Wow! I really believe The Bones of Barry Knight may be one of the most powerful books I have ever read. Although a fairly short novel (just over 250 pages), every word is thought-provoking and full of meaning.
The second novel from author Emma Musty, The Bones of Barry Knight is a contemporary novel focusing on an a refugee camp in an unamend country. It is VERY CONTEMPORARY as it depicts the impact of war on everyday people. It is raw and unflinching. It is also full of poignant beauty.
I really believe this is a novel that will stay with me.
Intimately told from the point of view of six very different characters, this is a book that delves into our flaws as individuals and our flaws as a society on a global scale. It is an extremely raw account that exposes ‘the systems and practices that lead to the persecution and sometimes even death, of people seeking safety.’
Each character is multi-layered with their own unique and very personal story. This includes Amanda, the CEO of the charity running the refugee camp, Barry the ageing rock star who has very lax morals and Omar, desperate to find his true authentic self, is reliving his grandfather’s history as a displaced individual. However it is Saleema, a child living in the refugee camp ‘trailing around with her Harry Potter book, dressed in someone else’s clothes, her jumper down to her knees, her taped on flip-flops‘ who really touches my heart. Her story of childhood innocence, friendship and survival in such a bleak setting is beautiful but also heart wrenching.
All these characters have very different lives, and their own reasons for being at the remote refugee camp. Yet as the tension in the novel grows, their fates collide until ultimately they all come together in such a poignant and powerful way to tell the world their united story. It is a story that we as a collective society should listen to.
The Bones of Barry Knight was published by Legend Press on Thursday 17 March 2022. Thank you to Olivia Le Maistre from Legend Press for inviting me to be part of the blog tour of this powerful novel.
To follow the blog tour, please see below.
