Occasionally I come across a book that makes me wonder what kind of magic this writer must posses. And I do believe it is a form of magic, this architecture of language into something so beautiful that I feel I must read bits of it aloud just to better savor the author's words. The Silence of Bonaventure Arrow by Rita Leganski is one such gem. The way Ms. Leganski frames the thoughts she presents is magical. Bonaventure Arrow is a boy born without speech, but with incomparable hearing. At first his hearing only extends to his mother's heart beat across the room. Soon he can hear across the house, across town and eventually across space and time. "They didn't know that through his remarkable hearing he would bring salvation to the souls of those who loved him."
This book begins with a sweet whirlwind romance which then turns to explore the themes of loss, guilt, love and grief. "They lay entwined and thought themselves alone. But that is one thing they most definitely were not, for Bonaventure had begun. The cells of his body were doubling and doubling again..." It is so difficult to not give away any little bit, but I don't want to take anything away from this story. I love this book and it will most certainly need to be reread. It is only the first book I've read this year, but it will be a tough one to top.
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