2019 reviews
November
The Power by Naomi Alderman
Not like by most people. Dystopian novel about what would happen to the world if women gained power over men, in this case by growing a skein that gave them the ability to project an electric shock as with a Tazer. The answer was that they would behave exactly as controlling men do and would traffic drugs and people, wages wars, amass fortunes and act as dictators.
October
The Essex Serpent by Sarah Perry
Lovely writing and atmospheric. Not a book for those who expect something to happen.
September
Carriers by Patrick Lynch
The book was written in the mid 1990s and is out of print. It is the story of an outbreak of an Ebola type virus in Sumatra and the Americans trying to find the source. It has some graphic descriptions and some fairly unsavory characters. Complicating the scientists search is an American woman looking for her two children who were visiting their father at his research station in the jungle. We all liked the book and it raised some interesting discussions. How far should on of the military scientists go to save the world when she has a family at home; the ethics of using captured or any primates for medical research; the ethics of using specially reared rodents etc for medical research; should the public be kept in ignorance of the remote possibility of an outbreak of a lethal disease.
July
Eyes of a child by Richard North Paterson
The group was divided. No-one thought it was a great book but the majority thought it an enjoyable read. Some just did not like it. They thought it was too long and the characters were not likeable. They felt that they could not suspend disbelief for the length of time required. It is the third in a series about an American lawyer in which he is accused on murdering is girlfriend's ex-husband. There is, of course, a link to the shady side of American politics. All turns out well in an unnecessarily long winding up after the denouement.
June
The Last Photograph by Emma Chapman
The book starts with a famous photographer finding his wife dead in her chair. He then sends an email to his son and gets on a plane to Vietnam. We then learn of his difficult childhood and his struggle to get recognised as a photographer. Eventually he becomes a war photographer and we find out what happened to him in Vietnam and subsequently. It is the story of a man who is only really happy behind the lens of a camera. He can only relate to those around him through the lens. He wanted to be a good father to his son but found that he did not know what to do. You could understand why when he became obsessed with the war and when he was home just wanted to get back. He suffered from what we now know as PTSD but was not treated for it. He was a damaged person and most of the group did not like him as a person. The book was liked by everyone. It was well written and readable. It was good to be reminded how terrible wars can be.
May
A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles
More or less everyone loved this book. The first few pages were not that inviting and there were some sections that required concentration to follow the arguments. And it was long. But once you have survived the beginning it was a joy. It was funny, beautifully written and inventive. It concerns a Russian count who was saved from execution at the time of the revolution because he appeared to have written a patriotic poem. His punishment was to remain in the hotel where he was living for the rest of his life. He had to move out of his luxury apartment and live in a cramped attic. Setting the whole book in a small space allowed the author to make the count and his young companions, one of whom he had met before his punishment started and the other to whom he became de facto guardian, to explore the hidden areas of the hotel and have endless fun. The awfulness of the outside world impinged on the hotel and hypocrisy of the ruling classes was constantly there. But the count's good nature, intellect and practicality got him through to a satisfactory ending.
April
The Water Babies by Charles Kingsley
This book provoked a lot of discussion. It was agreed that the book was written to be read aloud as the addition of voices, facial expression and gestures would make it come alive for a child. We had to try to remember that it was of its time. We cannot apply modern sensitivities and liberal ideas to something written in the 1860s when despising everyone that was not English and Christian was the norm. New scientific ideas, such as Darwin's theory of evolution, were also to be ridiculed.
But, having said that, it was difficult not to admire the inventiveness of the narrative and the beauty of some of the writing. Kingsley was ahead of his time in caring for the environment and teaching kindness to animals. But that did not stop him killing a dog with strychnine and feeding it to crows to kill them too. One complaint was that the author changes the rhythm of his writing frequently and that made it difficult to read in places. We wondered if this was because he wrote it episodically just to keep ahead of his reading to his daughter, aged 4.
March
The president is missing by Bill Clinton and James Paterson
The reaction to this book probably depends on what you wanted from it. It was a wet Sunday book, no demands on your brain. It concerned a charismatic US president who had everything to arouse sympathy. He was good looking, caring, war hero, had a illness that required constant monitoring and was recently widowed. He was contacted through his daughter and learned after thrills and spills that there was a plot to shut down the all the computer systems in the USA. In other words, return it to the dark ages. Of course, the crisis was eventually averted and the president was a hero again.
It was felt that Bill Clinton's influence was there. There was a lot about how American government works, lots of acronyms and lots of people. There was a lot of computer speak. Those who read James Paterson could tell the passages that showed a Clinton influence and one speech was thought to be Clinton on his own. A answer to why BC had collaborated with someone who produces ten books a year through ghost writers was that perhaps he needed the money.
February
A dictionary of mutual understanding by Jackie Coppleton
With one exception, the group loved this book. We enjoyed the insight into Japanese culture provided by the explanation of word at the top of each chapter. These words related to the content of the chapter. The writing was descriptive and flowed. It is the story of a mother who lost her daughter and grandson in the Nagasaki bombing and carried the guilt with her to America, where she was now leading a lonely existence as a widow. When a disfigured man arrives at her doorstep claiming to be her grandson she has to review her actions and read her daughter's diaries for the first time. (This was before DNA testing.) She finally forgives the man who wronged her and, in her opinion, her daughter and returns to Japan with her presumed grandson to find peace. It is a moving and interesting story beautifully told.
January
The tattooist of Auschwitz by Heather Morris
There was, as usual, two views on this. One was that it was really harrowing and distressing and the other that it was a love story set in a concentration camp and the narrative did not bring out the full horror. Most of us were aware of the awfulness of the background but it was possible to gloss over this and just enjoy the story. It is a story set in the camp rather than the story of the camp. Most had read the reviews and knew that the historical inaccuracies were many. It had to be remembered that this was based on the reminiscences of a very old man who was ill. It was a good read if you read it as a novel and some thought that the author had latched on to a background that would make the book a best-seller. This is not the book to read if you want to know about concentration camps.