2018 reviews
November
The little girl in the radiator by Martin Slevin
This was a book about how a son living with his mother coped with her dementia. Some found it very painful to read while others found it a comfort. At times it was funny and some were not sure we should be made to laugh at the misfortunes of others. It was well written and for the most part kept the reader's interest.
October
Home fires by Kamila Shamsie
A book about twins. One is brainwashed and goes to join Isis and the other strikes up a relationship with the son of the Home Secretary in the home of getting him home again. The group recognised that it was not great writing but it was thought provoking. We discussed the importance of family and whether its needs are more important than those of the state.
September
Hemingway's chair by Michael Palin
Generally disappointing. We were all expecting more from someone who has a reputation as a travel writer. One described it as a slow dull book about a slow dull man in a slow dull town. The small town atmosphere was well brought out and the hero's obsession with Hemingway had the basis of a good story. But it did not develop in a way that we found believable.
July
The Anchoress by Robyn Cadwallader
This was loved by the majority, a couple were on the fence and one thought it the most boring book she had ever read. It tells the story of a 17 year old in the 13th century who, for various reasons, decides to become an anchoress. The book vividly brings to life the hardships of her chosen path and those of the villagers who look after her and carry on with their lives within her hearing. Despite the sombre subject, it did not consist of long religious meditations. Sarah's decision to take this path and the way she handles it impact on others by death, injury, revenge and bringing some light into a little girl's life. It is written in modern language with modern vernacular where needed and this gives it an immediacy that it might not otherwise have had.
June
Trumpet by Jackie Kay
This book was a fascinating read enjoyed by most. It covers the aftermath of the death of Joss Moody , a woman who had spent most of his/her life masquerading as a man. The only person who knew his true identity was Milly his wife. The book was written in 1999 and covered the period 1955 to 1997.
The author has an amazing ability with words and her descriptive passages are masterpieces, painting pictures in your mind, for instance, describing a cottage used once a year with ‘large cobwebs hung from corner to corner like fishing nets’.
The book has two main strands – the grief of Milly and the anguish and anger of their adopted son Colman. The author captures these different emotions beautifully. The other characters in the book – the hack journalist looking for a sensational story, the undertaker who loves his job, band members - are all painted vividly.
A book we would recommend to others.
May
The Seagull by Anne Cleeves
This is a Vera Stanhope (Vera on ITV) novel. It was generally felt to not have great literary merit but was a good holiday read. There were a lot of characters, many of whom did not appear to to some to act logically. It was unusual in that the guilty parties were known but, because of the time that had elapsed between the crimes and the investigation, there was not enough evidence to bring them to justice.
April
The trouble with goats and sheep by Joanna Cannon
Generally enjoyed by everyone. It was the depiction of a more innocent age in the heat wave of 1976. What seemed at first to be a simple story turned out to be more complicated. The general theme was do not judge lest you be judged and how once an idea takes hold in a community nothing will shift it. The characters were well drawn with their foibles, shortcomings and guilty secrets gradually revealed. It was felt that there were too many characters although the plan of the close where the story was set helped.
The book was so full of amusing one-liners that one almost reached overload and could remember very few of them. Some were laugh-out-loud moments but most were British type understated humour. The book finished with none of the crimes and injustices being revealed but it was assumed that this was coming to the residents when the person who had not appeared in the book at all but knew or surmised everything returned in the last few sentences.
February
Arthur by Mikael Lindnord
This a book that was either loved or disliked. Those who loved it thought it was a heart warming story of an intelligent dog that attached himself to an adventure racer in Ecuador and was taken to Sweden with great difficulty and at great expense to live out its days comfortably. Those who criticised thought it was badly written with a lot of padding. There was a lot of detail on adventure racing, equipment and packing equipment. Everyone agreed that we had been informed about this niche highly competitive activity that we knew nothing of but there was far too much detail that many skipped. We wondered how the team survived after the author appeared to waste the extraordinary efforts of his team members for the sake of a scruffy and ill dog that he had just met and whom he appeared to care for more than his family.
JANUARY
The Boy made of Blocks by Keith Stuart
A heartwarming and informative book on the affect of autism on a family and how the child made small improvements by playing Minecraft (a computer building game) with his father and friends.
It was not great literature and gave far more details about Minecraft than most could cope with. It was generally felt to be rather repetitive and padded. The style was journalistic. However, everyone was pleased with insight that they been given to the problems, especially disruptive behavior in public places.