Monica Wood – författare

"The perfect pick to really light a fire under my book club, and yours....A reminder that goodness, and books, can still win in this world." —New York Times Book Review

"A beautiful, big-hearted treasure of a novel." —Lily King

From the award-winning author of The One-in-a-Million Boy comes a heartfelt, uplifting novel about a chance encounter at a bookstore, exploring redemption, unlikely friendships, and the life-changing power of sharing stories.

Our Reasons meet us in the morning and whisper to us at night. Mine is an innocent, unsuspecting, eternally sixty-one-year-old woman named Lorraine Daigle…

Violet Powell, a twenty-two-year-old from rural Abbott Falls, Maine, is being released from prison after serving twenty-two months for a drunk-driving crash that killed a local kindergarten teacher.

Harriet Larson, a retired English teacher who runs the prison book club, is facing the unsettling prospect of an empty nest.

Frank Daigle, a retired machinist, hasn’t yet come to grips with the complications of his marriage to the woman Violet killed.

When the three encounter each other one morning in a bookstore in Portland—Violet to buy the novel she was reading in the prison book club before her release, Harriet to choose the next title for the women who remain, and Frank to dispatch his duties as the store handyman—their lives begin to intersect in transformative ways.

How to Read a Book is an unsparingly honest and profoundly hopeful story about letting go of guilt, seizing second chances, and the power of books to change our lives. With the heart, wit, grace, and depth of understanding that has characterized her work, Monica Wood illuminates the decisions that define a life and the kindnesses that make life worth living. 

"A deeply humane and touching novel; highly recommended for book clubs and fans of Shelby Van Pelt's Remarkably Bright Creatures." — Booklist

She may be 104 years old, but Ona Vitkus is on a mission and it''s all because of THE ONE-IN-A-MILLION-BOY...Monica Wood''s unforgettable novel about a boy in a million and the 104-year-old woman who saves his family is not to be missed by readers who loved THE UNLIKELY PILGRIMAGE OF HAROLD FRY, ELIZABETH IS MISSING or THE SHOCK OF THE FALL. ''A lovely, quirky novel about misfits across generations'' Daily Mail''A bittersweet story about finding friendship in the most unlikely of places'' Good Housekeeping. The story of your life never starts at the beginning. Don''t they teach you anything at school?So says 104-year-old Ona to the 11-year-old boy who''s been sent to help her out every Saturday morning. As he refills the bird feeders and tidies the garden shed, Ona tells him about her long life, from first love to second chances. Soon she''s confessing secrets she has kept hidden for decades.One Saturday, he doesn''t show up. Ona starts to think he''s not so special after all, but then his father Quinn arrives on her doorstep, determined to finish his son''s good deed. The boy''s mother is not so far behind. Ona is set to discover that even at her age the world can surprise you, and that sometimes sharing a loss is the only way to find yourself again.What readers are saying about ONE IN A MILLION BOY: ''Delightful, quirky and heart-warming''''A richly layered novel of hearts broken seemingly beyond repair and then bound by a stunning act of human devotion''''With heart-breaking and emotional moments intertwined with humour and love, THE ONE IN A MILLION BOY proves it''s never too late to make new friends''

ANY BITTER THING is a novel about how much we can and should forgive, by Monica Wood, the acclaimed author of THE ONE-IN-A-MILLION BOY. The perfect read for fans of Gail Honeyman''s ELEANOR OLIPHANT IS COMPLETELY FINE and Joanna Cannon''s THREE THINGS ABOUT ELSIE. ''If you liked THE SECRET LIFE OF BEES, try ANY BITTER THING'' GlamourAfter surviving a near-fatal accident, thirty-year-old Lizzy Mitchell faces a long road to recovery. She remembers little about the days she spent in and out of consciousness, save for one thing: she saw her beloved deceased uncle, Father Mike, the man who raised her until she was nine, when she was abruptly sent away.Though her troubled marriage and broken body need tending, Lizzy knows she must uncover the details of her accident - and delve into the events of twenty years ago, when whispers and accusations forced a good man to give up the only family he had.What readers are saying about ANY BITTER THING:''Another great story with wonderful characters''''This writer, with her exquisite prose, weaves a gripping and grace-filled story of redemption. I will go back to this amazing book again and again. It shines''''A beautiful story. The characters take on a life of their own. Pure human emotion, well written, very touching''

A heart-wrenching story collection from the acclaimed author of THE ONE-IN-A-MILLION BOY, Monica Wood. ERNIE''S ARK tells interconnected stories of a small town''s people, determined to survive... Perfect for those who love reading Anne Tyler, Joanna Cannon and Emma Healey. ''Loving character portraits... help us understand the human condition'' Boston GlobeAbbott Falls, Maine, a town once drenched with ordinary hopes and dreams, is now praying for a small drop of good fortune. Ernie Whitten - out of a job and tending to his ill wife - needs it more than most. Struck with sudden inspiration, Ernie builds a giant ark in his backyard. It is a work of art, a vessel to carry them both away, and a plea to God to spare Marie, come hell or high water.As the ark takes shape, the rest of the town carries on. There''s Dan Little, sent to fine Ernie for building the ark, who makes a significant discovery about himself. Francine Love is a precocious thirteen-year-old who longs to be part of a family. And CEO Henry John McCoy, an impatient man determined to be a good father to his twenty-six-year-old daughter. The people of Abbott Falls will try their best to hold their community together, against the fiercest of odds...What readers are saying about ERNIE''S ARK:''An astounding book. Built one piece at a time, one story on top of the next until the reader is left with a magnificent monument to its characters''''A gorgeous collection about the meaning of life, the beauty of the mundane, the quiet, day-to-day events that make up our lives and define who we are. The perfect book'' ''Monica Wood writes this series of interrelated short stories with heart and intelligence. Honest and heart-warming''

MY ONLY STORY is a moving, funny and bittersweet novel by Monica Wood, the acclaimed author of THE ONE-IN-A-MILLION BOY, sure to appeal to fans of Sarah Winman, Anne Tyler and Maggie O''Farrell. ''Wood''s command of voice holds a reader all the way through to the last page'' San Francisco Chronicle Rita Rosario has a gift, a way with people. She listens to them and really sees them for who they are - warts and all. Women, even men, come to Rita''s beauty shop for perms, town gossip, and makeovers of their very lives.John Reed first appears to Rita in one of her dreams. When they meet at a town gathering a few days later, she immediately offers him a haircut, and a heart. As they share stories, Rita helps John fill a void by reconnecting him to his only family - a young niece he nearly lost in a heart-breaking tragedy.While inspiring John out of loneliness and into reconciliation, Rita begins to come to terms with events in her past... and discovers things about herself she never realised, including her own intimate role in John''s unfolding story.What readers are saying about MY ONLY STORY:''Monica Wood is a beautiful writer and can convey complex emotions in the most beautiful and simple ways. The book stays with you long after you finish it, as do the characters''''An enchanting book. Wood''s mastery of the language creates beautiful, sometimes poetic prose. Her ability to express both human pain and human hope is very refreshing. This book is a treasure''''One of the best kept secrets of the literary world''

SECRET LANGUAGE by Monica Wood is a moving and compelling tale of two sisters as they reconnect, not to be missed by readers of Anne Tyler, Joanna Cannon and Sue Monk Kidd. ''Fiercely lyrical... [Wood] writes with sensitivity and intuitive insight about relationships coming apart and the walls people erect to keep others out'' Publishers Weekly As children, dragged around the country by semi-famous actor parents who could barely take care of themselves, sisters Faith and Constance had to rely on one another.As adults, though, they have drifted apart: Faith has children and a grounded domestic life - but hasn''t necessarily found unconditional love; whereas Constance, a flight attendant, is always searching for her true place in life.Then Isadora, the half-sister they never knew existed, makes her dramatic entrance into their lives. This crisis forces Faith and Constance into their long-forgotten childhood habits, and they begin to make their way back to one another and find a new way to be a family.What readers are saying about SECRET LANGUAGE:''So glad I discovered Monica Wood. Her language is gorgeous, her characters compelling, and she delicately describes the pain and joy of human relationships in a way we can all identify with''''Extremely well written and thought-provoking with outstanding character development'' ''A rare and affecting book that can create such heartfelt turmoil. Highly recommend for readers who love realistic stories about family life''

WHEN WE WERE THE KENNEDYS is a brilliant, award-winning memoir about the death of a father and the healing of a family, by Monica Wood, the acclaimed author of THE ONE-IN-A-MILLION BOY. Perfect for those who loved Cathy Rentzenbrink''s THE LAST ACT OF LOVE or Helen Macdonald''s H IS FOR HAWK. ''It''s a pleasure to linger with her elegant prose, keen eye and grace of thought'' Reader''s Digest ''Intimate but expansive ... A tender memoir of a very different time'' O, the Oprah Magazine 1963. The Wood family is much like their neighbours, all dependent on the fathers'' wages from the local mill. But when Dad suddenly dies on his way to work one April morning, Mum and the four deeply connected Wood daughters are set adrift.And then, come November - the family still overwhelmed by grief, the country shocked by the assassination of President Kennedy - Mum announces an unprecedented family road trip. Inspired by the televised grace of Jackie Kennedy, herself a new widow with young children, Mum and her girls head to Washington, DC, to do some rescuing of their own. WHEN WE WERE THE KENNEDYS is a funny, moving and imaginative memoir about how one family and one country, each shocked by the unimaginable, find the strength to move on.What readers are saying about WHEN WE WERE THE KENNEDYS: ''A beautifully written, thought-provoking book''''Filled with great love - of family, friends and the ability to bounce back even with many setbacks. Wood''s words are so beautiful they literally lift off the pages''''Compelling, profound, beautiful''