DEAR EVELYN

Kathy Page (And Other Stories)

Dear Evelyn, British/Canadian writer Kathy Page’s seventh novel, provides the reader the chance to experience her realistic and often dark style, through the complex and ever-fruitful lens of marriage.

The protagonist Harry Miles is a thoughtful and capable young man, born between the first and second world war to a working-class family in South London. When he meets the energetic and vibrant Evelyn on a trip to Battersea library however, the romance of a lifetime is born.

Delivered to the reader in tense and beautiful episodes, this unconventional love story demonstrates the change in times and culture, as well as the pair’s relationship, as their 70-year marriage unfolds in front of the reader. 

Page brings us this compelling narrative through the use of interesting and complex characters that she is known for, showing how people grow and interact with each other as we age. Setting is also an important factor here, as this remarkably British tale contrasts with Harry’s experience as he fights in North Africa during World War II.

The writer has produced a work of great intimacy and truthfulness in this novel that serves as a compassionate commentary on a marriage that lasts as long as a lifetime. An enjoyable and effective study of a relationship, Dear Evelyn makes the reader ask themselves the question, one that many of us have hoped to be able to ask – “how does it feel to grow old with someone?” LEWIS SMITH

Price: £10. Info: www.andotherstories.org