A Faraway Smell of Lemon - Waterstones Exclusive

Product Information

This is a small book containing seven short stories which revolve around peripheral characters that were cut from her other works, but whom she has been unable to let go of completely. She describes them as 'making a nuisance of themselves' so she decided to try and quieten them by giving them short stories of their own. I love that idea - the thought that these characters have a life of their own and won't settle until their story has been told. Binny’s heart has been broken. Oliver, her dreamy “out of work” actor boyfriend has fallen for another and moved out. Binny is the type of person who doesn’t show her true feelings, and doesn’t allow herself to cry. She gets on with things. But it’s all bottled up inside her, waiting to erupt. I'll Be Home for Christmas The most famous boy in the world comes home hoping to escape the madness with a normal family Christmas. Beguiling . . . enthralls and moves you as it unfolds.” — People (four stars), on The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry

Rachel Joyce, internationally bestselling author of The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry and Perfect, delivers an unforgettable Christmas story of moving on from lost love, now available exclusively as an e-short. PDF / EPUB File Name: A_Faraway_Smell_Of_Lemon_-_Rachel_Joyce.pdf, A_Faraway_Smell_Of_Lemon_-_Rachel_Joyce.epub The Marriage Manual: Christmas Eve. Two parents endeavour to construct their son's Christmas present from a DIY kit and in the process find themselves deconstructing their marriage.

Customer reviews

My favorite character of the seven stories has to be Binny, a forty-seven year old single mother. She is mentioned in both the first story, “The faraway smell of lemon” and the last one, “Trees“. Her live-in partner, Oliver, has just a few days before Christmas – left her… What Joyce has done, is take characters that have only minor, walk-on parts in her other books, or even had to be cut altogether, and told their stories in greater detail. There are seven in total, with Christmas as the bright, silvery thread that holds them together.

In The Boxing Day Ball: eighteen-year-old Maureen is surprised by a genuine invitation from the local girls. They really seem to want her along, although her mother doesn’t approve. Maureen has no idea of just how life-changing a dance in the parish hall could be. Rachel's books have been translated into thirty-six languages. The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry was shortlisted for the Commonwealth Book prize and longlisted for the Man Booker Prize. Rachel was awarded the Specsavers National Book Awards 'New Writer of the Year' in December 2012 and shortlisted for the 'UK Author of the Year' 2014. In A Snow Garden: Henry, divorced, disconnected from his sons, has the boys for six days over Christmas while Debbie goes on vacation. He has promised Owen, a sweet, innocent ten, and Conor, a sometimes snarky fifteen, snow; he has even, to the amusement of his sister, bought them sleds, at a marked-down price (the weather is balmy, snow is definitely not predicted). Henry is at the point of despair when he sees a snow garden, and then is once again concerned for his sanity. We are at the centre of our own stories. And sometimes it is hard to believe that we are not at the centre of other people’s.” We are at the centre of our own stories. And sometimes it is hard to believe that we are not at the centre of other people’s. But I love the fact that you can brush past a person with your own story so big in your mind and at the same time be a simple passer-by in someone else’s. A walk-on part.’It was amazing to see how Binny reacted to the cleaning shop worker...and finally obtained some relief. Proof that you never know when you might have significant impact upon someone else's life in the seemingly most insignificant interactions. The other story I enjoyed was the title story, A Snow Garden. A sweet tale of a divorced parent left with his two kids and trying to give them what they want and manage their expectations at the same time - given that they really aren't expecting anything! A bit of magical realism in there, but Joyce actually gives us a decent explanation to go with it which leaves the reader satisfied. We had once what we can never have again. So why, then, do we behave as if everything we have connected with, everything we have blessed with our loving, should be ours for keeps? It is enough to have tiptoed to that space beyond the skin, beyond our nerve endings, and to have glimpsed things that beforehand we only half knew. Rachel has also written over twenty original afternoon plays and adaptations of the classics for BBC Radio 4, including all the Bronte novels. She moved to writing after a long career as an actor, performing leading roles for the RSC, the National Theatre and Cheek by Jowl. It’s Christmas Eve, and Binny is not prepared. In fact, she wants to fast forward and skip Christmas this year all together.