Family Life Fiction At Its Best From Al Schnupp

SUMMARY: Devastated by the death of her husband and sons, Hannah Mercer sells the family farm in this family life fiction and creates a store and living quarters in a delivery truck. As she travels several circuits selling her wares, Hannah becomes the heart of a network of interlinking lives

The BookViral Review:

A thoughtful exploration of hope and expectations in the 60’s Goods and Effects certainly isn’t an archetypal tale of love, loss and family life as Schnupp presents his readers with notably nuanced characters, authentic backgrounds and intriguing stories to tell.

There’s real soul to this family life story as he beautifully renders the sights and sounds of a bygone era. All meticulously observed as he explores the veracities of love, family, calamity and infidelity during a period of turbulent change and beyond in Hannah’s life.

Schnupp’s writing is light and easy to read, his plot clear and a pleasure to follow, but what sets his novel apart is a clear understanding of how family dynamics, in their differing guises, shape our years, with character development at the heart of his narrative.

To this end, Schnupp gives us wholly endearing characters that exude strength of personality and purpose. Each memorable for the lives they have led and the unspoken truths they have harboured with any tendency towards the maudlin tempered by Schnupp’s ability to maintain a fine balance between empathy and levity.

It’s a masterful telling that exudes insight, challenging those fears we all invariably come to dwell upon. Leading to the realisation that our relationships are ultimately defined by the choices we make. Hannah could be any one of us and in her, we find a life-affirming quality and a celebration of fearlessness that has become far too rare.

There are parts of Goods and Effects that are heart-achingly sad, but Schnupp is ever mindful to keep a kernel of hope alive. Reminding us of the different spheres we inhabit as our lives evolve and not to take any given day for granted. Which for many readers is sure to provoke much in the way of reflection.

A timeless telling with all the hallmarks of a classic, Goods and Effects is nothing short of superb and is recommended without reservation.