Two women, divided by fifty years, united by their grief . . .
Playing with the Moon
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Review
'Eliza Graham tells a powerful tale, and her characters are well drawn and believable. I enjoyed this book very much'
-- Historical Novels Review
'Eliza Graham tells a powerful tale, and her characters are well drawn and believable.'
-- Historical Novels Review
-- Historical Novels Review
'Eliza Graham tells a powerful tale, and her characters are well drawn and believable.'
-- Historical Novels Review
Book Description
Shattered by a recent bereavement, Minna and husband Tom retreat to an isolated village on the Dorset coast, seeking the solitude that will allow them to cope with their loss and rebuild their foundering marriage. Walking on the beach one day, they unearth a human skeleton. It is a discovery which will plunge Minna into a mystery which will consume her for months to come. The remains are soon identified as those of Private Lew Campbell, a black American GI who, it seems, drowned during a wartime exercise in the area half a century before. Growing increasingly preoccupied with the dead soldier’s fate, Minna befriends a melancholy elderly woman, Felix, who lived in the village during the war. As Minna coaxes Felix’s story from her, it becomes clear that the old woman knows more about the dead GI than she initially let on. Playing with the Moon is an unforgettable novel about memory and loss, about the legacy of war, and the need to reconcile ourselves to our past in order to live with the present.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
By J.S.
Format:Hardcover
A beautifully written novel with images as vivid as a well-drawn portrait. The characters and their stories stayed with me even when I was forced to set down the book to attend to "real life." This is a mystery with heart, and well worth the read.
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
By Carrie Kabak
Format:Hardcover
An intriguing opening that keeps you hooked from then on--PLAYING WITH THE MOON is a very difficult book to part with for too long.
"I push past his restraining arm and see what he's dug up: a long white object. A bone... it's a human leg bone. Tom digs a little more and exposes a row of ivory-coloured arches. A ribcage."
The writing is stellar, the prose vivid, and the atmosphere perfect as we seamlessly switch between the present and the nineteen forties. The players in this poignant tale will stay with you for some time. I absolutely loved it.
"I push past his restraining arm and see what he's dug up: a long white object. A bone... it's a human leg bone. Tom digs a little more and exposes a row of ivory-coloured arches. A ribcage."
The writing is stellar, the prose vivid, and the atmosphere perfect as we seamlessly switch between the present and the nineteen forties. The players in this poignant tale will stay with you for some time. I absolutely loved it.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This book is based on the truth of what was happening in southern England in the build up to the Allied invasion of France in the Second World War. It also plays on the connections between those times and the early 21st century. These connections are built on the characters who have grown from the children of the earlier period to complex adults, who have harboured their personal secrets through all of those decades.
The opening chapter commences with the discovery of the skeleton of a GI who lost his life before the invasion started. But the mystery around how he died and who, if anyone, witnessed his untimely death, is something which is explored as the chapters switch back and forth between the time zones. The couple who discover the bones on the beach have their own problems, and their stress adds to the mounting tension that links the characters who have survived the fifty-something years since those horrible events.
The threads, as you would expect, all come together in the end, but I found that as I read a chapter in one time zone, I couldn't wait to get back to the last, where I knew I would find myself in the next. Confused? You won't be if you take the trouble to pick up this book and read it. It is fairly easy to follow, I promise you, and it was a pleasure to read. I shall definitely be first in line for Eliza Graham's next book. I can't wait!
The opening chapter commences with the discovery of the skeleton of a GI who lost his life before the invasion started. But the mystery around how he died and who, if anyone, witnessed his untimely death, is something which is explored as the chapters switch back and forth between the time zones. The couple who discover the bones on the beach have their own problems, and their stress adds to the mounting tension that links the characters who have survived the fifty-something years since those horrible events.
The threads, as you would expect, all come together in the end, but I found that as I read a chapter in one time zone, I couldn't wait to get back to the last, where I knew I would find myself in the next. Confused? You won't be if you take the trouble to pick up this book and read it. It is fairly easy to follow, I promise you, and it was a pleasure to read. I shall definitely be first in line for Eliza Graham's next book. I can't wait!
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4.9 out of 5 stars
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
3.0 out of 5 stars
Good first attempt
I'm going to go easy on Eliza Graham because this is her first book. Writers are allowed to have a book or two before really hitting their stride and I think this writer is going... Read more
Published on 23 Sep 2010 by Catherine Murphy
4.0 out of 5 stars
Delightfully Told Story
When the body of an American soldier, who died 60 years ago, is found on the beach of a small village by Minna and Tom, it makes a good story for the newspapers. Read more
Published on 8 April 2009 by Mrs. C. Colbert
4.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent Characters
This debut novel by Eliza Graham is a story that is so well plotted and shifts between the present and the war-time past. Read more
Published on 15 Mar 2009 by Lincs Reader
5.0 out of 5 stars
One of best reads I have read this year
In a word.....wonderful. The first book I read this year and thoroughly enjoyed it. Took the characters to my heart immediately and was page turning from the beginning. Read more
Published on 26 April 2008 by DE Will
2.0 out of 5 stars
Sorry - did I miss something?
On the strength of the reviews on Amazon, I recommended this book for my book club - only to be severely disappointed. Why? Read more
Published on 26 Mar 2008 by A. Lloyd
5.0 out of 5 stars
Engrossing book
I read this book in hardcover, and it's not to be missed. The story weaves between two timelines: the modern-day Minna and Felix grappling with their own ghosts, and Felix as a... Read more
Published on 17 Oct 2007 by K. Ringstrom
5.0 out of 5 stars
History - with long kept secrets
I really enjoyed this book, and found my imagination was working overtime, imagining how Fontwell looked, and what life was like for the villagers during WW2. Read more
Published on 10 Oct 2007 by R. J. Payne
5.0 out of 5 stars
A keeper
I'm so happy I bought this book. It had everything I look for in a novel: terrific writing, intriguing characters, plot twists that work, beautiful passages, a genuine mystery, and... Read more
Published on 29 Aug 2007 by M. Richards
5.0 out of 5 stars
Wonderful Book!
I loved Playing With The Moon! It's a beautifully written story about dealing with loss, grief, and, ultimately healing - told through the story of new friendship between Minna and... Read more
Published on 21 Aug 2007 by D. Schaaf
5.0 out of 5 stars
Delicious
Mesmerizing story with two plot lines, expertly woven together by the author. Sixty years separates the action and each story has a mystery to it. Read more
Published on 20 Aug 2007 by Becky Motew
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