Book info

• Title The Peculiar Life of a Lonely Postman
• Author Denis Thériault
• Year 2005
• Genre Contemporary

Secretly steaming open envelopes and reading the letters inside, Bilodo has found an escape from his lonely and routine life as a postman. When one day he comes across a mysterious letter containing a single haiku, he finds himself avidly caught up in the relationship between a long-distance couple who write to each other using only beautiful poetry. He feasts on their words, vicariously living a life for which he longs. But it will only be a matter of time before his world comes crashing down around him.

Thoughts

A short tale of a postman in Montreal who gets caught up in a twist of fate, after intercepting the post that he should be delivering straight away. He becomes obsessed with one particular set of correspondence which all takes place in haiku and the fallout is incredible.

I enjoyed the build up to the story, the gradually building obsession, and I couldn’t see how it was all going to shake out. Once it did, once the twisting nature of the entire thing became clear, I loved it even more.

It’s exquisite in the detail, and although haikus aren’t my favourite form of poetry, it’s hard not to get swept up in them along with the protagonist.

Rating: 4 / 5