Jaline's Reviews > The Witch Elm

Toby had always thought of himself as a lucky person. He came from a good family, he got along with his aunts, uncles, and cousins, and he had a good job, excellent health, a very nice apartment, and a lovely girlfriend.

However, somewhere during his 29th year, he entered into his personal time of Job, where he was tested on every front and since part of that was a burglary of his apartment where he suffered serious injury, he could no longer rely on his wits to carry him through. He was forced to find his way through multiple challenges and difficult situations the hard way: stumbling and bumbling along, with gaps in his memory leaving him vulnerable, and in many respects, his own worst enemy.

Sometimes life throws some incredible curve balls at people, and it is difficult to cope when they come in one’s or two’s, let alone multiples. Add to that the long-range and sluggishly slow pace of recovery from head trauma, and it can be a recipe for disaster.

When the family receives bad news about the health of Toby’s bachelor uncle Hugo, Toby and his girl-friend Melissa move into his uncle’s home, called Ivy House. One day, there is a discovery made inside a large hole of the 200-year-old wych elm in the garden. Thus begins a coalescing of the many trials confronting Toby.

Although the title says “The Witch Elm”, I could only find one occurrence of the word “witch” in the book and it had nothing to do with trees. It could possibly be an “Easter Egg” within the novel. (In computer games, “Easter Eggs” are usually a quirky or fun ‘surprise’ to discover – and they are sometimes so obscure that it might take a few years before finding one. But – I won’t spoil any surprises for people who might want to make their own discoveries.)

This is a long novel and I know it won’t be a fabulous read for everyone – partly because of the length, and partly because not everyone enjoys spending a few days in the lives of people who are going through a very rough time, eager to discover how they will make their way through. That was definitely me, though – I absolutely had to know what would unfold for this family.

This novel also has moral ambiguity in many different shades of gray. For people who prefer shorter reads and more black and white plots and characters, this one would not work at all. For the most part I have discovered for myself that patience with larger novels is a plus: they are the length they are for a very good reason (usually), and the quicker I accept that, the better my reading experience. Still, not everyone reads the same, which is perfectly fine.

For those who do enjoy long novels with excellent writing, a plot full of challenges for the intricately drawn characters to overcome, and an abundance of food for thought, this will be a wonderful read. I definitely found it all of that - and so much more.