Absolutely spellbinding…Warm-hearted, thoughtful, funny, and yet deeply poignant.” – Celia Anderson, author of 59 Memory Lane I received a complimentary digital copy of this novel from One More Chapter/ HarperCollins UK via NetGalley at my request, for my own reading enjoyment and the writing of this review. Fictionophile’s OCTOBER 2023 #BookHaul #Bookbloggers #ForthcomingTitles #TBR #AnticipatedReads October 31, 2023 The lead character, Janice, is the key to this eclectic cast of characters and she is superb. Quiet and unassuming, ‘just a cleaner’, who goes about her everyday life gathering other peoples stories. I simply adored Janice - she is pivotal not only to the other sub stories sprinkled throughout but also to the great life lesson in finding your very own story. After studying history at university, I moved to London to work in advertising. However, in my spare time I studied floristry at night school and eventually opened my own flower shop. I soon came to appreciate that flower shops offer a unique window into people’s stories and eventually I began to photograph and write about this floral life in a series of non-fiction books. Later, I continued my interest in writing when I founded my fountain pen company, Plooms.co.uk.

The Keeper of Stories by Sally Page | Goodreads

We are introduced to our lead, Janice. A cleaner who goes about her days working within the houses for her regulars. Janice loves her regular clients; apart from one couple, “Mrs YeahYeahYeah” & “Mr NoNoNotNow”. Most of her regulars know nothing about her and Janice continues to listen & collect their stories. Never asking for more, never sharing her own. Her husband knows very little about her and is so self-absorbed that Janice feels she isn’t seen. Blending in, Janice likes it this way. Until one day, she doesn’t. I remember being told the craft of simple writing begins with short sentences because you learn to get the message across in fewer words in a way that is succinct and direct. The problem with the book style is the sentences were all good practice, in theory, but they did not flow, felt disconnected and refrained from describing anything. So it was difficult to get in the mood of the book. This is a wonderful story and beautifully written, It’s an extremely easy read and one that you will not want to put down. Thus begins the narrative, effectively capturing the personality of lead character Janice, a woman in her late 40s who works as a cleaner in other people’s homes. Janice relishes others' stories and has a fondness for collecting them, not for gossip but to feel like she's part of their stories and gets to know them better. When she gets a new job cleaning for Mrs. B, a shrewd and formidable lady in her 90s, Janice finally meets someone who wants to know her (Janice’s) story and what she’s hiding beneath that effective cleaner façade. Will Janice share the story that she has kept buried for so long?

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when you are a child, as you don’t ever think of yourself as young. You are just you, and will take up guilt and responsibility without noticing that they are far too large for you and that they are really things an adult should be wearing.” There are some fascinating characters in the book, almost all of whom are Janice’s clients or their family members. There’s Fiona, a grieving widow, and her teenaged son Adam who is still learning to face life without his father. There’s Geordie Bowman, a rich and famous opera singer with a generous heart. There’s Mrs. YeahYeahYeah and her husband Mr. NoNoNotNow, thus named by Janice for their catchphrase. But no character is as wonderful as their fox terrier Decius. The way the author has brought Decius to life is so brilliant, you won’t help but fall in love with him and his f-bombs. ( Oh yeah, a dog who cusses! 😂) Janice herself is pretty well-sketched, what with her love for books and her constant worries about things both great and small. She comes across as a really interesting character. The characters are well rounded and developed. Janice is so lovely but has a devastating past that controls her, along with her waste of space husband. Euan is a bus driver who looks like a geography teacher; he is kind and caring and likes Janice. Adam, a twelve-year-old who has recently lost his dad to suicide, is heart-breaking, his pain is evident, and he needs to lash out and then learn to live his best life.

The Keeper of Stories | Sally Page | 9780008453503 | NetGalley The Keeper of Stories | Sally Page | 9780008453503 | NetGalley

Janice is a quite woman who would not stand out in a crowd. Not because she's unimportant but because that's the way she wants to be ,she wants to fade into the shadows and not bring attention to herself. Janice is a cleaner, a cleaner who visits lots of houses cleaning and collecting their stories. She now has a whole library of stories inside her head tore tell. The book wasn’t what I was expecting, but it was well written. It makes you unable to put the book down until you’ve finished it. She wants to ask if he’s having an affair, but doesn’t know how to say it without sounding hopeful.”

BookBliss

This book is an immersive experience that left me feeling uplifted by its message of hope and resilience. Janice is a cleaner who collects stories. However, she doesn’t know her own worth. She doesn’t think she has her own story until she meets Mrs B. She finally learns her value and her own story and can choose to create her own story as she wishes.

The Keeper of Stories: The most charming and uplifting novel The Keeper of Stories: The most charming and uplifting novel

The greatest stories are never written down; they live inside the hearts and minds of those who tell them." I really enjoyed this book. I was drawn in by the beautiful cover and the title; the blurb intrigued me enough to request the title and I was not at all disappointed! Basically, this is a sweet book that means very well and has its moments of sunshine. But it could have been so much more had it been handled differently. I don’t know how I would have felt about this had I read it, but I know that the audiobook was certainly a wonderful way of getting to know this story. It tells the story of Janine, a cleaning lady who's through a lot in her life. And she collected stories on her way, some sad, some beautiful. The book is warm and joyful but dies not avoid difficult potentially triggering subjects like suicide and alcoholism.It approaches these areas with sensitivity which is never banal.This is not a sweet slushy book but one that wraps it’s sentiment in truthfulness and tendernessOdd as it may sound, it works!Janice is a cleaner, ‘an exceptional cleaner’ who, as she goes about her daily life, collects stories, other people’s stories, which she collates in her mind. She believes that it is only through people’s stories, you can really get to know someone.

The Keeper Of Stories | Wowsummary Summary: The Keeper Of Stories | Wowsummary

This is an absolutely enchanting book with the most wonderful characters. I wanted to be friends with all of them. Janice is a house cleaner for a variety of people and along the way to work on the bus and during her work she gathers stories that she overhears. She starts cleaning for Mrs B, a cantankerous and delightful woman who also likes to collect stories. Even better, Mrs B shares a story with Janice. As the book evolves we learn more about these characters lives and most importantly what makes Janice who she is. I listen to the quiet voices.” Janice stops and looks at him. “What do you mean?” “I figured out long ago that if I listen to the few people who shout at me, I am making them more important than they are. What they say will stay with me, upset me, and those loud voices will go on and on, even when the shouting has stopped. So instead I listen very carefully for the quiet voices - which is most people. The people who teach a perfect lesson with nobody knowing.” The cover is simply gorgeous. If they make all book covers so delightful, I’ll have a tough time stopping books from entering my TBR mountain. The people she cleans for are mainly rich and some high profile. One new client is the brusque Mrs B, the mother of the one she refers to as “Mr No, No, Not Now” his wife “Mrs Yeah, Yeah, Yeah” the only saving grace is their dog a fox terrier called Decius. Cleaner Janice knows that it is in people's stories that you really get to know them. From recently-widowed Fiona and her son Adam; to opera-singing Geordie; and the awful Mrs "YeahYeahYeah" and her fox terrier, Janice has a unique insight into the community around her. When Janice starts cleaning for Mrs B - a shrewd woman in her nineties - she finally meets someone who wants to hear her story. But Janice doesn't have a story to share. Mrs B is no fool and knows there's more to Janice than meets the eye. What is Janice hiding?

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Geordie– a famous opera singer who, aptly, hails from Newcastle. He admires Janice both as his cleaner, and as a woman. Mrs B is my favourite character; she is a grumpy, old and wise ex-spy who doesn’t initially want a cleaner but soon becomes firm friends with Janice. Her detestable son, Mr Nonono is horrid, and his wife, Mrs yesyesyes, is very annoying and no better than him. However, their dog, the cursing fox terrier, Decius, is brilliant. I love how Janice reads his expressions and thoughts. The Keeper of Stories is a superb book - brilliant in fact - one to certainly treasure. I found it to be beautifully written with such heartfelt emotion across a wide cross selection of themes and characters. I simply love the concept of collecting stories whilst unknowingly unraveling one kept so close to your own heart. Sally has penned an intelligent yet thoughtful book that is sure to endear itself to many readers. The Keeper Of Stories is a fantasy novel by author Emily Rodda. It follows the story of two young children, Max and Emilia, who are taken away to the magical realm of Deltora. The realm is filled with strange creatures, magical powers, and untold mysteries.