Time to Let Go by Christoph Fischer

Good morning.  It is my pleasure to present to you a book written by the nicest man I know.  

Christoph Fischer has touched so many authors lives' making connections, reading their work supporting their endeavors that I for one, am not sure if he ever sleeps.  

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So let me present....

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Book blurb:

Time to Let Go is a contemporary family drama set in Britain. 

Following a traumatic incident at work Stewardess Hanna Korhonen decides to take time off work and leaves her home in London to spend quality time with her elderly parents in rural England. There she finds that neither can she run away from her problems, nor does her family provide the easy getaway place that she has hoped for. Her mother suffers from Alzheimers' disease and, while being confronted with the consequences of her issues at work, she and her entire family are forced to reassess their lives. 

The book takes a close look at family dynamics and at human nature in a time of a crisis. Their challenges, individual and shared, take the Korhonens on a journey of self-discovery and redemption.

I can bore you with the ISBN numbers and stuff but I wont.  What I will say upfront is this is a 10 * read.  

My review

This is truly a touching story.  Biddy, the sufferer of a disease that is taking not only her children, husband and memories is struggling to cope with the most basic and logical of everyday tasks.  Her daughter, after suffering a traumatic event at work returns home to hide from her own problems only to find her mothers state has worsened and her dad is not coping as well as he would have them believe.

It is Walter, Biddy's husband, father of three that touched me the most in this story.  He has imposed rules and regulations, certain must do's at certain times to keep Biddy within a routine to ease her through this struggle, Hannah appearing on the scene makes him doubt the sense of his regiment but soon it becomes apparent that as much as Walter is trying to ease Biddy's life, these routines are for his sake more than hers.  He loves his wife, cannot bear to lose more of her to this devastation and thus  sets these rules up to protect them both.  

I loved Walter and the end of the book with the culmination of the natural order of the world coming together in a less than dramatic effect to keep the story as real as it can be really shook me.  Walter lived for Biddy.  Without her, he simply gave in.  

This is a touching story told with so much empathy, sympathy and understanding that the reader is left with nothing but respect for an author so masterful at his craft.  

Excerpt

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Excerpt : The Newspaper

Hanna looked around the room for inspiration, but all she could think ofwas the tried and trusted: “Is there anything interesting in the newspaper?”

“Yes. Let me have a look,” her mother said, as she folded the newspaper back to the front page and scanned the article in front of her with intense concentration.

“Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg…” Biddy began, and read the entire article remarkably well, without any errors.

After finishing Biddy asked: “What is the Taliban?”

Walter shot his daughter a warning look and shook his head.

“Oh, they are politicians,” Hanna said vaguely. “A lot of people do not like them.”

“Ah, politics,” she replied. She hesitated for a moment then she went back to the paper.

“Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg …”

“Is everything ok with you?” Walter asked his daughter whispering so as not to disturb his wife’s reading.

“Oh yes, all good,” she nodded enthusiastically.

Walter turned away from the stove and looked at her intently.

“There’s something you’re not telling me. I’m not stupid!”

“There is nothing going on that you should be concerned about,” Hanna said, shifting in her seat. “You are doing a fantastic job looking after mother. Stick to that as your family duty. I can manage my life. I am 40 years old, for crying out loud.”

“Who is the Taliban?” Biddy interrupted.

“They are politicians,” Hanna repeated.

“What kind of politicians?”

“Not very nice ones,” Hanna replied. “A lot of people don’t like them.”

“Ah,” Biddy nodded, looking at the paper. Then she turned back to Hanna and asked “Who is it that the people don’t like?”

“The Taliban, Biddy.”

“Who is the Taliban?”

“They are politicians.”

“Hanna save yourself the effort, you are hardly going to teach her about world politics now,” Walter said, but Hanna ignored him.

“What kind of politicians?” Biddy asked again.

“You don’t need to worry about them,” Hanna put her comforting hand on her mother’s shoulder. “The government is dealing with them. They have no relevance to you or me.”

“Are you sure?” Biddy was shifting uncomfortably in her seat.

Hanna pressed harder on her mother’s shoulder.

“Quite sure.”

“Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg…”

“I admire your endurance,” Walter said, blatantly talking over his wife now from the stove. “If I were you I would just steer the conversation to something else. Why should she concern herself with the Taliban?”

“Why should she concern herself with anything these days?” Hanna shot back. “It doesn’t really matter what she engages with. As long as she interacts and asks questions I am glad for her.”

“You can only confuse her by talking about abstract things like that. Keep it simple.”

“I am not going to discourage her if she shows interest in something. I just want her to feel valued, surely that is worth a few repetitive moments.”

“We’ll see how you feel when you have done this for a week, or a month,” Walter said. “Don’t get me wrong, I love your patience.Just don’t burn yourself out.”

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Bio on the author.

Christoph Fischer was born in Germany as the son of a Sudeten-German father and a Bavarian mother. Not a full local in the eyes and ears of his peers he developed an ambiguous sense of belonging and home in Bavaria. He moved to Hamburg in pursuit of his studies and to lead a life of literary indulgence. After a few years he moved on to the UK where he is still resident today. 'The Luck of The Weissensteiners' is his first published work. "Sebastian" has been released in May 2013. He has written several other novels which are in the later stages of editing and finalisation.