Ten Days
Author: Austin Duffy
Published by: Granta
Pages: 272
Format: Paperback
My Rating ★★★★
Published by: Granta
Pages: 272
Format: Paperback
My Rating ★★★★
Wolf travels to New York with his daughter to scatter the ashes of his recently estranged wife, Miriam. Buffeted by the loss, his fraught relationship with his daughter and the antagonism of Miriam’s conservative Jewish family, Wolf is also coming to terms with a burgeoning concern of his own: growing dislocations in his mind, and the hollowing out of his memories.
Set across the High Holy Days of Rosh Hashannah and Yom Kippur, Ten Days is a tender, nuanced and beautifully crafted story of a father’s reckoning with his daughter and a profound, compelling meditation on family, time and the bonds of marriage.
Set across the High Holy Days of Rosh Hashannah and Yom Kippur, Ten Days is a tender, nuanced and beautifully crafted story of a father’s reckoning with his daughter and a profound, compelling meditation on family, time and the bonds of marriage.
My thoughts:
When his wife Miriam dies from cancer, Wolf must take care of their sixteen-year-old daughter, Ruth, who he hardly knows since the couple has been separated for quite some time. Miriam had one last wish: to have her ashes scattered in the Hudson River. To fulfil this wish, Wolf and Ruth leave London for New York where he also hopes his daughter can find a new home with his former wife’s Jewish family.
Ten Days tells the story of people who must cope with the loss of a beloved mother and wife. Even though they have not been living as a couple anymore, Wolf’s memories flood back when he shows Ruth where they met, where their first kiss took place and where everything began.
They arrive at the holy season between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. But for gentile Wolf there is a dual purpose to the trip, one that Ruth and her American family only slowly discover.
The fractured relationship between Wolf and his daughter feels authentic and the characters are intriguing. I enjoyed reading a story told from a father’s perspective. It is sometimes difficult for him to deal with his intelligent and at times rebellious teenage daughter, however, the more the story develops the more questions arise about Wolf’s strange behaviour, and the truth is quietly revealed. The difficulty Wolf has in communicating with his daughter is a carefully used tool and becomes very important to the story in the final chapters of the book. Ruth is quite independent and strong-willed, when Wolf’s secret is revealed, however, we also get to know another side of her character.
It is a beautifully written, touching story set in contemporary New York. The city is key to the storytelling, and I especially enjoyed reading the scenes in which Wolf and his daughter explored together and shared memories of Miriam’s old life as a New Yorker. Despite the sadness of the novel, it is the wonder and beauty of New York, alongside the heart-warming Jewish family traditions that make this an uplifting read overall. The writing is sensitive whilst also very witty, and even though the plot is sadly believable and touching, it doesn’t feel unduly morbid or depressing. The second half is the strongest and after I reached this point, I simply could not put the book down. I found Ten Days unique and moving: a bit of a tearjerker but completely worth it. A short but very poignant read.
Overall reaction:
When his wife Miriam dies from cancer, Wolf must take care of their sixteen-year-old daughter, Ruth, who he hardly knows since the couple has been separated for quite some time. Miriam had one last wish: to have her ashes scattered in the Hudson River. To fulfil this wish, Wolf and Ruth leave London for New York where he also hopes his daughter can find a new home with his former wife’s Jewish family.
Ten Days tells the story of people who must cope with the loss of a beloved mother and wife. Even though they have not been living as a couple anymore, Wolf’s memories flood back when he shows Ruth where they met, where their first kiss took place and where everything began.
They arrive at the holy season between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. But for gentile Wolf there is a dual purpose to the trip, one that Ruth and her American family only slowly discover.
The fractured relationship between Wolf and his daughter feels authentic and the characters are intriguing. I enjoyed reading a story told from a father’s perspective. It is sometimes difficult for him to deal with his intelligent and at times rebellious teenage daughter, however, the more the story develops the more questions arise about Wolf’s strange behaviour, and the truth is quietly revealed. The difficulty Wolf has in communicating with his daughter is a carefully used tool and becomes very important to the story in the final chapters of the book. Ruth is quite independent and strong-willed, when Wolf’s secret is revealed, however, we also get to know another side of her character.
It is a beautifully written, touching story set in contemporary New York. The city is key to the storytelling, and I especially enjoyed reading the scenes in which Wolf and his daughter explored together and shared memories of Miriam’s old life as a New Yorker. Despite the sadness of the novel, it is the wonder and beauty of New York, alongside the heart-warming Jewish family traditions that make this an uplifting read overall. The writing is sensitive whilst also very witty, and even though the plot is sadly believable and touching, it doesn’t feel unduly morbid or depressing. The second half is the strongest and after I reached this point, I simply could not put the book down. I found Ten Days unique and moving: a bit of a tearjerker but completely worth it. A short but very poignant read.
Overall reaction:
