Autumn is here which only means it is time to snuggled up with a good book, a warm cuppa and blanket and spend more time at home.
Ginger and Me by Elissa Soave is such a captivating book to read which will keep you engrossed from the first page to the last.
Published by Harper Collins, the book is about Wendy who is lonely but coping after the death of her mum. At nineteen, all she wants is to drive the 255 bus around Uddingston with her regulars on board, remember to buy milk when it runs out and just to be okay.
To cope with her loneliness, she meets with a social worker, who helps her get back to some normality and even suggests for her to join a writers’ group to help her make friends and share the stories she writes, like the one about a bullied boy who goes to Mars.
Soon Wendy meets Ginger, a teenager with flaming orange hair, Ginger’s so brave she’s wearing a coat that isn’t even waterproof. For the first time, Wendy has a real best friend. But as they begin the summer of their lives, Wendy wonders if things were simpler before. And that’s before she realizes just how much trouble Ginger is about to get them in…
What I thought of the book
I find myself always busy either doing kids activity, meeting friends, heading out for a walk or doing reviews. I enjoy reading books when I do get the chance but often read them over a period of days or weeks. Ginger and Me was different, I easily read 100+ pages just while getting my hair done at the hairdressers and continued to read the rest of the chapters soon as I got home.
The book opens dramatically with Wendy being taken away (I shall not give too much details away), the next chapter then takes the reader back a year, to find out what really happened which lead to the unfortunate day.
I could easily connect to Wendy’s character as it was so relatable and believable. She seems so lost and naive and I felt so sorry for her. The author, Glaswegian Elissa Soave has a beautiful way of bringing out the character to life. As each chapter unfolds, she showcases how Wendy copes with her grief and loneliness of losing her mum and how this affects her mental health. I was totally lost in the book and wanted to reach out to give Wendy a big hug.
Wendy, with the help of her social worker, starts making little effort to open up. She soon joins a writer’s group, chats with people she meets on the bus (as she works as a bus driver) and even makes a new friend called Ginger….but is Ginger a good influence for Wendy?
Wendy loves writing and she soon starts following a local author, Diane Weston on Twitter. Wendy also feels a connection develop between her and Diane and concludes that they are both good friends as she resonates with the character in Diane’s book and seem to think that she has written it based on her childhood (although Diane writes fictional books). This soon causes some friction between Wendy and Ginger and their relationship….
To be honest, when I start reading a book (or watch a movie) I often start guessing how it will end, and this book kept me guessing till the end which is what I find rare in books now. This story will stay with me and it is no surprise that the author, Soave, is the winner of the Primadonna Prize 2019.
If you want a book to hold your attention and captivate your mind, then grab a copy of this book as it is a book well worth reading.
How much is the book and how can you buy it?
The paperback book retails for £8.99 while the hardback copy retails for £11.99. There is also a Kindle version available for £7.99. You can purchase a copy of the book from Harper Collins here.
About the Author
Elissa Soave won the inaugural Primadonna Prize in 2019. She was also a Bloody Scotland Pitch Perfect finalist 2019 and has had work published in New Writing Scotland, Gutter, Structo and The Glasgow Review of Books. She’s had two short plays performed by the Short Attention Span Theatre Group and has performed at various spoken word events. She currently lives in South Lanarkshire and Ginger and Me is her debut novel.
About the Book
Title: Ginger and Me
Author: Elissa Soave
Publisher: Harper Collins/HQ Digital
ISBN: 978-0008458416
Dimensions: 15.9 x 3.4 x 22.7 cm
Pages: 368
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* We were given a copy of the book in return for a feature. All opinions are our own.
20 comments
This sounds like a great read! I love books like this that deal with loss and how people find their way through it.
It is a hard topic but written so well
This sounds like a book I could enjoy reading and connect with Wendy and follow her story definitely a book to add to my list
It absolutely is a good book, as a gift to a good friend as well
Oh it sounds intriguing. I love a character like Wendy who you can relate to! I also love your cosy reading corner there!
Thank you, a lovely place to read and relax
Sounds like an interesting read! I always love discovering a new book. Will definitely need to check into this one.
Hope you do add this to your reading list
Ginger and Me, sounds like a pretty interesting read.It seems to tell a really poignant and relatable story, would love to read this one.
I hope you do, lots of relatable character and event in there
I love reading books that captivate me and make me imagine the end and the different ways the story might end. Ginger and me seems a very interesting read.
It certainly is a book which is hard to put down
I do find I connect more with books that are realistic so this sounds like a good one. And Wendy sounds like a lovely character x
She is a likeable character
Ive been into reading lately and trying to get a list together, won’t hesitate to add. Thanks for the share!
Thank you for your lovely comments
I love books that have a dramatic opening, as it really engages me and I end up reading more of it. Thank you for sharing!
Anytime, this is a fabulous book to read
The stronger the opening the more likely I am to keep reading. I struggle to keep going if I am not instantly hooked.
I agree, books sometimes can be hard to read if they get dull, this is not like that at all