The Wisdom of Sally Red Shoes: A Novel

Written by Ruth Hogan

Narrated by Elaine Claxton

Once a spirited, independent woman with a rebellious streak, Masha's life was forever changed by a tragic event twelve years ago. Unable to let go of her grief, she finds comfort in her faithful canine companion Haizum and peace in the quiet lanes of her town's swimming pool. Almost without her realizing it, her life has shuddered to a halt.

It’s only when Masha begins an unlikely friendship with the mysterious Sally Red Shoes, a bag lady with a prodigious voice and a penchant for saying just what she means, that a new world of possibilities opens up: new friendships, new opportunities, and even a chance for new love. For the first time in years, Masha has the chance to start living again. But just as Masha dares to imagine the future, her past comes roaring back…

• Language: English
• Publisher: Dreamscape Media Audio
• Release date: Aug 27, 2019
• ISBN: 9781974975211

Ruth Hogan

Ruth Hogan is the author of several bestselling novels, including The Keeper of Lost Things. She lives north of London in a chaotic Victorian house with her husband and a much-loved pack of rescue dogs.

Reviews for The Wisdom of Sally Red Shoes

[karenbayly · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I loved "The Keeper Of Lost Things" and was certain this couldn't be as good. Thankfully, I was wrong. Ruth Hogan creates rich, quirky and just plain wonderful characters - lead, supporting, human, non-human. It's an uplifting exploration of overcoming grief, and letting go of grief. Beautifully written and a joy to read.

[eesti23 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Didn't enjoy this one as much as her first book. While the story worked and there was plenty to keep me guessing, I feel like removing the Alice portion could have left more room for Sally and Kitty, both of whom I loved.

[Sheila Montoya · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Awesome book and very well read! Thanks so much. wow

[Sharon Hall · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I loved this book for so many reasons. I was not ready for it to end, but do admire the writer for the way it did. I would definitely read more by this author. Also, well read by the narrator.

[Kristin Siemens · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

It’s like watching “Extreme Makeover Home Edition”without the big reveal. Has you hooked, then spinning with “What happened next?”

[bookczuk · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Read something else by this author, which I liked, so I thought I'd try again. She excels at adding in delightful little stories about objects or people in the story as an aside.

[kathl33n-1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

It's going to be hard to top this read. Maybe it was because I resemble the main character so much. Her affinity with all things death and cemeteries, her minimal ability to interact with strangers, right down to the swimming. It was all me. Or maybe it was the absolutely magical writing that engaged me so well. Or maybe it was because I sobbed, several times, until I was completely snotty. I think it was all just a perfect combination of the perfect story for me. I will warn, it is not an easy read. It's full of deep, raw emotion and all consuming grief. But, for me - I love, love, loved it.

[girlwellread · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A special thank you to NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.Masha is drowning, figuratively speaking that is. Once a spirited and vibrant woman, she has been eclipsed by grief. Seeking solace in the silence, Masha frequents the local Victorian cemetery and the town pool where she punishes herself for her son's death in the freezing water.But as she meets a cast of eccentrics—including Sally Red Shoes, a 70-something opera singer and the beautiful and wise Kitty Muriel—she begins to live again. The women change Masha's course by opening up a new world of possibilities. That is until the past comes back with a vengeance.The Wisdom of Sally Red Shoes is a poignant novel about death, resilience, and finding joy in the smallest things.I had the sincerest pleasure of reviewing The Keeper of Lost Things and loved it! Hogan's a gifted author who writes with emotion and flair. In this story, Hogan draws on her own experience with cancer and treatment. She also explores friendship—between different generations and backgrounds—and the theme of drowning. In this novel, swimming serves a psychological purpose in that Masha uses it as a way to serve her penance. She swims underwater to the steps, holds the handrail and stays under until her lungs implode and she drowns...almost.Masha is a character that lives a life of self-imposed emotional isolation. Her grief and the guilt over her son's death have become her dark companions, an addiction of sorts. There are some beautiful passages in the cemetery where she creates stories for those that are resting there. Gradually Masha surfaces both literally in the pool, and figuratively from her grief. It is then that her swimming becomes a joy rather than a punishment.Thank you, Ruth Hogan, for this book. It is an incredibly moving story of grief, and of the resilience and beauty of the human spirit.

[theeclecticreview · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Masha and Alice are two different women with two different lives but have one thing in common…"They say that just before you die your entire life flashes in front of you, but for me it is a single fragment. That instant when I woke up and he was gone."Masha’s guilt from the tragedy of losing her son in a drowning incident has placed her in a state of penance by swimming underwater at the local lido and “playing chicken with death”. Her daily visits to the graves of her ‘Family on the Other Side’ in the local cemetery with her trusted Irish Wolfhound, Haizum, is her sanctuary away from the mournful eyes of strangers. When she meets “Sally Red Shoes”, an eccentric woman there who sings beautifully to the dead while feeding the crows, her life begins to change for the better."She would try to hide it from Mattie for as long as she could, but her past had finally caught up with her and now she would have to pay a catastrophic price."Alice’s life has been secluded and secretive to protect her son she loves so much, but her secrets will have to be revealed once she receives tragic news. Will he forgive her?The characterization is extremely well done giving the reader a look into desperate lives and healing hearts. Masha and Alice may have different lives, but they would do anything for their child. I enjoy the supporting characters of Edward, Masha’s best friend, and Kitty, Masha’s magnificent and confident new friend who can relate to her grief.Hogan adds some great character quirks and originality to the story such as Masha’s unusual and comical relationship with her car named Edith Piaf, and her “words of the day” which are interesting and informative.I love this book! Though it has some dark undertones, the story is about atonement, renewal, and discovery. It is about friendship and loneliness; life and death. Highly recommend.Thank you to Ms. Hogan, Crooked Lane Books, and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to review this book with no expectations of a positive review given.

[p.d.r.lindsay · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Author, Ruth Hogan, has a special way of viewing the world. It was obvious in her delightful first novel, 'The Keeper of Lost Things' and again in this novel.Masha's lost her son, Gabriel, and has been unable to recover from his loss. Her friends and family have been tiptoeing round the topic and Masha' sensitivities. As readers we are inside Masha's head and we like her. She has courage but needs a push. She gets one.This is a story full of hope and laughter. As Masha learns to live again she also learns to be a more tolerant, kinder person and we learn with her. That's the nice thing about Ruth Hogan's writing we laugh, cry and learn. It's a good read for anyone and a good novel for anyone needing a boost and a bit of positive thinking.

[kimkimkim-7 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I admit to being lost and confused, but happily so. This is a story of drowning, physically, attempted, emotionally. This is a story of salvation. This is a wonderful book which I loved and hated to turn the last page and that page was a killer. The writing is gorgeous, poetic, descriptive “...the daylight is dwindling into a crepuscular shadow world and the park resembles an Arthur Rackham illustration with tall black trees stretching their spindle limbs across a purple bruised sky.” Masha (not her real name but one she has adopted) observes a woman “bundled up in a patched tweed coat... a red woolly hat with a Pom-Pom and red Mary Jane shoes with brown socks.” This is Masha’s Sally Red Shoes (also not her real name but one that identifies her) with a gracious demeanor and a tangled verbal dictionary. They follow and intersect each other through the book but there is another couple who shadow the story. And this is where I kept floundering but never mind. Ruth Hogan has created the most wonderful, clever and interesting characters, including an energetic, ill-behaved dog, Hazium, named after the Archangel Gabriel’s horse. Hogan teaches us that grief is not linear but something that can unstitch us through a smell, sight or sound. She believes that “When the music ends for someone you love you don’t stop dancing. You dance for them as well.”The ability to blend such enigmatic and colorful characters while creating an atmosphere and dynamic that moves the story along while you devour the prose is genius writing.Thank you NetGalley and Crooked Lane for a copy