Hi friends, happy Friday, I hope you’re all well! Today I’m going to be posting my review of Leslie Crewe’s novel The Spoon Stealer.

This was longlisted for Canada Reads 2022.

The Spoon Stealer by: Leslie Crewe: A spur of the moment decision finds Emmeline joining a memoir-writing class where little does she expect to get anything out of it. Not only does she share the story of her family, but she finds a group of friends who are enthralled by her story and want more. This encourages her to not only continue to write her story, but to get back in contact with her estranged family. What ensues, she could have never imagined. This novel was full of so much heart; the reader wasn’t expecting too much from the story as this started kinda slow, but it sure did deliver. The storytelling was so well done; not only was this told in the present tense, but Crewe used the form of the main character writing a memoir to tell parts in the past tense. It was never confusing as to what tense the story was in because it was clearly marked and without the use of italics. As for the plot, it flowed well and was told in a way that was simple to understand and follow. It was such a captivating story full of so many ups and downs and unexpected moments as it spanned a lifetime without dragging or feeling boring. Crewe did a great job of being able to tell, not only the big moments in life, but also sprinkling in the smaller moments as well so the story didn’t feel overpowered by monumental milestones. The characters are what really made the story; they were so bold and memorable, especially the main one, Emmeline. She didn’t always have the right answer but she cared enough to keep trying and sticking her nose in where it didn’t belong. She was such a fun character to read about; the reader didn’t always agree with her motives, but in the end they still found themselves rooting for her. The secondary characters were just as memorable and really played such an integral role in the story; without them there would be no story. The addition of the dog, Vera, was also a great use of exposition; without having Emmeline think everything, having Vera to talk through things was very cleverly done. Overall, this was such an engrossing and heartwarming read.