A Hundred Small Lessons is a delightful story illustrating how many small decisions can affect our lives in significant ways. There is really not a plot, yet this book is a nice read. I recommend it if you have just finished a very intense read to give you a pleasant breather.

With a good premise, I had high hopes for this book, but it just never really grabbed me. I found it slow and a bit hard to follow as the author switched abruptly between time frames and narrators. I kept waiting for the “there it is moment”, but we never quite got there. I really wanted to like it....unfortunately, I did not.

This is a lovely, quiet book. Readers looking for action and adventure should look elsewhere; but readers who enjoy a sensitive and thoughtful book will love this. I admit it was very slow going through much of the book and I seriously thought about abandoning it - - but I can never do that and I'm glad I didn't. The book is beautifully written with interesting characters and a feeling of 'real life'. And just as our real lives mostly go day to day without much out of the ordinary, so was this book. It's this very ordinariness though, that makes this story special.

I loved the ending!!

Elsie and Lucy alternately narrate this wonderful novel of two women in Brisbane. Their lives intersect when Lucy moves into Elsie's home when Elsie can no longer live there alone. On the surface, they're very different, not least because they are so far apart in age and the externals of their lives but underneath, they have a common human experience. Every family and every marriage has its ups and downs. These two share more than a few. This is a quiet book- it doesn't move quickly and it can be slow but it was a rewarding read. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. I especially appreciated the opportunity to read an Australian author.

20th/21st century Australia. A dual narrative told from the perspective of two women living in the same house; decades apart. The struggles of being a wife and a mother are the central nerves of the story and it had a tone that is similar to other women 's fiction authors like Kristin Hannah and Fern Michaels. There certainly was an endearing quality to it and it had a fairly decent ending.

really had trouble getting into this. the narrative jumps around too much for me.

Lucy, Ben and Tom decide to settle down in Brisbane and find an older cottage for sale. The cottage was sold by 90 year old Elise's son and daughter after she fell. They moved her into a home not far from the cottage. Elise and Lucy narrate the story in alternating chapters. At first I found this a little confusing but after I got all the characters straighten out I was ok. The house is happy with the new little family and seems to share memories with Lucy. I enjoyed the story and was happy how the circle came 360.

This book called to me with its story of a new mother starting over in a new house while the woman who had lived there for sixty years is learning to let go of the life she had. Having moved so often, settling into a new place and home, I connected to the story right away.

This is a book that delves underneath the surface of a life, past the mundane externals to hopes and dreams and fears, to memories and how they are skewed over time, and to the losses that come with age.

It is a story of mothers and daughters, of expectations and the misunderstandings that drive them apart. And of fathers who, amazed, suddenly realize everything has changed and that a child can turn their life upside down with love. And all the lessons that we learn about who we are and who we thought we were.

Author Ashley Hay was pregnant when she and her husband moved from Sydney to Brisbane, Australia. She found herself in a world where the landscape itself was alien as was her new role as mother. This influenced her to explore the theme of motherhood in her new novel, "imagining one woman (Lucy Kiss) arriving in motherhood, as another woman (Elsie Gormley) prepared to leave it."

Lucy, her husband Ben, and their child Tom have moved into Elsie's home of over sixty years. Elsie at age 89 had a fall and her children moved her into a senior home. Ben's work keeps him away, and Lucy becomes overwhelmed with motherhood's fears and concerns. She is curious about Elsie, hyer-aware of her legacy in the house, and she finds mementos left behind that give her a glimpse into Elsie's mysterious life. Lucy is convinced that Elsie, or someone, has been entering the house.

Elsie loved being a mother, putting other's needs first, but her daughter Elaine want a different life. And yet a young Elaine marries and has a child, her life choices chaffing like a manacle. The love of Elsie's life, Clem, never aspired to be more. Neither parent could help Elaine find her wings.

Scenes that allowed me into the character's inner lives stunned me, such as when Ben suddenly understands his wife's obsessive fears about protecting their child and when he thinks he sees an intruder in the house, his worst fears arising. I loved that Hay explored Clem, Ben, and Tom as well as the women.

The title of the novel comes from a poem that Lucy had once read to Ben, and reads to Tom, The Story by Michael Ondaatje:

For his first forty days a child
is given dreams of previous lives.
Journeys, winding paths,
a hundred small lessons
and then the past is erased.

I think that Hay's novel will be appreciated by readers who enjoy connecting with characters and the slow revelations that come with experience.

I received a free ebook from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for a fair and unbiased review.

It would be easy to simply describe this book as "charming" and be done with it. It definitely is a charming story, but it deserves much more than that as a review.

A Hundred Small Lessons is the story of a home and the women who shared it. They didn't live there together; but they definitely shared it in their lives and in different ways.

Elsie Gormley and her husband built their life in the Brisbane home and raised their daughter and son there. We learn of Elsie's and Clem's romance and their sweet love as they married and lived here, a little of their children's lives and their relationships with their parents, and how life can thrill and also disappoint. We also see how love and life keep going after the death of a long-time spouse.

We meet Lucy Kiss and her husband Ben, who move into the home after Elsie falls and must be moved to a care center. Lucy is uncomfortable in the home, always believing it still belongs to Elsie, but Brisbane is where Ben spent his childhood, and they have come here to make a life.

This is just a sweet story, nothing dramatic or too deep about it, but it touches on real feelings, insecurities and the need that people have for a place of their own. There are some nice little twists or coincidences in the book that have no real impact on the story itself, other than to make it even more interesting and add a little spark.

I truly enjoyed this sweet and sensitive book, and I thank NetGalley and Atria Books for an ARC of this novel in exchange for my honest review.

I hate writing bad reviews.... but this book was so dull.....I could hardly keep my concentration while reading.
I’m sorry..... it just wasn’t good

A Hundred Small Lessons by Ashley Hay was a beautiful story of home, of family - of husbands and wives, mothers and their children.    Each of the characters was so fully developed I felt I knew them.   Not only them but also the town they called home.   Brisbane was brought to life, complete with it's history of floods, familiar suburbs, street names and buildings, the flora and fauna, and descriptions of the weather.  

The two main characters, Elsie and Lucy were delightful and I had a soft spot for each of them.   Within minutes of starting the book I'd fallen for Elsie and soon after meeting Lucy she worked her way into my heart.     Elsie Gormley is an elderly lady when we first meet her.   She's had a fall which results in her being removed, against her will, from the home she's lived in for 63 years.   It's where she raised her children and grandchildren.    It's  the home she shared with beloved husband Clem.      Lucy Kiss and her husband Ben have moved from Melbourne with their one year old son Tom.   They've  purchased Elsie's home and are trying to make it their own.      As Elsie reminisces we learn of her love for husband Clem and her children,  and we are familiarised with her life (and lifestyle) over the decades.     Meanwhile, as Lucy struggles to settle into her new life in Brisbane, of finding her feet as a mother, she finds comfort in imagining a friendship with Elsie. 

 I felt personally connected to Lucy's story.   Like her, my partner and I moved to Brisbane from Melbourne when our daughter was one.    Ashley Hay captured pefectly the joys and struggles of motherhood,  the powerful -sometimes overwhelming- feelings of protectiveness towards our children, the challenges of settling into a new home, and the sadness of growing old and frail, of relinquishing a much loved home.   I'm so very happy to have read this book and thank the publisher Atria Books and NetGalley for this digital ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced reader's copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. This is a story of an old woman and a young woman whose lives intersect as a result of inhabiting the same house. This is a quiet book exploring the feelings and emotions of life. It's a beautiful story, but it moved along rather slowly.

I have discovered that many books that I have so enjoyed aren’t ones that are fast-paced, action-packed, overly dramatic or emotional. The novels that have affected me the most are the ones about every day people living their lives the best that they can, resisting being overcome by challenges and embracing their joys and friendships they made along the way. A Hundred Small Lessons by Ashley Hay is just such a book. There are 3 main characters in this book Elsie, Lucy and the house that they shared, albeit not together.

Elsie is an elderly woman living alone. Her health is failing, and after a fall, Elsie’s children move her into a care facility. The house she loves, where she celebrated a happy marriage and raised two children, is sold to Lucy, her husband Ben and their infant son, Tom. Both stories are told with beauty and grace, and despite struggles, they describe lives well lived. I simply loved it. 4 1/2 stars.

3.5 stars rounded up.

A lot of people live their lives quietly, some marry and have children, some don't, and some may live in the same house for most of their lives . But even quiet lives are not without the daily struggles - coping with change , with loss, experiencing changing relationships, questioning the things they do - all of the things that reflect the human condition. So many novels seem to focus on the chaos of dysfunctional families ; it’s nice to read one that is without the drama of dysfunction.

The story is told from the alternating perspective of Lucy who has just moved into a lovely little house in Brisbane with her husband and baby boy, and Elsie the woman who lived there for over 60 years . In many ways It’s about self discovery as life changes . For Lucy , becoming a wife and mother, settling in a new place . The reminisces of Elsie reflect the same in her earlier years, but for Elsie it’s losing her independence, her memory at times and her home when she is not able to live on her own that is the focus. Some lovely passages about Elsie and her house . (This quote are from the prepublication copy so may be subject to change , but I just wanted to include a little of how much this meant to Elsie.)

"They had a long chat, Elsie Gormley no this house, more than sixty years of it. It had witnessed all her tempers, all her moods, and usually improved them. It held her voice, her husband's, her children's, and now their children's in turn..."

There’s not much of a plot here, not much of any real action here , just some lovely characters who move through life , sometimes feeling as if they are on shaky ground, but ultimately with grace . A short read that was an enjoyable way to spend part of my weekend. Sometimes I just need a good, quiet story about people carrying on with their lives, seeking love and happiness and belonging.

I received an advanced copy of this book from Atria through NetGalley.

I loved this book! It is a beautiful story about two amazing women and one amazing house. Elsie lived in the house first but when she had a fall that landed her into a nursing home Lucy and her husband move into the house. These two are amazing and I adore how their lives echoed so much yet taking place at two different times.
Ashley Hay did an amazing job with this book! I mean her writing was so poetic and the storyline I could of read forever! The enormous heart in this book gives me hope in a world that is currently so filled with hate. You must read A Hundred Small Lessons because will learn a hundred small lessons before you are done! I can not wait to read more from Ashley!

A HUNDRED SMALL LESSONS WRITTEN BY ASHLEY HAY

This beautiful story about two different women who inhabit the same house that comes alive as a character in itself. It's lovely prose is written poetically throughout the novel. I fell in love with the characters and the echos of the house. Elsie and Lucy both live in the same house. Elsie fell down in her house and goes to live in a nursing home. Lucy moves into Elsie's house with her husband.. The setting takes place in Brisbane. i really enjoyed this novel and highly recommend it. The writing flows seamlessly.

Thank you to Net Galley, Ashley Hay and Atria for providing me with my digital copy in exchange for a fair and honest review.

4.5 Stars

”If these old walls,
If these old walls could speak
Of things that they remember well,
Stories and faces dearly held,
A couple in love
Livin' week to week,
Rooms full of laughter,
If these walls could speak.”
“If These Walls Could Speak” – lyrics by Jimmy Webb

It was on the shortest day of 2010, early on that winter morning when Elsie fell. She lay on the carpet watching the sun as it began to peek through the door. The pattern of the light reflected by the kitchen floor. She watched the sun move across the sky that day through the windows of her home, from the kitchen to the bathroom, her bedroom to the sunroom. She ran through memories of the days when Clem was still alive, and their twins’ tiny feet and voices echoed off the walls. More than two decades had passed since Clem had passed, but she could still feel his presence, their childrens’ presence as she looked around her home, listening, feeling the creaking noises of their home, offering comfort to her.

”If these old halls,
Hallowed halls could talk,
These would have a tale to tell
Of sun goin' down and dinner bell,
And children playing at hide and seek
From floor to rafter,
If these halls could speak.”
“If These Walls Could Speak” – lyrics by Jimmy Webb

More than sixty years she’d lived there, the house was a part of her, but more than that, it was a part of them. All of them. It held all their voices, thoughts, regrets, their joys, their tears and sorrows, all the love they shared. All those years.

She’s only in the hospital just long enough to fix her up, and she’s grateful to go home, only it’s not to her home where she is transferred, she refers to it as a “respite” home when her son Donnie comes to visit, handing her papers to sign about people she doesn’t know, had never heard of. Ben Carter and Lucy Kiss. Perhaps they are tenants while she’s here mending, she thinks.

”If these old fashioned window panes were eyes,
I guess they would have seen it all -
Each little tear and sigh and footfall,
And every dream that we came to seek
Or followed after,
If these walls could speak.” “If These Walls Could Speak” – lyrics by Jimmy Webb

Lucy and Ben spent weeks stripping and painting, and moving their things into the house. Slowly she begins to think of this house as home, as their home, the home where their one year-old son would grow up. Still, in her mind it is Elsie’s house, as well. She finds small traces of her left behind. Doilies, ones Elsie had embroidered with violets, forget-me-knots, roses, tiny cutwork shapes hand stitched, so many pieces. Elsie’s presence still inhabits the house, their home, at least for Lucy. She senses her, feels her near at times. Ben is much too sensible for such thoughts and feelings.

”They would tell you that I owe you
More than I could ever pay.
Here's someone who really loves you;
Don't ever go away.
That's what these walls would say.”
“If These Walls Could Speak” – lyrics by Jimmy Webb

Ben has his new job, that occupies his thoughts, a new position, a new office. Lucy has their son Tom to keep her busy, and their home, and the garden. But she can’t seem to shake the intermittent feelings of Elsie. Sometimes she thinks she catches a glimpse of her, like a watery reflection that disappears with the drop of a small pebble. Little things she sees, hears, those almost glimpses of movement.

This is life, the passing of time, years go by, and people come into our lives only to drift away again, or come into our lives and stay. A child, a young couple with a lifetime ahead of them, an elderly woman with a lifetime not quite behind her. A home they have both lived in and loved. Lives shared from birth to marriage to motherhood, from becoming a widow and living out another lifetime beyond. Lessons taught and lessons hopefully learned. No two lives are the same, but we share ourselves as we go through this world, and hopefully we leave a trace of that at the end of the day, a hundred small lessons learned.

”They would tell you that I owe you
More than I could ever pay.
Here's someone who really loves you;
Don't ever go away.

That's what these walls would say.”
“If These Walls Could Speak” – lyrics by Jimmy Webb


Pub Date: 28 Nov 2017


Many thanks for the ARC provided by Atria Books

Great story that is so relatable. Very good character development!

Ashley Hay brings to light A Hundred Small Lessons with warmth, love and hope.
It touches your soul with the simplicity of life lessons that make each day precious.