BOWLAWAY

Kate Reading's stately narration is as expansive as Bertha Truitt herself, the majestic spirit central to this sprawling novel. When Bertha mysteriously appears, as if resurrected, atop a grave in the local cemetery, she bowls over the residents of Salford, Massachusetts--literally, as she immediately sets about establishing a bowling alley in town. Reading's rich, rounded timbre fits both Bertha's character and the story's somewhat whimsical sweep. That smooth backdrop leaves Reading room to develop the rougher, edgier voices of the oddballs and lost souls whose lives, set in motion by Bertha's kinetic energy, play out over much of the novel. With BOWLAWAY, Reading can add to her list of narrative accomplishments helping to turn a bowling alley into an allegory. K.W. © AudioFile 2019, Portland, Maine [Published: FEBRUARY 2019]