Edith has always been a little neglected by her family. Her older sister, Vivienne, and their mother fight like crazy, and their father spends most of his time working to afford his wife's expensive spending. As the years pass, tensions between Edith and Viv grow as Viv rebels. When Edith takes a job at the National Gallery of Canada, she finds it difficult to stop worrying about her sister, wanting Liam to love her, and finds friendship in an unexpected place.

While Nina Berkhout's THE GALLERY OF LOST SPECIES has very poetic writing and is rich in metaphor, I had a difficult time connecting to the story. Though several years pass in the book, the time seems to drag, and I found it easy to get distracted while reading. Edith is easily relatable, wanting her family to be happy but knowing that such a cause is likely out of reach for them, she is often passive and rarely fights for her own happiness. However, as she befriends Theo, this does change a bit, and her character starts to come to life more, but unfortunately, over half the story passes before that happens.

While I wasn't able to get engrossed in this book, I can easily see readers who love a quiet plot and intimate details falling hard for it. There is no over the top drama or unbelievable adventure, but instead, a slow and in-depth look at a family that has a strange, sort of ghostly love in it. Anyone who has ever felt distanced from their parents or their siblings will likely find Edith's story moving and understandable.

While the writing is lovely, THE GALLERY OF LOST SPECIES ultimately didn't work for me. However, readers who love a slow, unfolding story line about families and other mysterious entities will likely find Nina Berkhout's novel an excellent pick.