Any Bitter Thing

Following her parents' death, 2-year old Lizzie goes to live with her uncle, a young priest. Until she is taken away from him age 9 on child abuse accusations, Lizzie has the perfect childhood where she admires and idealises Father Mike. Age 9, things go horribly wrong, and for reasons no one can understand, Father Mike leaves Lizzie to go to live with her much disliked and distant aunt, who sends her to boarding school. Fast forward 20 years, and here is Lizzie who coming out of a hit and run, has a vision of Father Mike at her side while in hospital. While her accident and vision threaten to destroy her already shaky marriage and career, Lizzie holds on to her beliefs and persists into finding out what her vision was all about. We follow Lizzie as she remembers her idyllic childhood, and tries to figure out how things went so wrong. This is a very good book, with endearing characters, though Father Mike is incredibly hard to understand and I think Wood should have been less forgiving to him - which would have been more realistic. While the book is very well written, some of the characters' actions were difficult to understand (which is what makes the book interesting, I guess!). Great story of love, loss, redemption, forgiveness, relationships. Recommended.

ANY BITTER THING is one of the best books I've ever read. It's a beautifully written, heartbreaking story of love and loss, one that stays in your mind for a long time. From the first page, it grabs you by the throat and never lets go. Others have summarized the story, so I won't. I'll just say that Monica Wood is an immensely talented writer and I hope to see many more of her books in the future. Bravo, Ms. Wood! HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

Readers who have followed Monica Wood's fiction already know they can expect first-class work. With Any Bitter Thing the author may be delivering her best novel yet. The main character who looks back on the "jeweled existence" of her earliest years now agonizes over the unanswered questions that cut her childhood short, resulting in a "long sleepwalk through the remains of childhood." Wood writes with authority as she reveals the intricate characters who move this riveting plot. The phrasing throughout Any Bitter Thing is a tribute to the nuances and possibilities of the English language, and Wood's exquisitely tuned wording alone is worth the price of the book. Signed: A reader from western Maine

I would certainly agree with the editorial reviews from Publisher's Weekly and Booklist -- this is a remarkable book. I seldom read a book more than once, and often don't finish books I have started, but I read Any Bitter Thing again immediately. I will probably read it again. It is thoughtful, complex, beautifully written, and full of surprises. It is also, almost as an afterthought, a profound examination of faith. For the first time, I feel some understanding of why a man would make the sacrifice necessary to become a priest. As a devoted uncle, I am also grateful to see that relationship explored so lovingly in print. This is prose written with the care of poetry. I was hooked on the first page, and never felt let down, mislead or distracted. I did not skip a single sentence, much less the pages I often turn unread in other books. It is a completely satisfying, and potentially important book.