Book Review: Day For Night

Title: Day For Night

Author: Frederick Reiken

Year Published: 2010

Genre: Drama, General fiction

Day For Night will make you reflect on the purpose of the story told by the characters and their link to each other.

Every chapter is written in the view of a different character. Every character tells a specific story about their life. All the stories are small and feel insignificant but yet there’s a lingering importance surrounding it. Frederick Reiken links a tiny thread through all of these stories to bring the truth, which was lost, from the past back to the characters lives.

The main storyline is simple. A middle-aged woman, Beverly, decides to seek the truth of what happened to her father. Beverly, her mother and father fled Poland to Lithuania during World War II. Beverly and her mother managed to leave Lithuania and eventually found a life in America. He father was less fortunate, and had remained in Lithuania and is said to have died.

The majority of this book is based in 1984. The time line is hard to follow as everyone’s story starts at different times in their lives, therefore different years.

There are many different and unique characters in the book. All their stories, besides from coincidental meetings, did not seem to relate until further in the book. This novel is not straight forward. It requires some quiet thinking. It conveys how a stranger's life can be entwine with others who they have never met or spoken to. By the end, every time a chapter was finished, I would pause and reflect on what happened and how is it related to the main plot.    

This book does more than tell a story. It is a book that opens your mind to everything and everyone around you. The many possibilities that can or have occurred with your unintended interaction.

I only had one small issue. With the number of characters in this book, it is difficult to conclude all their stories. Frederick Reiken has done a great job finishing them; however, there are two “loose ends”. These “loose ends” are not small either. They tell an interesting story and makes me beg the question “what happens in their story?”.

With a steady pace, this book will be enjoyed by those who, after reading, put the book down and “ponder” about the meaning behind it. It is not a light read but a deep thoughtful novel written by someone who takes care in telling a simple story through the interactions of many.   

Terri’s Rating: 2.5/5