Weather

by Julie Capaldo

Genres: Fiction

261 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2001

Reviews

[Gerhard · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fairly enjoyable read in which magic realism, the biggest supermarket in the Southern hemisphere, the spirit of Elvis Presley and a host of weird and wonderful elements combine to tell a story of misguided intentions, the tortuous search for true love and the ultimate truimph of justice. On the way you will encounter (among others) a mild young mechanic with scarred hands, a girl in a red Camry, a fortune teller with remarkable insight into the problems and concerns of her clients, and a emotionally suppressed wife who can only communicate in variations of the same ten words. And let's not forget a bronze duck that goes by the name of Alphonse ...

There is no shortage of plot or invention in this second novel by Australian Julie Capaldo. Don't even think of trying to be one step ahead in this colorful cavalcade. Just sit back and let the flow take you wherever it will. And there is the added bonus (to some readers at least) of having the entire storyline linked to and enhanced by the esoteric mysteries of the Tarot. And why is the weather so perversely unseasonable and unpredictable throughout? Well, you will have to ask Elvis that question ...

[Denise · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very "quirky" story, that I often go back to.

[Sash · Rating 5 out of 5]

so beautiful how books like this find me at the exact right time and place

[Rebecca Rossi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very interesting and thought-provoking

[Catsalive · Rating 3 out of 5]

cover:
"People mark their lives by the big things that happen. Eartquakes, floods, droughts. I watch for the small things, the moments. The first note of a flute in a concerto, the blink of a star in the early evening sky, a single drop of water in an afternoon shower ... Flickers. Twinklings. Scratches."

Ruby Seaborne can read the detail in everything: each colour in a sunrise, every shift in the air; she can even read souls.

The people of Dukkley Place are baffled by the bizarrely unpredictable weather: unseasonable bursts of rain, hail and snow that seem to reflect and heighten all their deepest anxieties and fears. And as the atmosphere crackles around her, Ruby can sense that the worst is yet to come. Powerful forces have been unleashed and not even she can predict the havoc they will wreak.

Playful and profound, Weather will hold you spellbound as it unravels the secret of happiness and reveals the key to being real in a world of fakes.
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I tried to like this but she lost me at Elvis. It's a bit of a modern fairytale that I'm sure someone else would appreciate. That someone just wasn't me on the day. I did like Alphonse the da Vinci duck. Quite lyrical prose at times, but none of the characters drew a sympathetic spark from me.
Rated 5/10 at http://www.bookcrossing.com/journal/1...

[Leslea · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great little book - quite different to anything I have read. Love that each chapter is based on a Tarot card. Great characters and love the way they all wind up interacting. The only thing I didnt like was that you had to keep reading to really enjoy. Not a book for putting down and going back to - too easy to lose track of events but if you sat down and just kept reading you easily lost yourself in the story.

[Megan Hills · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I've finished reading a novel I generally pass the book onto a friend or charity store or library. But I keep 'Weather'. And read it once every few years because it is so insightful about our society's ills yet also so funny and beautiful. I don't lend my copy to friends. I buy them their own copy.

[Sylvia · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is both delightful and entertaining at the same time. It promises to unravel the secret of happiness and how to be real in a world of fakes. I rarely read books twice but am keeping this one for that future occasion.

[Sandi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just read this a second time. A delight.