A book review of The Lost Storyteller, written by Amanda Block: A tale of loss and memory, mental health and families, hard truths and imagination.
Although this is Amanda’s debut novel, her writing has oft been inspired by myths and fairy tales. She uses the familiarity of the genre as a starting point for new stories, exploring the ‘mechanics and magic of fiction.’
Books about books and the power of stories are infinitely appealing to a bibliophile and this tale centres around an unusual looking volume – ‘small and narrow, with a faded olive-green cover,’ but no barcode, or author, or publisher – just Seven Tales tooled in gold on the spine.
As the protagonist slowly makes sense of fragments and clues, intimations and absences, what she had dismissed as childish fairy stories becomes a conversation of resolution and acceptance.
The Lost Storyteller, by Amanda Block, is published by Hodder Studio. See here for a tantalising extract.
Order your copy from Golden Hare Books using code bookbinderbookreview004 and receive 10% off. The offer is for one use per customer and is valid until midnight on 15th September 2021.
Happy reading!
