A Century of November

by W.D. Wetherell and W.D. Wetherell

Book Overview

A Century of November is the tale of Charles Marden, an apple grower and judge who sets off from his Vancouver Island home on an impulsive journey to Belgium, where his son, an Allied soldier in the First World War, has just died in battle at the very end of the war. Marden's single-minded mission: finding the exact spot where his son was killed.

Across western Canada the Spanish flu rages - the very disease that claimed Marden's wife...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0472031228
• ISBN13: 9780472031221
• Release Date: October 2005
• Publisher: University of Michigan Press
• Length: 176 Pages
• Weight: 0.50 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 5.3" x 8.3"

Customer Reviews

Spectacular and Unconventional Novel of War

So many novels of war glamorize or valorize the act of killing. This novel ingeniously shows the trauma left afterwards -- in the landscape and the psyche of the people and places left once the war is over. In beautifully wrought prose that shines and surprises in every sentence, W.D. Wetherell shows us the margins and hidden corners that so often are ignored in the midst of documenting the carnage. This is a novel that places itself in the company of great war novels like Pat Barker's REGENERATION and Tim O'Brien's GOING AFTER CACCIATIO. And if women are reading this review, please read this book! It's not your typical shoot-'em-up war novel.

Classic tale beautifully told

I bought the book based on a glowing review in the paper, something I do more and more hesitantly these days, having been disappointed lots of times in the purchase. But this was worth every word the reviewer gave it. It's an old, old story: guy leaves town looking for something. But Wetherell's telling of it comes alive because of reams of period (WWI) research, all of it subsumed to character and plot; a gorgeous handling of language and freshness of image; and odd twists in the progression of the story that only serve to make it more believable. A book for you, if you love a great and simple story immaculately told.

Perfect for a Rainy Saturday

I read this book in a single day, a rainy Saturday that perfectly fit the mood of the story. In the waning days of WWI, a Vancouver Island apple farmer travels to Belgium to find the spot where his son was killed. I've asked my wife's book group to read it because I think it may be a "guy" book, but not in the usual sense, not a violent guy book. We've known many quiet dads as tertiary characters in other novels; this book lets us see through the eyes of a quiet dad. Quiet on the outside, anyway. Well paced, beautifully told. Well worth a Saturday afternoon.