Lurking at the edge of the Norwegian wood
I cower from my evil mother.
Manipulative, domineering, demeaning.
The years of her house rules seemed interminable.
How true; at the seaside nobody hears you scream.
Believe me, I tried!
Like many I learnt to merely exist
Learnt that in the shadows we breathe.
My escape was a winding road
No dash to a happy place
Rather the sheltering of my soul.
‘Life is like a bowl of cherries, Maggie,’
my one and only friend told me.
‘That’s the problem, we have no cherries,’
I snapped back.
Poor Amy, she’d tried. She nearly succeeded.
Books became my saviour.
The lilac notebook in the lost bookshop,
Filled with wise musings and inspiration was
a driving force for my escape.
Then came Leo.
I discovered him between maps and politics
A gentle invitation of coffee followed.
He saw me before I saw myself.
Never believe the lies we told, he said.
So many lies I told myself.
His friendship was a terrible kindness
One that crushed my world, the terrifying duality of my mother and I.
Did I tell you, she was evil?
The visit to the cafe was more than coffee, it was my freedom.
The vanishing of Margaret Small, the old me, was easy.
Learning to walk in someone else’s shoes as Maggie Stolz, finding my true self, was gruelling.
It was from here where the story starts, where my life truly began.
In the ensuing days, months and years, I abandoned the family tree.
I step out of the darkness of the trees and at last realise there is a light that never goes out – the light within me.
In the five years since meeting Leo I am at last celebrating this beautiful life!
© Annika Perry, January 2024
The above story celebrates some of the 80 books I read in 2023 and it’s fun to create a short narrative featuring a few of the titles. The book titles included are in the list below.
- Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami
- My Evil Mother by Margaret Atwood
- House Rules by Jodi Picoult
- At The Seaside Nobody Hears You Scream by Janet Gogerty
- The Shadows We Breathe by Sarah Brentyn
- A Winding Road by Miriam Hurdle
- Happy Place by Emily Henry
- The Sheltering by Khaya Ronkainen
- Life is Like a Bowl of Cherries by Sally Cronin
- The Lilac Notebook by Carol Notebook
- The Lost Bookshop by Evie Woods
- The Lies We Told by Diana Chamberlain
- A Terrible Kindness by Jo Browning Wroe
- More than Coffee by Lauren Scott
- The Vanishing of Margaret Small by Neil Alexander
- In Someone Else’s Shoes by Jojo Moyes
- Where The Story Starts by Imogen Clark
- The Family Tree by Sairish Hussain
- In The Five Years by Rebecca Serle
- There is Light the Never Goes out by David M Barnett
- This Beautiful Life by Katie Marsh
Below are images of all the books I’ve had the joy of reading last year! I just made it over the finishing line of the Goodreads Reading Challenge in 2023 and this year I am reducing my sights to 52 books!
Wishing you all a New Year blessed with good health, happiness and light – may 2024 be filled with creativity!
Annika Perry 
powerful poetry, I wonder how much of it is true? My mother was like that …
Kate, my heart aches for you to have a mother like this. I wrote this as a pure piece of fiction based on book titles I’d read over the years. I hope you have found happiness and peace now.
I am very fortunate,I realise from your comment and a few others here, in that my mother is truly wonderful and we are the best of friends. I am blessed indeed. Hugs xx
you comment clearly shows that you’ve not read my posts Annika … take care!
I rejoice in your good fortune but I also feel others need to know that not all mothers are loving 😦
No, I haven’t seen those post. Yes, it is good to share here and I have learnt a lot about how different some mother’s can be – not anything I’d experienced in my or my friends lives. I have shared quite a bit about my mother’s and my travels etc on my blog, especially to Florida and Sweden.
Wow, Annika! Powerful and intriguing.
I wish you good health, lots of writing, and happy times in 2024.
Cynthia, thank you so much and wonderful you feel this about the story! Wishing you likewise a happy, healthy and creative New Year! hugs xx ❤️
I enjoyed reading it! ☺️
That’s great! Thank you!😀
How creative! Glad to know about a fellow voracious reader!
Thank you! I’ve loved reading ever since young and it’s fun to share about books here!
Dear Annika, Thank you for sharing your comprehensive list. I read your fun, creative story a few times. I know I say it often, how your writing gives me goosebumps…the ultimate compliment in my books…how my body reacts before my mind catches up.💕 I bookmarked this post. And back to you, Annika, wishing you a wonderful 2024! I look forward to staying connected. xoxo Erica
Erica, bless you for your wonderful comment and wow, it means so much how you enjoy my writing. It is so true that ‘goosebumps’ is the ultimate accolade to a writer; we want our words to reach in to the reader, touch their soul and become involved with the story. Thank you so much and I appreciate that you bookmarked the post to return to re-read! Likewise wishing you a wonderful & harmonious New Year filled with adventures,writing and creativity! Hugs xx ❤️
Wonderful. The light within you will always shine
Bless you for your lovely comment! 😀
What a marvellously creative way of honouring all those fabulous reads last year. Well done Annika. I hope you have another wonderful year, filled with all your heart desires. Happy reading and happy new year my friend. 💗🙏
Miriam, thank you so much and it did feel like I was honouring them again a bit, at one stage I felt somewhat guilty for the ones left unmentioned and wondered whether it would be possible to include all – luckily I never even tried this! 😀 Thank you so much for your lovely wishes for the New Year and likewise wishing you and your guy a wonderful 2024 filled with peace, adventure and always harmony & joy! Much love xx ❤️