TINMAN by Sarah Winman

This would have to be one of the most beautiful books I have read in recent times. An exquisitely written bittersweet and divine story about friendship, love and loss. Three characters - Ellis, Michael and Annie. Now only Ellis is still alive. It is 1996, a town in Ireland. Ellis is 46, living on his own, working at the local car assembly plant. He had been married to Annie, who five years earlier had died in a car accident. Life stopped for Ellis. He is alone, and lonely. He thinks about his youth, his childhood. An only child, he was a quiet boy, a gifted drawer, encouraged by his mother to make something of himself. Ellis finds friendship in Michael, a boy his own age who comes to live with his grandmother. They are inseparable, Ellis' quiet personality a perfect match for Michael's joyful and energetic one. Young boys grow into young men, and their relationship grows too into one of love and intimacy.

Life interferes, the two are separated, Ellis meets Annie with whom he falls head over heels in love. They marry, and Micheal magically re enters Ellis' life, the three of them creating the most perfect friendship ever. Annie fully understands the relationship between the two men she loves more than anything and yet is never threatened by it. Perfection. Life interferes again, hence Ellis being on his own.

The story is narrated in two parts - the first half by Ellis, and the second by Michael. And at the centre of the story is Dora, Ellis' mother who also loved Michael and welcomed him into her son's life. Not easy in 1960s Ireland. Dora is not part of the story for long, but her influence and love for Ellis is a constant, as was her love for a painting of Van Gogh's Sunflowers, won in a raffle, symbolising life and beauty.

This book was a joy to read. Less than 200 pages, it is a love story that you never want to end.