Held is a historical fiction novel by Anne Michaels, published in 2023. In this novel, she explores the profound impact of memories on human life. The plot opens in 1917 and introduces the first character of the novel, John, a British soldier from World War I. He returns home from the war and tries to live his life as a civilian, but the physical and mental trauma alters his personality.
In the hope of coping with his grief, he returns to his previous job as a photographer. While working with his assistant, Mr. Stanley, John discovers ghostly images in their photographs, and their customers confirm that those spirit shadows are their loved ones. His belief in the existence of spirits deepens, but soon after, he finds out that Stanley has been using tricks to photos to gain profit. John feels hopeless, as he had believed that his mother's spirit was with him, even though he couldn’t see her. He dies by suicide, but in his final moments, he feels the comforting presence of both his mother and his wife, Helena.
The story shifts to Helena, John's wife, who never remarries and still remembers him. The 60-year-old Helena begins to feel alive again after meeting a painter and starts painting once more. One day, while talking to her daughter Anna, she absentmindedly sketches John's face. In that moment, she feels she has freed John's memory and her long-held sorrow.
The novel follows Anna's daughter, Mara, who becomes a doctor like her mother and works in dangerous places. Her father and husband urge her not to follow in her mother's footsteps and to think about her unborn child. Mara leaves but returns home, remembering her motherless childhood. The novel presents characters held by memories of loved ones, grief, and war. It shows how a memory can keep someone alive in our hearts even after they are gone.
