Books
by Jonathan Coe
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Middle England |
Following in the footsteps of The Rotters' Club (bwl 34), this is a novel for our disturbing times. Coe writes beautifully about the intertwined lives of Benjamin Trotter, his family and friends, but everywhere, as in real life, there is despair, disillusion, bewilderment and barely suppressed anger. Closer acquaintance with his characters through reading earlier books might have made me more sympathetic towards some of them. Alas, based on this one alone, I was not very engaged.
(Jeremy Miller - bwl 94 Autumn 2019) |
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The Closed Circle |
This is a sequel to The Rotters' Club (bwl 34). 30 years on, many of the same characters reappear, with Tony Blair's government in the background. As expected, the characters' fortunes have varied. Worth reading to see how, but I found it less amusing than the first volume. Nevertheless Coe is good at inventing memorable characters and unexpected situations as well as telling an interesting story.
(Jeremy Swann - bwl 35 July 2006) |
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The House of Sleep |
Unputdownable - hate the word but have to use it! A story about love and
loss that begins at university and is taken up ten years later. The
characters are vividly drawn and all linked in some way by sleep disorders.
The writing is pacy, often hilarious and sometimes chilling, the plot
intricately woven and the smallest details turn out to have deep
significance. The final pages complete a wonderfully satisfying jigsaw
puzzle.
(Denise Lewis - bwl 57 Summer 2010) |
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The Rain Before It Falls |
I was completely enthralled by this. It takes the unusual form of a series of photographs described by Rosamund, who dies in chapter 1. As each photo is analysed in terrific detail, the story of little Imogen unfolds. It is a marvellous (and scary) exploration of the impact of mothers on daughters and connections between generations. It is extraordinary that a man could write such an insightful novel about women. I wept at the end.
(Annie Noble - bwl 53 September 2009) |
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The Rotters' Club |
An account, sometimes touching and often hilarious, of a group of rebellious and gifted teenagers at the same school (and to a lesser extent of their parents and teachers), during the 1970s in Birmingham. Industrial strife with a three day week and the destruction of the car industry by the unions just before the start of the Thatcher years forms the backcloth to this highly entertaining satire. I strongly recommend it.
(Jeremy Swann - bwl 34 April 2006) |
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The Winshaw Legacy or What a Carve Up |
The narrator of this social satire-cum-thriller, another Michael Owen, is writing a biography of the rich and powerful Winshaw family. Commissioned and egged on by the Winshaws' mad Aunt Tabitha, he uncovers a trail of ruthless back-stabbing and deceit extending from WW II to the late 80s. Ensuing events strangely resemble a film that has haunted Michael since his childhood and is echoed in a dramatic denouement in the Winshaws' sinister mansion.
(Wendy Swann - bwl 14 July 2002) |
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