‘Chloe Sparrow’ by Lesley Crewe

⭐⭐⭐

Rating: 3 out of 5.

Chloe Sparrow works for the CBC and already at the age of 25, she has a mega-hit show on her hands–The Single Guy, a reality series, meant to be something like The Bachelor. She is good at her job, but is more accident prone than the average producer.

Veterinarian Austin Hawke is the lucky (or rather unlucky) guy chosen for the show, who finds himself struggling to choose. The reality show travels to various familiar tourist locations in major Canadian cities for filming, which was fun. Chloe’s hapless existence extends to her private life, as she lives right beside her dotty Aunt and nutty grandfather. And to top it off, her co-worker Amanda is pressuring her to find a boyfriend. Chloe’s quirky life is a bit of a mess, to be honest, but delightfully so.

I’m currently working my way through the backlist of this Canadian author from Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia. Although I didn’t enjoy this one quite as much as Nosy Parker or The Spoon Stealer, I will read and enjoy anything by Lesley Crewe. Her unstoppable sense of humour just works for me and her characters are all so entertaining. It was just the light and lively funny read I needed right now! This is one of her earlier works and she has definitely improved over the years. I am eager to read the rest of her backlist, as well as looking forward to her newest release, Recipe for a Good Life.

‘The Spoon Stealer’ by Lesley Crewe

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Rating: 4 out of 5.

“All that is needed is a spoonful of kindness.”

Emmeline joins a memoir writing class. When Emmeline begins to read her story to the others, it is so compelling that the women long to hear more. I felt exactly the same way, and couldn’t put the book down. Emmeline’s story is moving and heartbreaking and encouraging and satisfying all at once. Everything gets tied up a bit too neatly in tidy bows, but do not mistake this for a saccharine sweet novel. There is a lot of ‘no-nonsense’ and humour and hard-won wisdom in this book, and that’s just because of who Emmeline is.

The story begins with her birth in rural Nova Scotia. Her mother delivers her into a laundry basket outside where she was hanging up the sheets. Emmeline was that baby in the basket and every after, she retained a marvellous love for the outdoors and fresh air. Her mother, on the other hand, was quite miffed about needing to wash those sheets again!

Emmeline was a spinster back in the day when that word was still used. But make no mistake, Emmeline had agency, something the women of her generation often lacked. The most delightful thing about her is that despite being a woman with great dignity and love for her fellowman, she had a naughty habit of stealing spoons. Not just any spoons, but those that had a particular meaning in her life. That isn’t a spoiler because it’s right in the title!

Oddly, this spoon thing did have an effect on me while I was reading the book. I ordered a nice cappuccino after a lunch out with a friend, and there was a lovely tiny spoon on the saucer. I do admit to almost going home with it.

When I read Nosy Parker by Lesley Crewe, it was my first by this author and I told myself I would soon read another. I am now seriously hooked and am looking forward to more!

‘Nosy Parker’ by Lesley Crewe

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Rating: 4 out of 5.

I’d never heard of Lesley Crewe but she is now my latest favourite Canadian author! I thoroughly enjoyed this coming-of-age father-daughter story set in Montreal in the 60’s. It’s funny, surprising, down-to-earth, and I couldn’t put it down. I loved the touching, heartfelt story that has a light-hearted feel and a bit of gutsy irreverent sass thrown in to keep things lively. She balances humour and sadness really well.

Audrey is a character you can’t stop rooting for. She is a lot of things: articulate, disarming, forthright, and because she considers herself an amateur spy, she is nosy! But the biggest mystery Audrey needs to solve, is why she doesn’t have a mother and what happened to her. No one will tell her anything, and she intends to find out the truth for herself!

Funny story about how I came to read this latest book by the author. You might recognise the trajectory. Everyone had been talking about her earlier novel called The Spoon Stealer. which I had purchased on my Kindle just before a trip to Europe. Somehow I never got to it on the plane (too many movies). Then when I got back home I went to the library to pick up some holds and noticed Nosy Parker sitting on the new and notable shelf!

I do plan to read more by this author (probably starting with the one I bought already). Most of her books are set in Cape Breton where she lives; this one is set in the Montreal of her childhood.