I was sorry not to take to this book more.
It deals head on with such important topics - loss and grieving - and I wanted to like it more for its bravery. It manages to be whimsical with plenty of humour while addressing those subjects.
But I just didn’t take to the characters or the style or the action and had to skip through it to reach the end. My loss, I’m sure - I see many others have rated the book highly.
Many thanks to the Hodder & Stoughton and Netgalley for a copy of the book in return for an honest review.

Excellent is the best way to start, after reading and loving "the Keeper of Lost Things, was not sure what to expect but I was certainly not let down. Equally excellent, merging the lives of several people who appear to have nothing in common. Laughed, cried and empathized with all the characters. And totally held me to the end with some very surprising twists and turns. Looking forward the Ruth Hogan's next book.

A really good read with quirky characters and lots of twists and turns. Very emotional and deals with lots of issues including grief and ageing.

I think this is a 3.5 stars for me - Although there were lots of times this edged towards being really great, there were just a few things that nudged it back down again for me. There's a lot of sadness to read through the book, so you have to be in the right frame of mind for it. But it is very well written, sensitive & thoughtful, and moments of humour lighten the darkness throughout.

I struggled with the jumps between Masha & Alice for the first quarter of the book. I'm not sure what it was, and if the two voices weren't defined enough, but for some time I wasn't quite sure what was going on, or who I was supposed to be paying attention to. I much preferred Masha, and her dog, and I found myself feeling frustrated with Alice's character in the end, rather than sympathetic. This may have been because I had guessed what was coming, and so then it was merely a process of waiting for it to play out.

I was much more interested in Masha, and in her slow recovery from the most devastating grief. She intrigued me, and I was really hoping for her to recover and find happiness. The ending, for me, was unnecessary, and in my head that isn't the conclusion I wanted for her. I felt her dawning realisation that she could no longer use her grief to hide away from everything in life was far more interesting, and believable, than what ultimately happens.

Sally wasn't quite well defined enough for me, and as I read I was more interested in Kitty. I thought lots of the secondary characters were well-drawn, and interesting in their own right, such as Kitty and Flo, and Masha's parents.

This was a good, compelling read. It didn't capture me in quite the same way as her first novel, but I still enjoyed reading it a great deal.

In homage to this book I visited Abney Garden cemetery. This is technically an Arboretum and was planted with 2500 trees when first opened, many of them being unusual species brought in by the local nurseryman in Stokey, who at that time had the largest greenhouse  in Europe. Sadly, after around 100 years of business, his business collapsed and the greenhouse is no more.

I took a photo of my take on the Inebriated Field and also the most wonderful Davidia tree - aka the Handkerchief tree in full flower - a rare site and never one to be timed but lucky happenstance.



The leafy paths were full of dog walkers, in particular a lovely chocolate lab who wanted to walk with us rather than his owner!



















And - well, Lidos are clearly an 'in' topic having just The Lido and they are very cold indeed when outdoors.

[ Fun fact: New Scientist has just published an article about crows and their face recognition. Not only do they recognise you, but they can tell other crows how to recognise you!]

And now, what did i think of the book?

It was different. It was sad and yet not sad - it reminded us that grief takes a long time to get over, especially the loss of a child.

Ruth Hogan writes in an empathetic manner that tells us much about human emotions and her portrayal of Sally demonstrates this.

But, although I loved the writing, the style and content, and everything about the story, the interspersing of the two women and their stories made the ending rather obvious to those of us who read crime/thriller/suspense stories. So there was no surprise there, which was a shame.  This downgrades a 5 to a 4 as I really don't think we should know the ending that soon.

I had read The Keeper of Lost Things so was looking forward to this book. I found it a little slow at the beginning but this did not last long and the book kept me captured and I needed to know what happened next.

The book moves between two different stories and keeps you guessing as to how they are linked.

A lovely book and will be on the lookout for her next one.

I really enjoyed this new book from the author of Keeper of Lost Things. It is about a woman, Masha, learning to live with the death of her son many years before. The book deals with some very heavy emotions very sensitively. There is some gentle humour and I loved the character of Sally Red Shoes. Would definitely recommend

What a truly lovely read, the characters were so easy to warm to, a great story with sad undertones dealt with beautifully, I didn't see the little twist until neatly the end, highly recommend and can't wait for her next read

A beautifully written tale of Masha, her devastating grief for her lost son and how it affects her family and close friends. The help and advice she receives from newly made friendships helps her find her way back after many years. Running alongside her story is the story of Alice & Mattie and at times you think you may know the connection but the author keeps you guessing until the end.
The characters in this book are all individuals and slightly eccentric but very likeable, showing strong women but not necessarily as society expects them to look.

Gosh, I really don't know where to begin... this book,,, is sweet, beautiful, poignant, charming and at times a little exaggerated, a really wonderful story in truth.

I received my copy from Netgalley (thank you) and having read the blurb I was a little hesitant, as a mother whose young son has died, to enter into Masha's world in case it didn't ring true or in case it rang too true for me. I am so very glad that I did.

WARNING: Unless you are very hard hearted you will need tissues, sometimes for tears of happiness but also for tears of empathy.

The Wisdom of Sally Red Shoes is the tale of Masha and Alice. Masha has existed in a never ending cycle of grief, guilt and self-doubt after the drowning of her baby son Gabriel. From that day Masha stopped living but began an endless obsession with death, drowning and her local cemetery. Along the road to recovery Masha meets some wonderfully eccentric characters, all of whom play a part in helping her to finally 'live' not just exist. Amongst these are Elvis and his bride to be Kitty Muriel, Flo from the swimming pool cafe and Sally Red Shoes. Sally Red shoes, so named by Masha because on many an occasion she will be walking the cemetery, en-route to feeding the crows in the park, looking like a homeless bag lady, that is until you see her beautiful red dancing shoes. Along side this is the story of Alice, a single mum with a teenage son, who suddenly has to deal with horrors of cancer. Alice has to face her greatest nightmare in order to ensure her sons happiness.
This beautifully written novel is filled with wonderfully detailed characters, whose lives you feel a part the moment your read about them. Masha's self punishment and pain is so poignant and a great contrast to her amusing and invented tales of the cemetery's occupants. You cannot help but be drawn into Masha's life and pain. In contrast, as Masha returns to life, Alice begins to lose her grip on reality. This funny, tear inducing, emotional read is a great novel and I can't wait to read more from Ruth Hogan

This book is very different from The Keeper of Lost Things in many ways but it still retains the same qualities that means it is just as enjoyable to read albeit slightly darker than its predecessor. I enjoyed the characters and the way they developed as the book progressed.

Thank you for allowing me to review this book.

It took me a while to understand this book especially the connection between the two main women Masha and Alice who seemed to bear no similarities except that one had her child and the other had lost hers. The description of the swimming 'therapy' was told very matter of factly by Masha with little or no self pity which was very effective - I found her story much more interesting than Alice's. It drove the book on much more decisively. The Sally Red Shoes character seemed very random to me; with much more of a minor part and I could not get the connection to the title.
A relatively easy read but not one of my favourite stories

This is a book to savour, filled with really vibrant characters. At its heart is Masha's all consuming grief at the drowning of her young son and the larger than life people she meets along the way. They bring humour and love into her life. The humour is at times dark, but more often of the laugh-out-loud variety. Alongside Masha's story is that of Alice who has a secret that she needs to share. As the two strands collide, the book finishes leaving the reader wanting more. I really recommend this lovely book and am grateful for the opportunity to read and review it.

Having enjoyed Ruth Hogan's previous book I was looking forward to reading her newest offering and thank the publishers for the pre-publication copy. It is totally different to The Keeper of Lost Things but, again, it is beautifully written. There are some very witty turns of phrase, some interesting vocabulary and plenty of alliteration to keep the reader on their toes. The subject is death and grief and most of the action takes place in a Victorian cemetery, but it is a book of hope and joy rather than one of despair. I think Ruth Hogan has a great future as a writer if her first two books can be taken as indicators of her talent.

I waited a day or so before writing my review of The Wisdom of Sally Red Shoes as I really wasn't sure just how to capture what I thought about it successfully.
I haven't read The Keeper of Lost Things so Ruth Hogan was a completely fresh voice for me and the description of this novel was very interesting.
After much mulling, I think it's a three and a half star book for me and I've erred on the lower side when comparing it to other books I've rated with four.
There were elements I adored about it - the author's obvious love for and observation of dogs and their behaviour was joyful and Haizum was as rounded a character as any in the story, the heart-breaking, coping mechanism of Masha's mother was told with a beautiful simplicity of familiarity by the protagonist and was all the more affecting for it, Kitty's breathlessly described joie de vivre, and I really didn't mind the final, again, simple conclusion of a deeply emotional tale, it seemed to suit the peace that had been found.
What I did find very distracting and pulled me out of the story every time was the constant mentions of the words of the day (which then I'd have to take in and think about) and after the first two possibly three at a stretch, I was dreading each time one was shoe-horned in to be honest. They didn't add anything and took my attention away far too much.
And very occasionally, I found I didn't understand what the narrative was trying to say, usually as Masha and had to re-read it over to get the sense.
It is a book I'm glad I've read, and I'll take a very vibrant picture of that cemetery and 'Sally' and Haizum away with me.

This took me a while to get into- it’s hugely different to what I normally read and as a result I struggled in the first few chapters. However- after that I was captivated! Ruth Hogan has written the most fantastic characters that become friends of yours as the pages turn. The story turns and meanders and takes on on the most wonderful journey. Enjoy this on a sunny Sunday afternoon with a glass of wine.

I loved The Keeper of Lost Things, unfortunately I just couldn’t get into this story. It’s sad, emotional and heartbreaking yet, the characters find each other and a way forward. I found it so slow and not captivating. The only reason I gave it three stars is because I just couldn’t engage with the story and I did try so very hard.

Another stunningly well written book by the author of ‘The Keeper iof Lost Things’. This book celebrates life with a collection of eccentric, memorable characters. I loved it!

I was absolutely enthralled, Ms Hogan kept me guessing till the end. As the story progressed, I was on the edge of my seat wondering what would happen, in this beautiful, evocative tale of Masha, Sally and their friends and families.
A story of love, friendship, sadness and happiness, The Wisdom of Sally Red Shoes is wise indeed, and we should all follow in her excellent example.