Joanne Harris
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| Blackberry Wine ~ Hasmita Chander Rating: Excellent Joanne Harris knows how to tap into the artery of magic that flows in people--the same artery that started in childhood and continues to flow in adulthood, that contains the sense of wonder and the unknown that still seems plausible. Jay Mackintosh is a one-book-successful author who cannot seem to write another mature and good novel like the first one called 'Jackapple Joe' which was based on his childhood at a little place in England called Kirby Monckton. Joe is an old man Jay meets here, who becomes Jay's friend and advisor. Joe is the sower of magic--"layman's alchemy," as the old man calls it, "the magic of everyday things". In his unauthorised plot of land, Joe grows all kinds of herbs, vegetables, fruit and flowers and makes wine out of the oddest ingredients. But his wine, like his horticultural products, have some magic in them. Now, twenty years after his novel 'Jackapple Joe' and a dull life that's not financially unsteady thanks to his writing fairly successful science-fiction under a pen name, there arrive in Jay's cellar, six unusual residents: six bottles of wine with different-coloured cords around each neck: Elderflower, Blackberry, Rosehip, Damson, Raspberry, and another that only says 'Specials'. Why did Joe leave the way he did, back in 1977? Why didn't he contact Jay all these years? What's the story behind this strange old man, and what attracted Jay to him in the first place? Does Jay really believe in Joe's magic? And will it work for him? Read to find out, and to immerse yourself in a delicious tale that you don't want to end. As usual, Harris's descriptions of flavours, aromas, sights and places are a pleasure to experience. There is not a single boring page in the book, which is perhaps why the story moves along so smoothly--and, unfortunately, fast. Although I enjoyed Chocolat and Coastliners, this book is far bigger than them in my opinion--it's more than just a story.
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