I remember reading Room by Emma Donoghue. It was days away from my youngest son's 4th birthday. That first line stuck with me "Today I am three but tomorrow abracadabra I will be four!" After that I proceeded to cry through the entire book. Even though I was crying, I loved this book.
Then Emma Donoghue other novels that were so different from Room I didn't think I would like them so I didn't try. Something about Akin, maybe the passage of time, made me think maybe I could enjoy one of Donoghue's new books.
Michael is an 11 year old boy that seems alone in the world. Dad has died of a drug overdose. Mom is in jail. Grandma has died. There is no one willing to take care of Michael. Desperate to avoid the foster system his case worker reaches out to Noah - Michael's 79 year old Great Uncle on his dad's side that he has never met.
Noah, who has never had children, has out lived everyone in his life. He spends his days having a conversation in his head wife his dead wife. When his sister passed away she made him promise he would do something fun so he booked a trip to Paris and is leaving in a few days.
When it is proposed that Noah take care of Michael the timing couldn't be worse. Soon Noah and Michael find themselves getting to know each other on a trip to Paris. The two couldn't be more different but there a string of DNA that links the two.
I very much enjoyed Akin and will be seeking out Donoghue's other books that I passed by before.