On the Shelf: The Age of Hope

THE AGE OF HOPE | DAVID BERGEN | HARPERCOLLINS CANADA | 2012

Born in 1930 in a small town outside Winnipeg, beautiful Hope Koop appears destined to have a conventional life. Church, marriage to a steady young man, children - her fortunes are already laid out for her, as are the shiny modern appliances in her new home. All she has to do is stay with Roy, who loves her. But as the decades unfold, what seems to be a safe, predictable existence overwhelms Hope. Where - among the demands of her children, the expectations of her husband and the challenges of her best friend, Emily, who has just read The Feminine Mystique - is there room for her? And just who is she anyway? A wife, a mother, a woman whose life is somehow unrealized?

The Age of Hope is a quiet book. Some books scream out loud and force you to turn pages like your fingers are on fire. Others allow you to take your time and really process every word. David Bergen's story about Hope - a woman who is unable to find happiness no matter how much she tries - brings up questions of identity, family, and health.

This story can be fairly upsetting. As Hope grows older, things don't exactly go as planned. You'll read about her failed attempts to make her life better and you can feel her boredom and isolation through the pages. However, Hope's life starts to focus on things outside of herself. She slowly moves away from selfishness and learns to let her children take centre stage in life.

I'm not sure if anyone would find Hope to be a likeable character. She's whiny. She's unhappy. She's hopelessly optimistic. Still, I couldn't stop caring as I read. I wanted to learn more about her and understand why things weren't working out. The thing is, life isn't always what you want it to be. Events happen that are outside of our control and, just as Hope goes through that harsh realism, we also need to learn that lesson.

I struggled to empathize with Hope, but that may be because of the age difference between myself and the character. When the novel begins, Hope is around my age - and the story quickly progresses through her life. I don't have children myself, so it was difficult to understand her reaction to her children and the things they make her feel, but it's always nice to put yourself in someone else's shoes for a little while. Even though my life experience is completely different from the events of the book, David Bergen's writing led to some important contemplation on my part.