The Most Beautiful Thing [Kindle Edition]

Satya Robyn (Author)

Book Description

How can he make sense of the world when he can’t even make sense of himself?

Joe is not like other boys. At 14 he is obsessed with birds and the weather – but to this sensitive and gentle young man, other people are a mystery. When Joe is sent away to stay with his quirky artist aunt in Holland, only his relationships with his aunt and his new friend, Emmie, help him as he struggles to makes sense of the world.

Fifteen years later, Joe is a man – but still at odds with other people, and a virgin. Returning to Amsterdam, the place where he was closest to happiness, Joe witnesses a tragedy and discovers a secret that throws his life into turmoil - but this may ultimately lead him to find the one thing he has always craved…

THE MOST BEAUTIFUL THING is a coming-of-age tale with a twist that will appeal to fans of Ann Enright and Penelope Lively. Tender and insightful, it will make you see the world with new eyes.

Satya Robyn previously wrote under the name of Fiona Robyn.

“Robyn is the real thing. A gifted writer who understands the complexities of the human soul.” Jacqui Lofthouse

“A thoughtful and moving writer who has a great sense of human emotion.” Michael Kimball

"An entirely entrancing tale." Caroline Smailes

Product Details

• File Size: 486 KB
• Print Length: 320 pages
• Publisher: Woodsmoke Press (March 16, 2012)
• Sold by: Amazon Digital Services, Inc.
• Language: English
• ASIN: B007LNVZLM
• Text-to-Speech: Enabled
• X-Ray: Enabled
• Lending: Enabled
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #222,418 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars More than simply beautiful March 27, 2012

By Tony Poet

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

I was surprised by this wonderful novel. I thought initially it was going to be a 'relationship' book, but as I became more involved with the characters I realised it was a significant contribution to the literature of 'The Outsider'. From Dostoevsky to Camus writers have attempted to delve into the psyche of those who behave differently, who are perhaps more creative, more violent, more passionate, more remote, than the supposedly normal person. Fiona Robyn captures beautifully the outsider in gently affectionate prose. Joe is an outsider, an insecure, bookish, distant teenager. In two slices of Joe's life the author manages to capture the complexity that so many teenage boys and young men grapple with. Sexual frustration, the retreat into books, facts, figures, anything to repel the difficulties presented by a world filled with the puzzle of other people. From the perspective of middle age I can identify with so much experienced by Joe, both as a teenager and a young adult, and am amazed at the perspicacity of Fiona Robyn in capturing it so well.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The Most Beautiful Thing by Fiona Robyn April 23, 2012

By Laurie Kolp

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

The Most Beautiful Thing is a story based on family relationships; specifically a boy and his aunt. Author Fiona Robyn creates lovable characters with real problems and approaches their challenges with believable solutions. I didn't want to put down my Kindle because there is an element of mystery, touched upon with just the right amount of foreshadowing, I couldn't wait to find out about. This beautiful story won't disappoint.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Every bit as beautiful as its title suggests March 25, 2012

By seachelle

Format:Kindle Edition

Fiona Robyn's books have a remarkable way of communicating thoughts and feelings to which a reader can closely relate. Fiona takes risks with her writing and covers some deeply emotional subjects and "The Most Beautiful Thing" is the latest of her offerings.

We follow Joe as a teenager and then later as an adult as he tries to make sense of his feelings and those of his family members. Throw Joe's crazy artist aunt Nel into the mix and you have a recipe for rejuvenation. Revisiting her as an adult after suffering a break down, Joe is close to becoming happy again when tragedy strikes. A life-changing secret is discovered and Joe must then choose his ultimate path.

I very much enjoyed this book and felt the characters and issues were portrayed very well. Not only is the novel an exploration of the way we deal with things in life, but it has a gently progressing plot with plenty of arising dramatic questions which captivate the reader's attention.

Fiona has a nack for covering deep and sometimes disturbing issues with sensitivity and the reader never feels heavily weighted down; Fiona's prose is always a delight to read no matter what the subject.

I could not put this book down, especially during the second half of the novel. I spent a whole morning sipping tea and reading despite knowing I had other things I ought to be doing.

Highly recommended!

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Really, Really Liked This Book April 28, 2012

By Tamara Williams-Reding

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

Wow! I really liked this book! I downloaded it free, knew nothing about the author but really was captivated at once. Joe is obviously on the autism spectrum and his aunt is the only one who really accepts him as he is, not trying to change him or make him conform. I loved the twists, I'm an avid reader and didn't see them coming. I love when a book captures me and I keep thinking about it when I'm doing other things, rushing to get back to it. Very enjoyable read!

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars It is a "Beautiful Thing" April 26, 2012

By Diane K. Brinkman

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

I downloaded this book onto my Kindle yesterday. It was a free download. I read into the wee hours of the morning. Towards the end of the book my reading slowed because I didn't want the story to end. And the ending was a delicious last bite of an amazing meal. It is not often when I am moved to tears while reading. And last night, I did. I am so very glad I read this book and have entered Fiona Robyn's name as an author I want to know more about and look forward to her next work of art.

It takes a lot of guts to offer your work for a free download, Fiona. And I'm so very glad you did.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Loved it May 18, 2013

By Robyn Summers

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

I have read both The Most Beautiful Thing and Small Kindness with both of these books I quickly became engrossed, not wanting to put the book down and not wanting it ever to end.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A beautiful read November 4, 2012

By adelaide henshaw

Format:Kindle Edition

Very readable novel, with remarkable insight into skeletons hidden in many closets, and how a teenager/ young man unfurls them.

The emotions within the book are believable, the recognition of mental illness and its impact upon the individual as well as close friends/ family is captured well. The quirkiness of characters is fabulous making you love them and see the beauty within.

I agree with other reviewers that Joe is autistic, and his viewpoint on the world and relationships is very interesting.

An un-put-a-downable book!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful story October 30, 2012

By Rachel J

Format:Kindle Edition

What a wonderful inspiring and heart warming story. Hard to put down, sort of book you read in one sitting albeit a long one!

More About the Author

Satya Robyn (previously Fiona) lives in the green skirts of the Malvern hills in the UK. Her latest novel 'The Most Beautiful Thing' is a Kindle best-seller and follows 14 year old Joe's adventures in Amsterdam with his chaotic aunt Nel.

Her previous novels are 'Thaw', 'Small Kindnesses' and 'The Letters' and her other books include 'A Year of Questions: How to slow down and fall in love with life'.

She runs the mindful writing company 'Writing Our Way Home' which she co-founded with her husband Kaspa. She is the inventor of the short mindful writing form, 'small stones'.

She also works as a psychotherapist and is a Pureland Buddhist priest.

She loves growing vegetables, paying attention, banoffee pie, goldfinches, earl grey & her three cats, Fatty, Tsuki & Roshi.

Find out more at www.satyarobyn.com.