Book Review: Once Upon A River

Once Upon a River by Diane Setterfield

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Wow, just wow! This is an incredible and beautiful story about a river, people, a time period and real life. I absolutely adored it and am sorry it’s over in many ways. Diane Setterfield immerses us in
a time in which we often say things were 'simpler'. After reading Once Upon a River you will surely agree that the plot, time period and it's people were anything but simple.

Characters
At the core of Once Upon a River are stories about many different characters who all engage each other at different points because their connection to one tavern and one little girl. Some may want to say there is a lead character or select the primary character. I would disagree with them and say there is such a diverse set of POV's provided and that they are all equally as important. Without any one of them the plot would not come together so elegantly; nor would we have the same feel for all different classes, races, genders and positions in this elaborate society.
A few people have indicated that they feel the characters or comments made by characters are racist and/or prejudice. The thing is that this is, of course, true because it is inherently a prejudice time. BUT the real heroes at the end of the story are those who have prejudices held against them and still thrive. Our black (but highly educated and wealthy) man, a female business owner, a crippled mother, and a mentally abused and unstable woman; all play large parts in helping the reader and other characters of Once Upon a River understand how wrong they are to prejudge. It's done in an elegant and appropriate way, in my opinion.

Plot
There is a good elaborate plot here. A little girl is found, deemed dead; and then suddenly awakens alive. Yes it's scientifically possible, and yes it has been documented to happen before. Our little girl is mute and doesn't speak a word; so she is unable to tell her story. Therefore everyone around her attempts to. Interestingly there are multiple stakeholders she could belong to in the area. And of course if you've lost a child for whatever reason you want to gain that child back; no matter the cost. There are some very tough moments in this book that deal with grief, loss, PTSD (although not called that it is obvious), and family dynamics. The little girl sets up an ingenious plot that takes us through the lives of those who live by the river or on it (such as our famous photographer does).
In actual fact the famous photographer character is based on a real person. It was clear to me while reading Once Upon a River that Setterfield had done a lot of research into the river area, time period and daily life of the folks that lived there. This is affirmed when you read the author's notes at the end and gives you an appreciation for how much effort Setterfield has put into this story.

Lyrical Writing
The narrative that Setterfield gives us is so wonderful. As each POV changes we get the a change in tone and educational background. Yet Setterfield somehow manages to weave a lyrical, common voice throughout the story. It's a real feat to do in a novel that changes POVs as often as this one does. It also think it helps keep the reader in the historical time period.

Overall
This was such a wonderful book! I cannot wait to purchase a print copy and put it in my personal library (the highest honour I can give to any book). It has depth, diversity, emotion and above all else tells a story that is compelling and real. That does bring me to advise that there are some tough scenes and moments in Once Upon a River. None of them were too graphic or gory for me; and I felt all were handled within the context and feel of the story appropriately. In a realistic story hard things will happen and I'm glad that Setterfield didn't try to tone down reality. The story is exactly as it should be; whether the moment is difficult for our characters or not.
If you only read one historical (non-war) book in 2019 it should be this one! I'm now off to find every book Setterfield has ever written so I can add them all to my TBR list.

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