Title: The Names
Author: Florence Knapp
Publisher: Phoenix Books, Orion Books
Genre: General Fiction, Literary Fiction
Release Date: 6th May 2025
BLURB
Tomorrow - if morning comes, if the storm stops raging - Cora will register the name of her son. Or perhaps, and this is her real concern, she'll formalise who he will become.
It is 1987, and in the aftermath of a great storm, Cora sets out with her nine-year-old daughter to register the birth of her son. Her husband intends her to follow a long-standing family tradition and call the boy after him. But faced with the decision, Cora hesitates, questioning whether it is right for her child to share his name with generations of domineering men. Her choice in this moment will shape the course of their lives.
Seven years later, her son is Bear, a name chosen by his sister, and one that will prove as cataclysmic as the storm from which it emerges. Or he is Julian, the name his mother set her heart on, believing it will give him the opportunity to become his own person. Or he is Gordon, named after his father and raised in his image - but is there still a chance to break the mould?
This is the story of three names, three versions of a life and the infinite possibilities that a single decision can spark. It is the story of one family and how love endures, no matter what fate has in store.
REVIEW
There are two different covers for this book, though I do like both, the one I have featured above is the one that represents the book really well. The figure at the centre that could easily be Cora or her son and the three shadows for the three different names and the three different ways life could go dependent upon Cora's choice at the registrars office when giving her baby son his name. The cover is quite stark and harsh feeling which I think depicts the hard decision and harsh consequences Cora faces dependant on the choice she makes.
Three different
names, Bear, Julian & Gordon. Bear is 9-year-old sister Maia's choice,
Julian, Mum Cora's choice, & and Gordon, "chosen/imposed" by dad
Gordon & his family, a tradition that isn't open to discussion and
has to be upheld!
Three choices each with consequences, what happens in each different scenario
of name is chosen.
Bear - the name chosen by 9 year old Maia who likens the soft cuddly qualities
of a bear to her snuggly baby brother and her expectation he will become big
and brave.
Cora knows she is taking a big chance disobeying her husband and the
expectation of his family that, of course, there's no question their son will
be called Gordon. Cora also knows that deep down, there will be a price to pay.
She prepares by having friend Mehri take Maia swimming with her own daughter
Fern. When Mehri offers to keep Maia for tea, Cora immediately accepts knowing
it gives her time to tell Gordon and deal with any fallout before Maia arrives
home. Cora hides Bear, her precious baby in a cupboard upstairs and prepares to
tell Gordon the news. She greets him at the door, takes his coat, kisses him on
the cheek as is expected of her all the while dreading what is to come.
When Cora reveals the name Bear, at first Gordon seems to think it's a joke and
he smiles....then the anger explodes & the violence begins which continues
until finally Cora shouts for help, which leads to the death of a bystander but
freedom for Cora, Maia who has witnessed the abuse as she has grown up and the
baby brother she named Bear.
Gordon is sent to prison, and Cora tries to build a new, happier life for
herself and her children with support from friends Mehri & Roland. Cora is
never truly free of guilt that her freedom came at the cost of another man's
life and every year lays flowers on his grave thanking him for his intervention
that day. It's only years later that Bear puts two and two together and
realises this strangers death is connected to him and his name.
Julian - is the name chosen by Cora, meaning 'sky father', so in Cora's heart
& mind still honouring his father Gordon without giving him the exact same
name. Maia is excited as her name means mother, and her brothers name means
father. It's another bond they will share.
Cora cooks Gordon's favourite meal, Maia helps set and decorate the table. When
the name is revealed Maia chatters excitedly about it meaning sky father,
trying to distract her father from the brewing anger. Gordon sends Maia off to
run a bath, leaving him alone with Cora. Gordon is immediately abusive towards
Cora and aggressively pushes her face into her half eaten meal, telling Cora he
won't be letting this go. Cora silently says to herself this will be the last
time knowing further violence is on the immediate horizon.
Seven years later, after being registered as Julian, he, along with his sister
Maia, are living a new life with their maternal grandmother, Silbhe, in
Ireland.
Further details of what happened that night, seven years before, are not
revealed. Maia does discuss that she remembers hearing everything as she had
covered Bears' ears, so he did so had no hands to cover her own ears.
Gordon - the name imposed, demanded and expected by Gordon and his family
leaves Cora so disappointed in herself & resentful that she just went along
with a name she didn't want, she finds it difficult to bond with baby Gordon.
She finds it difficult in many ways and
her husband Gordon uses these 'failings' and 'neglectful acts' as a weapon
within his abuse, and he threatens to take the children away from her! So
despite choosing the name Gordon, the one her husband and his family wanted,
Cora still suffers violence & abuse. Even when Maia reaches out to her
maternal grandmother, Silbhe in Ireland Cora refuses to leave, knowing in her
heart that Gordon wouldn't hesitate to take her children from her and deny her
any contact with them. Which would mean leaving them at the mercy of an abusive
man.
There's so much more to the book than the sections I have shared, each of the
three names/lives/directions have their own positives and negatives.
I felt instant empathy with Cora, the descriptions of the familiar feelings of
walking on eggshells. The overwhelming urge of wanting to keep the peace and
please someone who will never be satifisedno matter how much you give or do for
them. The instinct and protectiveness of moving your child to another room
doing an activity meaning they hopefully won't hear and witness their fathers'
outbursts. Then finally getting out, trying to rebuild a life but at the same
time never being able to trust another man fully, wondering what their trigger
would be to aggression, anger and violence.
I loved Maia's character, a second mum to her baby brother, and a peacemaker,
pacifier, whenever possible. Sadly you don't realise how much Maia was aware of
until later in the book as she grows older.
Then there's Bear, soft, cuddly, brave, and strong, or Julian 'Sky Father' or
Gordon expected to follow in his father's and grandfathers footsteps. Whichever
name Cora's baby boy is given, he may have elements of both parents, but it
doesn't mean he has to or will become like his abusive father. He is also
'nurtured' and experiences life in different ways in different scenarios.
Although the book depicts a relationship that has domestic violence, there's
also loving, caring, and romantic relationships within the book.
The book shows three alternating versions of the characters' lives covering
thirty-five years. Each version of life presents its own version of healing,
life going on despite the scars and shadows caused by domestic violence, and
that ever present feeling that your abuser is 'out there' and could reappear in
your life any time he feels like it.
My immediate thoughts upon finishing reading The Names was that though it
brought back my own memories of domestic violence i enjoyed reading it, found
it thought provoking, and I hope it raises awareness of 'what goes on behind
closed doors' and gives those that are quick to say 'Why doesn't she just
leave' something to think about.
Summing up this book is about the choices we make and the different paths we
take and what they lead us to in the future, but the book is also a totally
honest depiction of Domestic Violence and why it's not as simple as just
leaving the situation, especially when children are involved and the abuser a
well respected member of the community"
THE OTHER COVER
loves gardening and nurturing her garden. The three flowers also representing
the three different versions of the characters lives. This cover leans more to the
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