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kaora4's review against another edition
5.0
There are so many things you still don't know. My secrets have been inside me for twenty years, and I must let them go before it is too late. I will tell you everything, and the rest will be silence.
Let us go then, you and I.
We don't have long.
The Love Song of Miss Queenie Hennessy is a companion novel to The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry. Queenie Hennessy is dying, so she sends a note to her old friend Harold Fry. He sends back a response that he is walking to see her, a distance of 600 miles, and he wants her to wait. As he walks, a volunteer convinces Queenie to write him another letter, confessing her secrets and in doing so she begins a journey all her own.
For once in my life, I will stay in the same place and see something through. You will keep your job, and I will try to bring you happiness. I will not ask for anything more.
Oh, Harold. How did I get that so wrong?
This book was the perfect companion novel. We are shown the other side of the story and explains some of the events that Harold remembers in his tale. It is a powerful story of love and atonement and quickly had me in tears.
The way the sudden removal of a person is a reminder of one's own fragility before we resume the familiar, ordinary things that make us feel untouchable again.
Queenie has kept secrets for 20 years, and it was beautiful to watch her confess those and come to terms with things that had plagued her. Things that she had forced herself to pay penance for. I really connected with the cast of characters, even the secondary characters, especially Mr. Henderson, who had a sick sense of humor.
The ending is bittersweet and powerful, and left me thinking about it for hours after I turned the last page.
Highly recommended.
Cross posted at Kaora's Corner.
Let us go then, you and I.
We don't have long.
The Love Song of Miss Queenie Hennessy is a companion novel to The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry. Queenie Hennessy is dying, so she sends a note to her old friend Harold Fry. He sends back a response that he is walking to see her, a distance of 600 miles, and he wants her to wait. As he walks, a volunteer convinces Queenie to write him another letter, confessing her secrets and in doing so she begins a journey all her own.
For once in my life, I will stay in the same place and see something through. You will keep your job, and I will try to bring you happiness. I will not ask for anything more.
Oh, Harold. How did I get that so wrong?
This book was the perfect companion novel. We are shown the other side of the story and explains some of the events that Harold remembers in his tale. It is a powerful story of love and atonement and quickly had me in tears.
The way the sudden removal of a person is a reminder of one's own fragility before we resume the familiar, ordinary things that make us feel untouchable again.
Queenie has kept secrets for 20 years, and it was beautiful to watch her confess those and come to terms with things that had plagued her. Things that she had forced herself to pay penance for. I really connected with the cast of characters, even the secondary characters, especially Mr. Henderson, who had a sick sense of humor.
The ending is bittersweet and powerful, and left me thinking about it for hours after I turned the last page.
Highly recommended.
Cross posted at Kaora's Corner.
alongapath's review against another edition
4.0
My hopes were high for this book since The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry was a 5 star read for me. But sadly Queenie's Lovesong didn't swing to those same heights. For the most part, this book felt slow and dull in comparison. But, it is still a gripping read (3.5 stars) and it partners well with Harold's account.
Queenie is in a hospice and dying. She sends her old co-worker, Harold Fry, a note about her illness as she attempts to get her affairs in order. Soon thereafter, she learns that Harold wants to see her and is walking across England to do so. He asks that she wait for his arrival.
Throughout Harold's pilgrimage, Queenie makes a pilgrimage of her own by hand-writing a letter to him which Balanced with stories of ongoing hospice events, reflections on her solitary life and descriptions of her sea garden, the novel ebbs and flows as Harold draws ever nearer and Queenie's health teeters on the edge.
The final chapter blew my mind. Not one to become emotionally involved in my reading, I was surprised to find myself openly crying at the final twist of fate for Harold and Queenie. The ending is unbelievable and almost cruel but ever so fitting with the two parallel lives revealed in these two books. The ending made me bump the stars up. It forces you to reflect on mortality and to consider setting things right in your life long before the end is in sight.
Queenie is in a hospice and dying. She sends her old co-worker, Harold Fry, a note about her illness as she attempts to get her affairs in order. Soon thereafter, she learns that Harold wants to see her and is walking across England to do so. He asks that she wait for his arrival.
Throughout Harold's pilgrimage, Queenie makes a pilgrimage of her own by hand-writing a letter to him which
Spoiler
not only confirms her undying love for him but also admits her knowledge of, and perhaps involvement in, Harold's sons death.The final chapter blew my mind. Not one to become emotionally involved in my reading, I was surprised to find myself openly crying at the final twist of fate for Harold and Queenie. The ending is unbelievable and almost cruel but ever so fitting with the two parallel lives revealed in these two books. The ending made me bump the stars up. It forces you to reflect on mortality and to consider setting things right in your life long before the end is in sight.
kats05's review against another edition
3.0
As the author herself says in the afterword to the novel, this is a good "companion" book to [b:The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry|13227454|The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry|Rachel Joyce|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1335816092s/13227454.jpg|18156927], not a sequel or prequel. However, I do believe it is best enjoyed after reading Harold Fry.
I enjoyed hearing Queenie's side of the story, even though it was terribly sad the way her life played out, and how she was still so grief stricken even 20 years after leaving Kingsbridge in Devon. She deserved better than that.
I enjoyed hearing Queenie's side of the story, even though it was terribly sad the way her life played out, and how she was still so grief stricken even 20 years after leaving Kingsbridge in Devon. She deserved better than that.
maria_rb's review against another edition
4.0
We know the ending to Queenie’s story, or so we think, from having read about Harold Fry’s pilgrimage to her bedside. But there’s a lot more about Harold Fry that Queenie can reveal to us. And while I tend to dislike when a woman’s story is and purpose in text is to reveal the man’s character and life, I love that we get a part of Queenie that Harold never does.
paulhill53's review against another edition
5.0
Okay, this was very appealing to me - the same timeline as The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry, but told from the other end of the journey. Nice way to tell the story, in the two books.
sueperlibrarian's review against another edition
4.0
I read the advance reader copy of this book in two days after receiving it as a First Reads Giveaway. Having not read The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry, I had no idea what to expect with this boo, but I thoroughly enjoyed it. This is a parallel story to the first, and now I would like to read it the first. There was humor, joy, and sadness within the pages, as Queenie makes her own journey. What would she say to Harold if she had one more chance? I enjoyed the character development of Queenie's friends, and enjoyed the journey through to the end.
thomas_edmund's review against another edition
3.0
SPOILERS FOR BOTH THIS BOOK AND ITS COMPANION
My first reaction to hearing about the existence of this book was confusion. Many of the discussions I had in person and online around the companion book The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry centred around the real feelings of Queenie towards Harold, the conclusions tending toward the book’s theme being in part about that mystery and Harold’s realisation that he would never know.
So in some respects the appearance of this book blasted apart that theory. Very much a companion book the Love Song of Queenie Hennessey is written from the perspective of Queenie who is ‘writing’ letters to Harold from her Hospice bed. The narrative jumps between Queenie explaining the past and her experiences at the home. In general the prose is sharp and the book is well written with some genuine humour and heart-break at times.
Nonetheless I did not actually appreciate this instalment of the tale. Hearing about Queenie’s genuine love for Harold was mildly sweet, however destroyed the mysteries mentioned above (I don’t know if others felt the same.) Stretching the story out to reveal a relationship between Queenie and Harold’s son David just seemed contrived, especially the cliché of Queenie being with David on the night of his death, conveniently structured to give Queenie the guilts without her actually being at all to blame.
Overall the story lacked verve and tension – I’m not sure if anyone would pick this up without having read The Unlikely Pilgrimage, but having nothing to encourage page turning but a scene we already saw, this time from Queenie’s perspective the book dragged.
I’m sure extreme fans of the original book will be pretty into this book, for people like myself who enjoyed but was not overjoyed about Harold Fry I would hold it up as an example of a tale better left without a prequel/sequel/companion.
My first reaction to hearing about the existence of this book was confusion. Many of the discussions I had in person and online around the companion book The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry centred around the real feelings of Queenie towards Harold, the conclusions tending toward the book’s theme being in part about that mystery and Harold’s realisation that he would never know.
So in some respects the appearance of this book blasted apart that theory. Very much a companion book the Love Song of Queenie Hennessey is written from the perspective of Queenie who is ‘writing’ letters to Harold from her Hospice bed. The narrative jumps between Queenie explaining the past and her experiences at the home. In general the prose is sharp and the book is well written with some genuine humour and heart-break at times.
Nonetheless I did not actually appreciate this instalment of the tale. Hearing about Queenie’s genuine love for Harold was mildly sweet, however destroyed the mysteries mentioned above (I don’t know if others felt the same.) Stretching the story out to reveal a relationship between Queenie and Harold’s son David just seemed contrived, especially the cliché of Queenie being with David on the night of his death, conveniently structured to give Queenie the guilts without her actually being at all to blame.
Overall the story lacked verve and tension – I’m not sure if anyone would pick this up without having read The Unlikely Pilgrimage, but having nothing to encourage page turning but a scene we already saw, this time from Queenie’s perspective the book dragged.
I’m sure extreme fans of the original book will be pretty into this book, for people like myself who enjoyed but was not overjoyed about Harold Fry I would hold it up as an example of a tale better left without a prequel/sequel/companion.
dr_dick's review against another edition
5.0
a real delight. heartbreaking and heartwarming in equal measure and all without an ounce of sentimentality. i really liked the storytelling too.
annesbu's review against another edition
5.0
Sometimes I love a book. On rare occasions I fall in love with a book. "The Love Song of Miss Queenie Hennessy" is one of the rare books, and its characters will be with me for a long time.
It goes from being laugh-out-loud funny to tear-jerkingly sad -- sometimes on the same page! -- and everything in between as Queenie, who is dying of cancer in a hospice run by nuns, writes a letter to man she's in love with, although she hasn't seen him in 20 years. When he says he's going to walk across England to see her, she realizes she must confess something to him regarding the relationship she had with his son. The letter includes how and why she fell in love with Harold; how she got involved with his son, David; why she left town; why she started her beloved sea garden; and the relationships she has with the other patients in the hospice, as well as the nuns.
Every page is filled with such emotion. I could not put this book down! OK. I did a couple of times, but I couldn't wait to get back to it when I did.
I have about 500 books in my home. Before this morning I had six on my "I'm love with this book shelf." Now I have seven.
I received a free copy of this book from Goodreads giveaways and Random House in exchange for an honest review.
It goes from being laugh-out-loud funny to tear-jerkingly sad -- sometimes on the same page! -- and everything in between as Queenie, who is dying of cancer in a hospice run by nuns, writes a letter to man she's in love with, although she hasn't seen him in 20 years. When he says he's going to walk across England to see her, she realizes she must confess something to him regarding the relationship she had with his son. The letter includes how and why she fell in love with Harold; how she got involved with his son, David; why she left town; why she started her beloved sea garden; and the relationships she has with the other patients in the hospice, as well as the nuns.
Every page is filled with such emotion. I could not put this book down! OK. I did a couple of times, but I couldn't wait to get back to it when I did.
I have about 500 books in my home. Before this morning I had six on my "I'm love with this book shelf." Now I have seven.
I received a free copy of this book from Goodreads giveaways and Random House in exchange for an honest review.