Having read the author's first two moving and thought-provoking novels, each dealing with a contemporary humanitarian crisis (the first about refugees, the second about economic migrants), it came as no surprise to discover that in her latest story she equally passionately explores both the immediate and longer lasting repercussions of a devastating wildfire which has killed many, made even more homeless and has destroyed huge areas of forest and local wildlife. Via our television screens we have all seen the horrifying, almost apocalyptic, scenes of the destructive nature of out-of-control fires and of people fleeing for their lives, watching in horror as their homes are burned to the ground. However, once the immediate, 'newsworthy' crisis has passed there is seldom much attention given to how families and communities cope in the aftermath but, with her trademark warmth, compassion and empathy, in this novel the author gives these survivors a voice.
I admired the way in which she used her considerable research to create such credible characters to convey the very different ways in which people deal first with the unfolding crisis, then the immediate aftermath and, finally, with adjusting to their post-disaster lives. I found her depictions of how her main characters, Irini, Tasso and their daughter Chara, struggled to cope with their feelings of profound shock, loss, sense of powerlessness, anger, blame, guilt etc. then, gradually, began to find ways to begin the slow process of adjusting to their new reality, to be entirely convincing and very moving. Through the family who provided a temporary home for them she also captured the altruistic generosity of strangers towards people who have lost everything. The shifting timelines of the narrative added interesting layers of depth to the story, as did her inclusion of historical facts and the the importance of intergenerational storytelling.
One of the themes which runs through the story is the basic human instinct to apportion blame in such situations, for people to project their anger - eg towards the man who set fire to a patch of woodland he wanted to acquire to extend his property, a fire which, due to tinder-dry conditions and a strong wind, soon raged out-of-control; the fire brigade and the police for not acting quickly enough to minimise the spread of the fire and, more generally, with the government for its lack of regulation around land speculation. However, as she reflects in her 'Author's note', when she interviewed survivors of such fires what people were unwilling to address was the effect global warming is having on the frequency and intensity of wildfires, and other 'natural' disasters. Her question "But what if we are all accountable in some way?", was met with a wall of silence, possibly because such an admission of culpability felt just too huge to contemplate. Whilst being sensitive to the reasons behind this reluctance, the author's final reflection - that we need to acknowledge that 'the world, our world, is changing' - is a reminder that we all need to act to limit further destructive damage.
I admired the way in which she used her considerable research to create such credible characters to convey the very different ways in which people deal first with the unfolding crisis, then the immediate aftermath and, finally, with adjusting to their post-disaster lives. I found her depictions of how her main characters, Irini, Tasso and their daughter Chara, struggled to cope with their feelings of profound shock, loss, sense of powerlessness, anger, blame, guilt etc. then, gradually, began to find ways to begin the slow process of adjusting to their new reality, to be entirely convincing and very moving. Through the family who provided a temporary home for them she also captured the altruistic generosity of strangers towards people who have lost everything. The shifting timelines of the narrative added interesting layers of depth to the story, as did her inclusion of historical facts and the the importance of intergenerational storytelling.
One of the themes which runs through the story is the basic human instinct to apportion blame in such situations, for people to project their anger - eg towards the man who set fire to a patch of woodland he wanted to acquire to extend his property, a fire which, due to tinder-dry conditions and a strong wind, soon raged out-of-control; the fire brigade and the police for not acting quickly enough to minimise the spread of the fire and, more generally, with the government for its lack of regulation around land speculation. However, as she reflects in her 'Author's note', when she interviewed survivors of such fires what people were unwilling to address was the effect global warming is having on the frequency and intensity of wildfires, and other 'natural' disasters. Her question "But what if we are all accountable in some way?", was met with a wall of silence, possibly because such an admission of culpability felt just too huge to contemplate. Whilst being sensitive to the reasons behind this reluctance, the author's final reflection - that we need to acknowledge that 'the world, our world, is changing' - is a reminder that we all need to act to limit further destructive damage.