A young girl walks in the woods alone. She knows the basic details of how she came to be, but longs to know more of who her father was before she existed.
On the walk back home through the dusk, she’s going to ask her father for the story of how he met her mother.
All she knows is that someone fell, and that everything beautiful began after.
Rebecca is an artist from France who is living in Athens. She meets George, an American, and while he’s in love with her, she can’t return his affection. Instead she falls in love with Henry, an archeologist working on a dig site outside of Athens. Through a coincidence, Henry runs into George – literally – and the three of them form an unlikely friendship. Rebecca, George and Henry are each fighting their own personal demons – being abandoned by a mother, alcoholism, the guilt of causing the accidental death of a baby brother. Then tragedy strikes when an earthquake levels Athens and Henry must find a way to cope with losing the love of his life. He spends 2 years flying around the world, spending little time in one place, until he ends up back in Athens and must confront his past in order to move on with his life.
Everything Beautiful Begins After is written in an unusual style and tone. Sentence fragments and staggered phrasing make the prose a challenge to follow at times, and may turn off some readers. While the first half of the book is told in the third person, mixed in with flashbacks, it switches to second person while Henry learns to deal with his loss. The final portion switches back to third person, signifying Henry having moved on.
Everything Beautiful Begins After is haunting and beautiful, with surprises thrown in that make you question what you thought you knew. Simon Van Booy is an author that’s not to be missed.
Nancy enjoys novels that take place in locations she can only dream about visiting. She writes about her 2 boys, books and life in Colorado at Life With My Boys and Books.
Dawn says
Having just finished this book this past week, I can heartily agree with your statement about the unique tone and writing style. At times, I felt a bit lost as a result, but I was repeatedly impressed by SVB’s way with words.
Jennifer says
It does sound very literary. Even the title hints at his way with words.
I like this kind of book, but I always try to alternate serious or literary books with something a little lighter.