Coastliners

Unlike some of Harris' other books (_Chocolat_, and _Five Quarters of the Orange_) this one was not as food-oriented. I loved that quality in her other books, but I was also happy with her fiction in _Coastliners_. Although this book differed from her others in plot, the setting remained the same: France. In this case, the small island of Le Devin, lying off the coast of mainland France. The island inhabitants and the island scenes themselves were so well-written and easy to imagine. The story itself was very entertaining. The main character, Mado, returns to her island home after a ten year absense. She finds that some things have changed, but much remains the same; namely the feud/rivalry between the families on the island. Mado wants to help her family and friends to build up their side of the island, but she encounters hostility and many unforeseen obstacles in the process. In _Coastliners_, Harris constructs a captivating story with interesting plot twists. I enjoyed this book and highly recommend it.

After hearing my online reading buddies rave about Joanne Harris' Blackberry Wine and her other books, I decided to give Harris a try. I picked up Coastliners as it sounded so good and I wasn't disappointed. I must admit though that it was hard for me to get into the first few pages as it was so despondent in attitude and so gritty. But I stuck with it and ended up loving it. The writing just carries you away and you'll end up turning the pages just to get at the layer of secrets that seem to befall Madeline, the main character, everywhere she turns.Madeline, nicknamed Mado, returns home from Paris. She had left the island ten years previous with her mother and left her father behind. The youngest daughter of GrosJean, a boat builder, she returns home to be with her father. Though she wasn't exactly welcomed, she stuck it out. There, she made friends with Roget, a man of secrets, and together they tried to save the island from washing into the sea. The story begins with a festival and ends with a festival in honor of the island saint. And in that year, so many revelations were revealed and Mado discovers herself in the process. She tries to rebuild her relationship with her father and other islanders. Always headstrong and bullish, Mado soon discovers that life will continue in spite of adversity. Despite the gloomy atmosphere in the beginning of the book, Harris writes of joy and love in the midst of life's darkest times. She writes of hope and reconcilations. She writes of sibling rivalry that strikes a chord in the reader's heart ~~ she also writes of doomed romances and the ever-present sea washing upon the shores. It is an intriguing book ~~ one that speaks of adversity and determination. It has kept me turning the pages till the ending ~~ and it is well worth my time to read this book. Now that I've read a Joanne Harris book, I plan to read the others.4-7-03

Mado has been away from the remote Breton Island of Le Devin for ten tears. She returns from Paris to find that little has changed. Her father remains locked in his own silent world. The rivalry between families in her home village of Les Salants is as strong as it has been for decades. The village itself still lives under the shadow of the more affluent La Houssiniere.Her efforts to drag the village out of its defeatism have little support apart from the enigmatic Flynn. Who is he?Against this backcloth we have Joanne Harris' usually brilliant evocation of the senses. You can feel the sand between your toes and the sea breeze in your face. You feel like shaking these characters out of their shells. You want to take the next ferry to a remote French Island. This is certainly her best since Chocolat. Maybe better.

You can almost feel the sand between your toes as you read COASTLINERS. And yet this new novel from Joanne Harris, award-winning author of CHOCOLAT, is far from a typical beach read. Set on a small French island, the story revolves around a handful of families that dictate every aspect of life there with the notable exception of the tides. And, as they soon discover, even that power may be within their reach.COASTLINERS is a potpourri of mystery, romance, and suspense. Readers follow in the footsteps of Madeleine or "Mado," a young woman who returns to her island home to a silent father and a community that is quickly slipping into the sea. An artist whose subject matter has always been the island, Mado returns to Les Salants from Paris seeking a sense of home, of family, of belonging.Once again exploring the inner-workings of community, of who fits in and why, Harris deftly imparts deep-rooted feelings of loss with those of revenge to the inhabitants of Les Salants, a town where historical feuds fester and faith in a Saint overrides a sense of independent action.Though readers may stumble on similar sounding names of an ever-expanding cast of characters, the compelling plot --- complete with unexpected twists and turns --- makes the story well worth the read. The power of charm in its seediest of contexts, the destructive effects of misdirected love, and the manipulative power of human nature work to pull at and repair the tiny island community of Les Salants. At the story's end, characters emerge with a renewed sense of direction and readers feel as though they've taken a dip into the deep end of a French island pool. Harris treats readers to descriptions of Les Salants and its residents that seem almost tangible. You can see the glittery pieces of sand as they build on the beach and taste the salt from the sea.Harris strikes gold in this new novel, which catapults readers into the disheveled lives of one family that exists on an island of its very own. Carrying the expectations of a deceased mother and the guilt of leaving her forlorn father on Les Salants, Mado struggles to strike a balance between independence and familial reconciliation. Readers of CHOCOLAT may recognize familiar themes of self-discovery and shedding veils of the past in COASTLINERS. Yet unlike the dark element to CHOCOLAT, COASTLINERS imparts a sense of possibility in its 344 pages and leaves readers with a desire to know more about the about the fate of the Salannaise. --- Reviewed by Heather Grimshaw