title: Principles to Live By
Author: David Adams Richards
Publisher: Doubleday Canada, a division of Penguin Random House Canada Limited
Publication Date: 2016
Format: bound
ISBN: 978-0-385-68245-9
Format: epub
ISBN: 978-0-385-68246-6
Type: Fiction
Author's Note: Edited February 18, 2024
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