The Braid

Author: Laetitia Colombani
Genre: Contemporary Fiction, Women's Fiction
Type: e-book
Source: NetGalley
Publisher: Atria Books
First Published: September 24, 2019
Opening Lines: Smita wakes with a strange feeling. Urgent, gentle, new: butterflies in her stomach. Today is the day she will remember her whole life. Today, her daughter will go to school.

Book Description from GoodReads: In this unforgettable international bestseller, three women from very different circumstances around the world find their lives intertwined by a single object and discover what connects us—across cultures, across backgrounds, and across borders.

In India, Smita is an untouchable. Desperate to give her daughter an education, she takes her child and flees her small village with nothing but resourcefulness, eventually heading to a temple where she will experience a rebirth.

In Sicily, Giulia works in her father’s wig workshop, the last of its kind in Palermo. She washes, bleaches, and dyes the hair provided by the city’s hairdressers, which is now in short supply. But when her father is the victim of a serious accident, she discovers that the company’s financial situation is dire. Now she must find a way to save her family’s livelihood.

In Canada, Sarah is a successful lawyer and twice-divorced mother of three children whose identity is wrapped up in her work. Just as she expects a big promotion, her life is shattered when she’s diagnosed with cancer.

A moving novel of hope and renewal, The Braid is a celebration of womanhood and the power of connection and perseverance.

My Rating: 3.5 stars

My Review: I was drawn to this book by its stunning cover art and its premise. This is a story that weaves brief moments in the lives of three women as they confront obstacles, discrimination and restrictions despite their differences in social class, socio-economic status, culture and country.

The story focuses on three women who each show strength as they attempt to rise above what life has thrown at them: Smita, an 'untouchable' in India's lowest caste, Giulia a wig maker in Sicily and Sarah, a corporate lawyer in Montreal. This was an engaging read but I wasn't surprised to learn that the author is also a screenwriter. Its writing had a different feel - a short story vibe, if you will, that introduces women's issues and characters but not a lot of depth was given to either. These stories are loosely tied together with an abrupt, slightly far-fetched ending. This was a good read, but not the wow read I was expecting.

Overall, I enjoyed this brief journey through the lives of these three women who are bonded by their tenacity and perseverance despite the obstacles that life throws in their paths. This is a quick, engaging read that will open some readers' eyes to cultures and issues they may not be aware of and will provoke excellent discussion.

Disclaimer: My sincere thanks to Simon and Schuster Canada for providing me with a complimentary digital copy of this title in exchange for my honest review.