[.ca] The Chatham School Affair (ISBN 0553571931)

From Amazon.com:
In 1926 Henry Griswald was a kid, a student of the lovely and unusual Elizabeth Channing, who had recently arrived in his coastal Massachusetts village to teach art at a private school run by his father. Decades later, the people of Henry's village are still racked by guilt and troubled by uncertainty--who, or what, drove Miss Channing to madness and murder? Henry Griswald, narrator of The Chatham School Affair, holds the key. Using the same dark, brooding tone that permeated Breakheart Hill, Thomas Cook has crafted a disturbing yet entertaining psychological thriller.

Another good read from Mr. Cook:
Thomas Cook appears to use a similar theme in many of his psychological mysteries: the conflict between passion/impulse and the need to do good for others and society. His books also present the theme of what irrevocable damage can be done by a particular deed or behavior. His technique of telegraphing inward, working from the future to the present is very interesting as a literary technique. I enjoy his novels immensely. They are intelligent and page-turners.

The Chatham Affair:
This sensitively written book is one of Thomas Cook's finest. He introduces not only the characters with a flourish - but embraces the entire surroundings of the community, thus, creating an atmosphere conducive to relaxing. The reader enters a world of slower living in a beautiful location. I, myself, have frequented just such a place and have considered it to be the first step into heaven. In fact, in reading this, I was able to once again hear the ocean breeze rustling through the scrub pines. It created a certain nostalgia in my soul and reminded me, once more, that people are similiar - no matter what period in time they exist.

Excellent wind-up and ending, but not a great journey:
I read the book, and enjoyed it very much, but I loved the whole ending better than the body of the book.

A wonderful affair:
Thomas H. Cook's "The Chatham School Affair" is a different type of read from the sort I usually tackle, and my first novel authored by Cook. I'm an impatient fan of the suspenseful page-turner. Reading this novel was a refreshing read. I likened it more to literary fiction than the contemporary thriller or suspense/mystery. The prose is flawlessly written in a style so descriptive, I was moved with the characters' own emotions and felt surrounded in Cook's settings. The actual story moves brilliantly from past to present, focusing more on the events of the past. It is the narrator's recollection of a series of events that lead to a series of deaths in small-town Massachusetts, in the late 1920's. Despite the slower pace than that which I was used to, I found myself reading on, compelled to answer Cook's chief question, "What really happened at Black Pond that day?" The ending ties all together neatly and unexpectedly, though there were some descriptive passages in the middle that could have been eliminated or shortened.

A Five Act Tragedy:
Cook writes a ckassic five act trgedy with the bizarre twist in the fifth act that unravels the lives of everyone. A novel with its own rhythm, I would not recommend it to some who likes one seat readings. I compare it to Stoppard's "Rosencranz and Gildenstern Are Dead" in that a third party observes and ultimately misinterprets the actions of the main story and by doing so destroys everyone. A thoughtful piece that is worth investing aa few sittings to fully enjoy.