LETSBuzz Book Club 21st January 2001
Set at end of World War Two. Flashbacks tell a German pilot's story: how
he loved flying, and somehow got drawn into the Nazi war machine almost
without realizing. A convincing portrayal. Recommended.
Caroline
Took a few pages to get into this. Central character is a naïve teenage
girl who is a brilliant swimmer, wins a gold medal and then suffers a
rapid descent. Book ends tragically. Worth a read, particularly if,
like Caroline, you like books about swimming.
Caroline
A very under-rated writer, born in 1919. these 11 stories were written
in the 1940s but have stood the test of time. Quite subversive.
Caroline particularly enjoyed those about motherhood and coping with
small children. Recommended.
Caroline
Short stories written in the 1940s/50s but not dated. Much more
dialogue than Berridge. Very American.
Caroline
Caroline struggled with this. Felt the author was 'practising for the
English Patient'. Characters confusing, lost track of who was who.
Caroline
Caroline read this a few months ago but could still remember clearly. A
book about childhood, reading it is 'like eating old-fashioned vanilla
ice-cream'. The central character, May, is a 12 year old girl. The book
focuses on the relationships between May, her mother and brother and her
father who is obnoxious - but May still idolizes him.
Jean had also read this and enjoyed very much. Recommended.
Caroline
Caroline couldn't read this - 'couldn't care less about the people'!
Caroline
Andrew liked this. Well-written. A 'two-centre' book in that it deals
with two different periods in the life of a house. In the '80s it is a
student house, later it becomes a Sleep Therapy Centre run by one of the
students who had lived there. Lots of connections between the two
periods. Humour a bit laboured which spoiled it a bit. A guarded
recommendation.
Caroline had also read and enjoyed this, though not all of it was
convincing. A good depiction of student life.
Andrew
A prize-winning first novel, written by a bus driver. Excellent
dialogue and characterisation. The story is about 3 men, the foreman and
two crew, who travel from Scotland to England to build agricultural
fences. Repetition of sentences and whole paragraphs is perhaps a way
of symbolizing the repetitive nature of fencing work. A very deadpan
book: three murders are dealt with in a very matter of fact way. Apart
from the ending 'the book just stops - almost as though some pages are
missing' Andrew enjoyed this book. Recommended.
Andrew
Andrew found reading this book was 'like buying a large packet of
Pringles and having them for lunch - and then wishing you'd bought a
sandwich instead' It's so easy to read but at the end it feels like a
waste of time, so light and frothy, not even that funny.
Carolyn had also found this disappointing and wished Sue Townsend had
ended with the earlier Adrian Mole books.
Gill had really enjoyed the book, read it in two days and thought it
'very good if you want some light reading'.
Andrew
Short stories originally published in 1989. The same quality of writing
as Poisonwood Bible, but a different scale: the book is set in a small
farming community in America. Very good characters and dialogue. Just
one story, set in St Lucia, which doesn't work so well as it breaks away
from the theme.
Andrew
Accounts by different women of their experience of giving birth. These
are real stories, very good, 'it makes you appreciate your own mother'.
Some of the stories are very funny, particularly one by a midwife who
had never had a baby.
Carolyn
Carolyn loved this, found it hilarious - 'just what you would expect
from a best friend'. Caroline had also read this and found it very
reassuring.
Carolyn
Carolyn was surprised to realize she had never read anything by this
author. She was enchanted by the section on India - but didn't finish
the book as was sad and disappointed by the cartoon depictions of
Americans when the story shifts to the USA. Found Arun a sad and
miserable character - couldn't connect with him at all.
Carolyn
Carolyn loves reading cookbooks and found the title of this one very
appealing. The book is very well written and makes the food very
appealing. An unexpected bonus is that this book has recipes for dishes
that Carolyn used to make in Canada e.g. strawberry shortcake, blueberry
muffins.
Carolyn
This book is set in Alaska and tells the tale of two old women who are
left to die by their tribe. Against all the odds they survive, using
their skills in hunting and trapping. The tribe eventually returns, in
a very weakened state and have to ask the old women to give them food.
The author grew up in a similar tribe and the book has a very authentic
feel as a result. A short book but very atmospheric.
Jean
Superb collection of short stories, mainly set in Ireland. Each story
is perfect, brilliant spare style of writing, you are drawn into the
worlds of the characters. Many of the stories are very moving. For
once a book that lives up to it's blurb (not present when writing these
notes but something along the lines of 'the best short story writer in
the world'). Highly recommended.
Jean
There had been much discussion, and difference of opinion, about this
book's treatment of women at the last book group meeting which made me
want to read this to see what I would make of it. Very disappointed to
discover, after a chapter or two, that I had already read it - and that
it had made so little impression on me that I hadn't even remembered the
title or opening chapter. Stopped reading at this point. Not
recommended.
Jean
Author is an academic turned journalist who seems to know about
everything from game theory to anthropology. He is searching for the
basis of virtue. Makes a good case that this is a fundamental human
trait. Some fascinating game theory experiments are described. He
deals well with the fallacy that genes are the only things that are
evolving - culture is also evolving. A compelling and interesting book.
Sean commented that this sort of book is always convincing because the
author has researched so much and knows so much more than the reader.
Gavin thought that even if the author is wrong the book is still
fascinating, and provides interesting explanations for the existence of
anti-social things like warfare. However towards the end of the book the
author goes too much towards the 'small is beautiful' argument. He
would undoubtedly approve of LETSBuzz.
Gavin
Collected poetry by an archetypal failure, a self-destructive man who
drank heavily and died young. The book gives a sense of 'gruntlement' -
happiness with the moment. Most American poetry Gavin had read was
incomprehensible. This is very easy to read, more like a diary. A book
for people who don't normally read poetry - easy to dip in to.
Gavin
Entertaining, lots of pictures and diagrams showing, for example, how to
escape from a python, or a sinking car, and how to fend off a shark
(this chapter was particularly enjoyed by the group). A thoroughly
useful book.
Rory
Over half of the stories are set in India and these are the better ones
and the most memorable. One of the stories was apparently originally to
have been included as part of 'Fasting, Feasting' but Rory had not been
able to identify which one. The book was not as good as Fasting,
Feasting.
Rory
Good, clever construction. Sensitive about relationships, the people
are very sympathetic. Ghastly section about bodies disintegrating on a
beach.
Doreen and Andrew both thought this was probably Jim Crace's best book.
Rory
The author is an archaeologist, historian, polymath. A long list of
references are included at the back of the book which is about some
3,000 year old mummies which were found in Western China in an area
surrounded by mountains. Urumchi is the capital town where the museum
which now houses the mummies is based. A fascinating book. Rory learnt
a lot about the production of textiles, about language and events of the
time. Lots of detail about the way they lived and also a lot of
information about the explorers who found the mummies.
Rory
Doreen had enjoyed other books by this author but didn't like this one.
It is about three girls who are finishing school at the end of the war.
It is atmospheric about the period but not that interesting - a very
slight story. Not recommended.
Doreen
Not as good as 'The Woman in White'. No real mystery at all.
Dreadfully long-winded, far too much explanation, conversations go on
for ages, boring characters. Not recommended.
Doreen
The blurb describes this as 'Diehard with a kilt on' - an accurate
description. Very Scottish, very violent, grotesque things happen but
you find yourself laughing, e.g. when a retired policeman is hit by a
severed arm and tucks it under his arm... Doreen laughed out loud at this
book. Recommended.
Doreen
An attempt to describer what life was like in Anglo-Saxon England.
Readable and interesting but not great. Sean didn't learn as much as he
would have liked.
Gill had also read this but six weeks later could not remember much
about it. Found the Anglo-Saxon names difficult. A light read.
Seán
Short stories set in the Orthodox Jewish community. Every story is
different, the story of the purged writers was the most memorable one.
Seán
Sean found this difficult at first but then got into it, the rhythm of
speech gives it a momentum of its own. The names are difficult as they
all sound the same. Disappointing that there was no Anglo-Saxon
glossary. Recommended.
Seán
Henry is a street urchin born in Dublin. His father is a bouncer in a
brothel. This book is the story of Henry into the 20s. A fairly
convincing story most of the time. Roddy Doyle's best book.
Gill thought the poverty in this book was almost a parody, almost
unbelievable.
Sean thought the poverty was real but the love element was not so
believable. The central character is remarkably likeable in spite of
the crimes he carries out. This books has a larger range than Roddy
Doyle's previous books.
Seán
Gill enjoyed this and found it kept her engaged. The story is about a
soldier coming back from Burma, where he went through some horrendous
experiences. He returns to his young wife and child in Cumbria a
changed man. He has grown up a lot, has seen a lot more of the world
than his wife, but is unable to talk about his experiences. A very
moving book.
Gill
The blurb describes this as 'the only book in the English language that
begins with the word toilet'. An estate agent and his wife take the
agent's father and mother on holiday to Malta. The father has
Parkinson's Disease and suffers from slurred speech, mobility problems
and incontinence - in spite of his speech problems he manages to say the
word 'toilet' clearly as it's so important. There is a lot of humour in
the book and it tackles disability in a very straightforward way. The
ending is not entirely credible but the rest of the book is very real.
Gill
Gorleston is a residential area near Great Yarmouth. The book deals
with retired people, a group not often seen in novels. The book starts
with an elderly man in a car looking out to sea. The main character,
Percy, gets involved with two sisters. An interesting exploration of
the nature of relationships between people who all have a lot of history
(all of them are over 70). Very moving.
Gill
The frames have gone all funny - click to make it good.