Deafening by Frances Itani

I've finally finished reading "Deafening" after purchasing the book sometime in October. The book did not ask to be rushed, nor was strong enough to hold my interest for too long; yet I can happily reflect that it has been a generally good and worthwhile read.

 The main character in Deafening is a deaf girl called Grania, who grows up in the beginning struggling to fit in a family living in a hearing world. She has a talent for reading lips, and her grandmother Mamo encourages Grania to learn how to speak. Deafening is separated into five parts which allow for time skips and different themes. I found the first part was quite interesting, and enjoyed reading about Grania's family and Grania's childhood. Then came the second part of the book, and suddenly Grania has finished school and falls in love with a hearing man called Jim.

Too quick.

Grania grows up quite slowly at first, so it is rather strange that she is suddenly a woman and is in love. I liked the fact Grania was a strong character and very independent, so I was disappointed she was wooed so quickly. Jim on the other hand becomes more and more likeable in the book. From the second part onwards, he slowly becomes more and more interesting, as he joins WW1 and carries wounded soldiers on stretchers back and forth.

I understand that the book is a historical romance, but even so, romance shouldn't just happen like that, it should be developed. I think Frances Itani was keen on exploring deeper into the historical side of the genre, so goes into detail Jim's life during WW1, and his friends he works with. There is the emotion of fear, sadness and longing that Itani portrays well, but it's hard to believe that Grania can be so in love.

The finale of Deafening was probably where all the drama was waiting to orchestrate, and although it seemed quite rushed and sudden, the climax was overly well conducted. As the author's first novel, I feel that Deafening by Frances Itani is quite the impressive read.