Hey thanks to everyone who stopped by last week and had nice things to say about the “pretty exciting news,” which I held off sharing until now. So without further ado … can we have a drumroll please … The news, which several of you seemed to have guessed correctly at, is that we’re moving! We bought a house with land in the Alberta countryside about 45 to 50 minutes south of where we live now in the city. Woohoo. It’s a bit of a farm or ranch-style house and even comes with a red barn in the back field, which is quite different for us. (The photo pictured is not where it is but where I went bicycling last week, so keep that mountain view a bit separate in your mind.)
We’ve been at our present city location for 17 years now, ever since I moved to Canada (first part-time in 2006, then full-time in 2010). We still love our little place here, but we wanted to try something new and different. And we are very surprised it actually happened because others wanted the place too, so it stunned us when the owners picked our offer out of a handful. We were just very lucky it came through. Was it destiny?
The only trouble is now we have to sell our current house. So it is going on the market in two weeks, while I’m going to be away visiting my parents in California, which I had planned beforehand. I’m not making this stuff up! So we have much to do to get ready, but I think we can pull it off, if we put our pedals to the metal, so to speak. The dogs will probably be a bit bewildered when we start packing up but hopefully all of us will like it in the end. We don’t plan to move into the new house till maybe November as we’ll be doing some fix-ups there first. Though excited, I’m also a bit torn over our old place, which we put our hearts into over these past many years.
So there you have it. The news in a nutshell. And now I’ll leave you with a review of the novel I finished lately.
Unlikely Animals by Annie Hartnett / Ballantine / 368 pages / 2022
Brief Synopsis: This is about a family who live in a small town in New Hampshire who are going though some strains for various reasons, notably because the father Clive Starling, who had an affair awhile back, is apparently dying now from a rare brain disease.
My Thoughts: I liked parts of this novel, notably the characters. There’s the daughter: Emma Starling, age 22, known for her healing hands, who returns home after never starting med school in California which they thought she was doing … and her brother Auggie who is a recovering addict to Oxy pills … and Ingrid, their mother who’s unhappy with their father and takes up with the family doctor, and especially the dying father Clive Starling, who is acting a bit unusual due to his brain illness and diagnosis.
The characters seem pretty likable, especially the colorful personality of Clive and Emma, who wants to spend time and help her Dad before he worsens. While back in her hometown, Emma starts teaching 5th grade at the local school, while trying to figure things out. And Clive wants her to help him find her old best friend Crystal Nash, who’s been missing for a while and people think is dead after getting involved with opioids. And Auggie is in town putting together a play of the Titanic. All this seems enough.
But somewhere a long the line, the plot and other various components, seem to go a bit overboard and I began to lose some patience with it. There’s voices of local dead people in the cemetery who weigh in along the way, including from the early 20th-century naturalist, Ernest Harold Baynes, who once had a lot of wild animals living on his large estate in town. Then there’s also tangents of the plot involving the opioid crisis, the Crystal Nash missing person case, the kids at Emma’s school, and a pet fox, and a troubled deer that lays waste to the inside of a house. Some of it’s fun, charming, and absurdist stuff (like the deer episode), while other parts just go on a bit too much or overboard.
I think I’m in the minority of those who didn’t overly love this quirky novel, though I liked how it eventually pulls the family together in a warm-hearted way and its authentic small-town feel. I just lost a bit of patience along the way in how it gets there. I gave the story, which I listened to as an audiobook, 3.5 stars on Goodreads.
That’s all for now. What about you — have you read this and if so, what did you think?
Congrats on your new place! How exciting! Can’t wait to see the new pics. Good luck getting your place sold and fixing up the new one!
That book does seem a bit quirky. Sometimes I’m in the mood so I won’t say no to it maybe…
Thanks Heather. It’ll be a Big change for us, so we’ll see how it works out. We have much to do. Hope you’re having a great July. I’ll stop by your site soon. Have a great weekend.
How exciting! Congratulations! But so many things going on like that would drive me nuts. Unlikely Animals sounds fun; pity you didn’t like it more. I was torn about the Saunders book; it has good moments but I ended up giving it 3*. Tonight I’ll finish Daniel Silva’s latest. Also a mixed bag. By the way, Trust was longlisted for the Booker this week. I was expecting it because not many books this year have transcended. I’ll be reading it in a month or so. Happy changes ahead. Keep a cool head!
Thanks Carmen! It’ll be busy, we’ll take it one day at a time. I had started the novel Trust as an audio on a long drive earlier in July but the storytelling seemed a bit flat so I put it aside. Maybe I didn’t get far enough into it. I might pick it up another time. Too bad your recent reads have been mixed bags. But I’m glad for your report on both of those. This novel was also a mixed bag. Hope you are well. Carry on reading.
Congratulations on your new place. My experience with moves tells me that will be exciting but also stressful. I hope everything goes smoothly for you.
I’m not much into “quirky” these days so I don’t think the book you describe is for me. I can see how others might find it entertaining.
Thanks Dorothy. Hopefully the stress will be manageable. We are getting the house ready to sell, but it’s quite a bit of work. Have a great week ahead.
Congratulations on the move, the new home, and good luck selling your current place. Moving is so stressful and exciting all at once. I also just bought a new condo, well, I am in escrow and it should be mine in a few weeks. I do not look forward to packing!
Thanks Helen. I’m glad you found the condo you were looking for. So we both will be moving this year! There’s much to pack. Good luck to you. & Happy reading.
The timing for selling your home / trip to Ca is not ideal but it will work out. I am so excited for your new adventure. A little red barn. Will you have farm animals?
Hi Ti, thanks! We will have to see if farm animals are in our future or perhaps growing some kind of crop. We haven’t decided yet. August seems like it will be a stressful month, just selling our current place. We’ll see how it turns out. My trip to Cal is still on – though I thought of postponing it – but too many variables. So I’ll go and the hub will stay. Enjoy your week ahead.
Wow! I wasn’t going to guess that you were moving, but that’s exciting!! We lived in the “country” on 3 acres many years ago in Nebraska and absolutely loved it. We even had a creek running between our property and our neighbor’s. I can’t wait to see photos once you get settled. I wish you much success with the sale of your current home. It’s always stressful to sell/buy/move, but in the end, so worth it.
I’ve read mixed reviews for Unlikely Animals and wonder if it’s better in print than audio.
Thanks Lesley, good to know you lived in the country & loved it. It’s a bit of a risk but I think we’ll like it at this point in our lives. It’ll be quite a change! It sort of came up suddenly and then we just sort of said ‘let’s go’ and try it. We have much to do in August and this fall. Meanwhile somehow I’m still keeping my trip to see my folks, while the hub stays.
As for Unlikely Animals, many other readers loved it – but maybe my mind is too busy right now to overly like it. The audio seemed fine for what it was.
Have a great week.
Congratulations, that is exciting news indeed! Hope it all goes well and I look forward to more updates. I couldn’t imagine moving to the countryside – in theory it sounds nice with nature and lots of space, but I’m a city girl at heart and would miss all the conveniences you have in the city.
Too bad about Unlikely Animals – based on your review, I don’t think it’s for me.
Hey thanks Stargazer. Glad you are back. I have lived in various cities for most of my career life but now I’m keen on going to the country. We’ll see if it works. It’s not too far from a town … and yet it has space & nature. Hmm.
I’ll keep all updated on the journey. It’ll be a while yet before we move in.
Hope all is well. Happy reading.
I’m not good at guessing games, I think I was more on the “new job” train of thought LOL Congratulations and much happiness to you and good luck with the sale of the current place as well. I listened to Unlikely Animals and thought it was different but pretty good overall.
Hi Diane thanks! Yeah … I wouldn’t have ever guessed moving either. We are set in our ways … but something came up suddenly we wanted to try. It’s not too far from here.
I think a lot of readers really enjoyed Unlikely Animals – so it might have been that things are busy with me now. But I think I’m really going to like Remarkably Bright Creatures (the other animal book that I’m looking forward to) when I get to it. Have a happy weekend.
Good luck with your move and sale and trip to CA! Having done the whole move thing last year I wish you much success and also remind you to take deep breaths and that all will settle out in time. Take care and enjoy the ‘country’ living!
Hey Kay thanks. Did you move within the same town or to a different place? I agree — I need to take many deep breaths to get through the move phase. Much to do for this to happen. Enjoy your week.
A new house is exciting! Congratulations. I hope your other house sells quickly. And good luck with all the packing up! 😀
Thanks Lark. Pretty crazy right? Cross your fingers — this place sells quickly. We’ll see how it goes. Much to do. Happy reading this week.
Moves are a big deal! And when you’re trying to do it around other trips, etc……well, that’s a bit crazy. But, out of the city sounds like a nice change of pace; maybe you’ll have time for more reading (once you get settled, of course).
here’s me: https://www.bookshelfjourneys.com/post/sunday-post-9
Thanks Terrie for stopping by. Yeah it’s going to be a big change. We’ve spent three days so far cleaning & downsizing the stuff in the current house in order to show it. So far we are target with the schedule. I’ll check out your site soon. thx
Congratulations on the move! I hope everything goes smoothly. Have a great week!
Hey thanks Cindy. Much to do for the month of August. Crossing our fingers the sale comes together. take care!
Looks like great country to have a farm. I’m sure you’ll have a lot of fun with it.
Thanks Harvee. Once we get out there, I think it’ll be a pretty area and quiet too. We’ll need a tractor! Have a great week.
Susan, that’s fantastic news about your move! Country life always seems so relaxing and beautiful in ways that living in a city aren’t. Good luck with selling your house. Houses seem to sell quickly right now. Here’s to a quick and prosperous move!
From the first sentence of your review, I felt like I could strike Unlikely Animals off my list of books to read…”I liked parts of this novel…” No, I think it’s not for me.
Have a great visit with your parents!
Thanks much Deb! We’re excited to try Country living. And hopefully this place will sell without too many problems. We’ve spent 3 days cleaning and downsizing and organizing so far. More of an update later. Hope you have a great week.
Congratulations on the new house… such exciting news!! It seems like things happen pretty quickly with real estate these days. Good luck selling your current house and I’m sure you’ll love life in the country. Can’t wait to see photos around your new place.
Don’t think I’ll get to Unlikely Animals any time soon, but may try the audio at some point. Enjoy the time with your parents.
Thanks JoAnn. It was quite a sudden development – how the house came about but it seems we were ready for a change. Now we’ve been getting our current place ready to show. Cross fingers. More updates later.
You should try Unlikely Animals on audio sometime — many others loved it, and maybe my mind was just too busy at the time. Have a great week.
Whooo hooo!! That is exciting news indeed!! Sure you guys are going to be very happy in your new place and that your current home will sell quickly.
I have Unlikely Animals on my TBR and it still sounds like a good read.
Have a good week Susan!
Elza Reads
Thanks Mareli. Yeah it’s a big deal moving. Oh my. We hope we can pull it off. Much to be done.
Try out Unlikely Animals. You might love it. There’s some funny parts to it.
Happy week to you.
Congratulations on your new home! Something to look forward to is always a good thing. It is hard to leave a place you have been a lot of time and work into. The premise of Unlikely Animals sounds interesting, but your review makes me realize I would probably feel similar to how you did. One less book I need to add to my TBR! Hope your week is a good one!
Hi thanks Gretchen. Yeah it’s going to be hard to leave our current home. We’ll miss it and all we did to it … though once we fix up the new place I hope we love it too. It’s a bit of a gamble.
Many others loved Unlikely Animals … but at this time it wasn’t exactly what I needed. Happy August to you!
Congratulations on the move and Alberta sounds wonderful. It’s nice after many years in one place to try something new and I might look into Unlikely Animals
Thanks Kathy. Yeah I’m a bit nervous to try something new but I guess you’ll never know unless you try it. Hope you’re having a great summer … it seems to be going by too quickly. Happy reading.
Oh wow Susan that is such great news! I can imagine it’s a bit bittersweet leaving your home of 17 years but how exciting to look forward to a new adventure! I hope all goes well with the move and your trip to see your family. That is a lot to do for sure! 🙂
And, this book is on my TBR list. Sounds entertaining if not great but a good cozy read.
Hi Iliana, yes it’s a really big move for us even if it’s just 45 mins south. We will see how it goes – we just put our house for sale. And now I’m in Calif which feels strange not to be there helping. Have a great weekend & I hope to visit your site soon – when I get a spare moment.