The Map of Us - Jules Preston

Description

A story of love, line graphs and lost directions

Violet North is wonderfully inconvenient. Abandoned by her family and lost in an imagined world of moors and adventure, her life changes in the space of just 37 words exchanged with a stranger at her front door.

Decades later, Daniel Bearing has inherited his father's multi-million pound business, and is utterly lost. He has no idea who he is or where his life is headed.

When Violet’s granddaughter’s marriage falls apart, Tilly, always adept with numbers, compiles a detailed statistical report to pinpoint why. But the Compatibility Index Tilly creates has unforeseen consequences for everyone in her world.

Tilly and Daniel share a secret too. 10.37am, April 22nd.
Soon, a complex web of secrets and lies is exposed and an adventure begins with a blue typewriter…

Review

It was probably the mention of and a picture of a typewriter that drew me to this book - but I am so glad it did. Such a quirky and unexpected gem of a read which I enjoyed immensely. I feel the world would be missing something without this book!

I read the whole thing in one day. There aren't chapters as such and some are only a page long. So when you tell yourself - one more chapter......... I just could not put it down, it made me laugh out loud and also in places a tiny bit sad, but not for long.

Violet is unable to travel anywhere, even outside her own house so she begins  to write imaginary travel books. Only problem is the typewriter she has borrowed -  the "e" sticks, so she avoids words like nose, eyes, and kissed. But still she writes.

Years later Violet's granddaughter Tilly writes a detailed statistical report on her failed marriage. Her mother sends her letters about the latest washing machine, there have been over 70 of them as her father is a sand sculpturer and as you can imagine it plays havoc with the machines. Tilly's brother Jack is the world authority on the colour blue.

This may sound pretty random - and it is but in a really, really good way.  So many of the office scenes with Tilly's co-workers rang true with me. "She was the bridesmaid at Trish's wedding, so it was moved." Just one line, but it says so much. Such fantastic eloquent writing that makes the words just float past you in a way you don't want to end. I can't wait to read more from Jules Preston.

I'm giving this book 5 out of 5 stars and my thanks to Netgalley for an advance copy of the book which is out on 12 July.