the danger of books
When Patricia gave up on her dream of writing her novel and moved to the small town of Carlyle to take a job as a research librarian, she was defeated, but she thought she could help people. The library hadn’t had anyone at the research desk for twelve years, but now they have funding, and Patricia is ready for the patrons. She spent a lot of money and energy getting her degree, and she’s ready to answer those research questions.
Questions about what time a television program comes on that night. Or about how long it would take to drive to a nearby town. Or how to spell words. It’s not exactly how she imagined the job. She needed a fresh start, to get over the idea of being a novelist, not a mind-numbing job that makes her feel dead inside.
But there is Margo. A librarian who works the circulation desk, Margo is smart and capable and lovely. She can stop the guy who comes in on Fridays to look at porn on the computers as well as the woman who yells at them for trying to charge her for a book that she claims to have left in the book return. She jokes with her fellow librarians, bringing them to tears, and make the patrons feel heard and appreciated. She as even the one to go into the women’s room when a patron was deathly ill and try to help.
Patricia had gone down to see what was going on and found the other librarians standing outside the bathroom, afraid to go in. For some reason, Patricia pushed the door open and went in, and she found Margo over the woman, clearly trying to help her. Or was she? It had been an awkward embrace that Patricia had walked in on, and later, after the woman had died and Patricia was soothing Margo, Margo said, “I missed it.”
Patricia thought it was a strange thing for her to say, but it had also been a strange moment. A woman had died. But still, Patricia couldn’t help but wonder about Margo. She started paying attention to the woman. She started writing things down. And soon, almost against her will, Patricia realized she had started writing again, this time about Margo.
Margo, meanwhile, has secrets. She hadn’t always been Margo. She had been a nurse with a different name. But when she had to leave all that behind, she found herself in Carlyle, pretending to be a librarian named Margo. She liked being Margo. She felt like she was in control. But when Patricia showed up and started writing in her notebook and asking personal questions, Margo felt her control starting to slip away. She did what she could to try to get the feeling back. But just how far would she go to stay Margo, to be the one in control?
Hoe Can I Help You is a dark tale of friendship between two women who need each other to get what they most in their lives. A twisted cat-and-mouse story told in the voices of the women who are creating their own narratives, this novel is a propulsive thriller about the addictive draw of those without a conscience and the damage they leave in their wake.
As I was reading How Can I Help You, I couldn’t help but be reminded of Patricia Highsmith (and wonder if the character’s name was a nod to the woman who created The Talented Mr. Ripley) and of Ottessa Moshfegh’s Booker Prize nominated Eileen. It felt like author Laura Sims was playing with us readers the way Margo was playing with everyone, teasing and taunting and laying a trap for us. I know I fell in, mesmerized by these characters and their intricate dance with each other and with their world. I don’t think just anyone can pick this book up and enjoy it. I think it takes a certain dark humor and curiosity about the nature of evil to get hooked liked I did. But if you see yourself in that description, then by all means, dive right in.
Egalleys for How Can I Help You were provided by G.P. Putnam’s Sons through NetGalley, with many thanks.
