The Road Home by Rose Tremain

The Road Home by Rose Tremain is the story of Lev, an immigrant who arrives in London ill-prepared for his journey to another country to try and find work and send money back to his mother and daughter in his home country. We see Lev's experience from the kitchens of London's best restaurants to the fields where the food that was cooked in those kitchens was picked.  

I started this one a while ago as an audiobook and it just didn't really resonate with me, so I requested a physical copy from the library and it still didn't really resonate with me. I hesitate to tell all of you how long it took me to read this book, but let's just say that it was longer than my usual couple of days. 

I appreciate what Tremain is doing here. She's showing the contemporary immigrant experience through the eyes of an immigrant. But, hmmmm, I just never connected with Lev as a character. A borderline alcoholic who rapes a woman mid-book is not exactly the person I want to root for, to be honest. I actually sort of wanted the story from the point of view of the only female chef in the kitchen or Lev's mother or the lady Lev sat next to on the bus in the way into London. I mean, basically any female character would probably have been more interesting than Lev for me.

I also struggle with this book because you'll note that I have exactly ZERO lines of note here. I didn't think the writing was interesting or exciting or that Tremain had any new observations about the world. Don't misunderstand me, the writing was fine, but it wasn't noteworthy.  

So, all in all, meh. 3/5 stars

Things I looked up:

bilberry (page 10) - a plant that produces berries similar to blueberries; the dried fruit and leaves are used as medicine

astrakhan hat (page 16) - this is a hat made from a type of black cloth made from the wool of a young sheep with a very curly coat - this is probably what you think of when you think of a hat from Russia

Hat mentions: Lots of hats! I counted 14, including the above astrakhan hat. There was even a hatmaker in the book!  Woot.  

...Sam Diaz-Morant was become a famous name in the world of hat-making. Her youngest clients were Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie. (page 128)

This book was published in 2008. I love the idea that there is a milliner in the modern world. 

"But things are changing now, right? Women are smartening themselves up. Are hats coming back?"

Lev conjured up a street in Baryn or Glic. He saw women hurrying through the rain, clutching cheap, flimsy umbrellas or holding magazines over their hair. He couldn't see or imagine a single hat. (page 130)

I also really appreciated how Tremain used the hatmaker to allude to the differences between the immigrant and non-immigrant experience, as well as class. It was a clever little bit of importance for hats in the book and you know I love that.