Do miracles happen today? There are those who say 'yes' and those who say 'no' and there are those that have experienced a miracle who are absolutely convinced. I began this novella with my breakfast and had completed it by tea time, that's how fascinating I found it to be.
Susan Hill has written another mystery about things we don't understand and this time it's a miracle. The 'kind man' of the title is Tommy Carr and the story is set sometime between the two world wars, probably in the late '20s or early 30s'. Tommy and his wife live a quiet life in an industrial town. They have a daughter and are quietly happy in their uneventful lives. Until, that is, their beloved daughter dies at a tender age. Months later, with his grief locked inside him, Tommy begins to sicken. At death's door, a miracle happens and Tommy is restored to health.
As time goes by it appears that Tommy has been granted another gift along with his health and strength and the couple's quiet life is turned upside down as people beat a path to their door. Can Tommy work miracles, like the one he was granted? Will this gift last or will it go away as quickly as it arrived? How does his wife, Eve, handle all this?
Susan Hill has such economy with words and uses it to good effect; her spare language imbues a finely balanced atmosphere of suspense, anxiety and tension in this novella.
Whether you believe in miracles or not, this is a tale that deserves to read by everyone. I recommend it.
A Kind Man is published by Random House, ISBN 978-07011-8-5916
No comments:
Post a Comment