Many of you who have been coming to this blog since its beginning know that I have a particular love for prose. Give me beautiful writing that paints a picture and allows me to settle into a story, and I’m a happy reader.
The Days of Our Birth brings all of those things together in a story that captured me almost immediately.
In fact, it captured me with the second word of the first line of Chapter One. By the third paragraph, I knew I wasn’t going to put this book down.
Told through both first- and third-person narration, the story follows Peter and Sarah, neighbors who share a birthday, as they develop a friendship that becomes something much deeper. Their journey begins when they are just six years old and spans twenty years.
And perhaps that is what I found most compelling. This is very much a story of personal evolution. We see how experiences shape them, and how the choices stay with them long after the moment has passed.
Throughout the story, Laidlaw’s writing is descriptive, and some might even call it wordy. I happen to love that about his writing!
I enjoyed the early references to a song, books, and a movie that I was familiar with. There is forbidden love, sacrifice, friendship, and plenty of heart. I could easily move between atmospheres and feel transported along with the characters.
There are passages where I found myself slowing down simply because I enjoyed the way the words created a moment in time, and I wanted to pause and stay there a while. For me, this story is the journey of two people—and it made me think about the lives we have lived and the people who have shaped our own stories.
I received a copy of this beautiful book from Charlie Laidlaw
