LETSBuzz Book Club 3rd August 2003
This book has previously been reviewed by Gill. It is a simple story beginning with boy meets girl, she gets pregnant, but there is very little plot. The characters are not interesting or believable. It reads like an exercise from a creative writing course.
Andrew
The book of the play. Andrew thought it seemed quite dated to the early '80s when it was written, but there was a lot of food for thought. It deals with what is "real" - in writing, music and relationships. The major monologue uses the metaphor of the construction of a cricket bat to explain what "real" writing is.
Andrew
Andrew read this after seeing the film. It is beautifully written and aroused his interest in the writing of Virginia Woolf. The three stories are tied together very well but the ending was still a surprise (despite having seen the film).
Andrew
This is a true story of the sailors on the whaler Essex, which was sunk by a sperm whale off Chile in the early 1800s. The story was the inspiration for Moby Dick. Very few of the sailors survived their journey home to Nantucket. The writing is matter-of-fact but seems dated, except in the epilogue. This interesting tale includes eating Galapagos tortoises and cannibalism.
Andrew
Gill read this after visiting the area in Cornwall that played a large part in its genesis, including the church that Hardy really did renovate and the area where he met his future wife. The story is almost autobiographical in this respect and Gill found it a compulsive read. A slightly irritating feature was the starting of each chapter with a quotation - a common Victorian custom.The main themes are to do with class division and snobbery and there is no happy ending, as usual with Hardy. Recommended.
Gill
Gill struggled through this to end, but didn't much enjoy it. She could not empathise with any of the characters: their silly names put her off. She thought that the author might have been sending up the characters. The writing is good quality but the subject matter unattractive. Try it.
Gill
Gill was surprised by the strong subordination of women theme and non-political-correctness of this play. She wondered what the reaction of the audience at the Globe might be when she sees it there. It is a play within a play and there is plenty of dressing up in other people's clothes. Other themes addressed are to do with the roles of masters and servants.
Gill
This novella is short and hard. It is about the return to Dublin of a young woman after her mother has died in Paris. She goes to her grandmother's house, hoping to stay, but her grandmother has other ideas. There is much loneliness, alienation, spite and cruelty. People are referred to impersonally, e.g. "the grandmother" - who is a nasty old woman.
Rory
The latest episode sees Harry in his OWL (Ordinary Wizarding Levels) year at Hogwarts School. It is a big book but the story rolls along and the author has included several "political" themes and "growing up" bits as well as the magic, humour and danger. There is some quite upsetting cruelty towards Harry, the death of an important character, and an ending that takes some unravelling. Recommended for children of all ages.
Rory
Janet agreed with what had been said and recommended it.
Janet
This is set in the late 21st century. The main character (Snowman/Jimmy) may be the last human on earth. He had lived in a safe company compound. Outside was dangerous country, the plebeland. The company was researching genetic engineering, along with many others. Gradually we learn what happened, but it is a strange ending - left up in the air.
Janet
Jean was not impressed by this international best-seller, thinking it simplistic and obvious. She was sad to think that so many people apparently think this book is important.
Jean
The author is editor of Resurgence magazine and this is his autobiography. He has had an interesting life, from being a young Jain monk, to walking for peace, to ending up in England and trying to be self-sufficient. Jean was slightly suspicious of his leaving his Indian wife and child, but thought him a charismatic as well as a self-centred man. She was glad to have read it.
Jean
This is an autobiographical account of the author being a hostage in Beirut. He is clearly a tough man and this book was inspiring, showing the survival of the human spirit in adversity.
Jean
If you want to grow your own fruit and vegetables in your front garden (as Caroline does), whether in containers or raised beds, then this is the book for you. It is based on permaculture principles, so is designed to save you work.
Caroline
The author says that this is autobiographical. She had been working on health projects in the USA and in Australia when she was taken on walkabout for three months by a group of aborigines. The book is mostly the story of the journey but ends with the aborigines' message to the world - basically an ecological one - people must change and look after the earth instead of destroying it. The story is interesting, but the writing is bad. Lots of questions are left unanswered.
Caroline
The author normally writes for small children but wrote this autobiographical novel to tell her own children what her childhood was like. The book opens in 1933 with Hitler about to take power. Anna is a small girl and leaves Pink Rabbit behind when the family escape in the nick of time to Switzerland. They later travel to Paris, then on to England. The book is serious, but told from a child's view, it's exciting, cheerful and optimistic.
Caroline
Speaking as a Penelope Lively fan, Doreen said that this was not one of her best books. She felt that it was similar to other previous work. The characters were older people, but Doreen found them a bit dull and uninteresting.
Doreen
Despite some very difficult and impenetrable sentences, Doreen enjoyed this. It is a survey of children's literature and the author's own story woven together. It is very good about how children move up to adult books - apparently girls have an easier route than boys. Science Fiction was his bridge.
Doreen
This is set in New Zealand at the time of the gold rush. It has a mixture of themes: the difficult life of a settler, the gold rush itself, mysticism with the Maoris, and the story of Harriet. There is a gradual unravelling of a dark secret. Doreen thought that the author could find herself up for the "bad sex award" for a hilarious scene between Harriet and a Chinese market gardener in a cave.
Doreen
This is his first novel. It is poetic, beautifully written and Doreen loved it. It is about London and its people. A terrible event affects a small group, but you only find out the details at the end. Highly recommended.
The frames have gone all funny - click to make it good.