Hardship and Regret with a Silver Lining: Such a Winter’s Day by Susan White
Reviewed by Laura Patterson
Imagine never feeling comfortable in your own skin and hiding your true self from others. Then imagine running away to free yourself from a life that just doesn’t feel right. Sometimes we make tough decisions in the hope that life will get better but sometimes those decisions lead to regrets and further heartache. Such a Winter’s Day follows Hank and the difficult choices he has made throughout his life and the discrimination and depression that followed him. While Hank’s story is sometimes bleak, it also shows the bright side of humanity and how sometimes all it takes is a few simple acts of kindness to make a positive change in another’s life.
Although he is down on his luck, that wasn’t always the case. Such a Winter’s Day offers a glimpse into Hank’s life through a series of flashbacks which take the reader from New Brunswick to San Francisco and back again. Now an old man, Hank looks back on his life and thinks of his biggest regret – not knowing his only daughter who he had left behind when she was a baby to pursue his dream of working in the music industry. Hank was able to create a good life for himself and even found true love, but thoughts of his daughter were always there, reminding him of all he had left behind. When tragedy strikes Hank’s life and he loses his true love, he decides to move back home to search for his daughter. Hard times get the better of Hank and even though he longs to know his daughter more than anything, he never thinks he is good enough to be in her life. Through a web of interconnected characters in the city of Saint John New Brunswick, Hank discovers that he is loved by many people and that true friends are there for you when you need them the most.
Hank’s story is so sad and moving that I recommend keeping a box of Kleenex by your side. Of course there are happy parts of the story, but for the most part, it is very heavy on the heart. White includes topics in this novel that we often hear about in the news such as poverty, homelessness, addiction, aging and hate crimes. It is quite an emotional load but so worth it in the end. I admit, there are some of these topics that I never thought about because they didn’t directly affect me in my day-to-day life but now, after reading this story, I have much more respect and empathy for individuals that face the hardships discussed throughout the book.
“White’s characters are real people that you pass every day on the street.”
When I first started reading this novel, I was a bit worried because there were so many characters to keep track of but that feeling quickly subsided as each character made their way into my heart. White’s characters are real people that you pass every day on the street. You can always relate her characters to someone you know or have heard of and the fact that this story takes place in Saint John NB, allows us familiar with the area to easily picture the setting. The history of well-known Saint John landmarks was a nice added touch, bringing the story even closer to my heart.
Such a Winter’s Day is another heartfelt story brought to life through Susan White’s cozy, familiar writing style. Although the subject is dark and sad by times, this novel is a must read. Silver linings is what White writes best and this novel did not disappoint.
About the Author
Susan White is a New Brunswick author. To date Susan has thirteen published books and her next novel Such a Winter's Day will be released this summer. Susan is also one of the ten authors featured in The ANNEthology which is soon to be released by Acorn Press. Two of Susan's novels were shortlisted in the Mrs. Dunster Fiction category of the New Brunswick Book Awards. Her novel The Memory Chair was shortlisted for the Ann Connor Brimer award and was a Hackmatack Children's Choice book in 2018. Her first book The Year Mrs. Montague Cried, which was released in 2011, won the Ann Connor Brimer Excellence in Children's Literature award in 2012.
Book Details
Publisher : Acorn Press (Oct. 15 2024)
Language : English
Paperback : 268 pages
ISBN-10 : 1773661760
ISBN-13 : 978-1773661766