Books
by Pat Barker
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Border Crossing |
With his marriage breaking down and the past returning in the shape of Danny, a now grown child murderer he once helped to convict, child psychologist Tom Seymour finds himself frighteningly face to face with questions of personal responsibility, complicity and the shifting borders between good and evil. Is Danny still dangerous? Penetrating, lucidly observed and absolutely gripping.
(Annabel Bedini - bwl 16 December 2002) |
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Life Class |
Life Class left me disappointed. The essence of sacrifice and despair in the First World War that Barker captured in Regeneration (bwl 19) is sadly missing. Instead we are given sex and gore. Life at the Slade is illustrated by repeated name dropping and by real and imagined Bloomsbury figures gathering unconvincingly at the Café Royal. The most interesting angle was the examination of art in War.
(Judith Peppitt - bwl 42 October 2007) |
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Regeneration |
Regeneration is the first book in the author's trilogy about WW 1, the others being The Eye in the Door and Ghost Road, all exceptionally forceful novels. It's a reconstruction of the effects of shell shock, amongst other things, based on the well-documented historical facts of Siegfried Sassoon's relationship with his psychiatrist, W Rivers, in 1916 in Scotland. The only fictional character being Billy Prior, the hero of the second two books. Although daunting for the impressionable, this trilogy is a brilliant evocation of an event which never ceases to fascinate.
(Kathie Somerwil Ayrton - bwl 19 June 2003) |
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The Regeneration Trilogy (Regeneration; The Eye in the Door; The Ghost Road) |
This is absolutely addictive fiction which explores, among other equally controversial issues, the various personal, moral and social consequences of the Pacifist movement at the time of the Great War. It is particularly poignant relating the stories of War Poets, Seigfried Sassoon, and Wilfred Owen, sometimes using actual notes and biographically accurate depictions of their physicians and therapists, and the treatment processes. I couldn't wait to begin each succeeding volume!
Editor's Note: The Ghost Road won the 1995 Booker prize.
(Margaret Teh - bwl 50 March 2009) |
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The Silence of the Girls |
The siege of Troy is viewed from the perspective of captured women. The main voice is that of Briseis, a queen who becomes Achilles' prize, an object to be used and abused. Barker tells of the women's experiences in the camp, their mutual support and fears. She truly brings alive the chaos and boredom of the encampment. However, as Briseis says, this is still Achilles' story. Troy stands for all wars where women are so treated, including today. A wonderful read.
(Christine Miller - bwl 91 Winter 2019) |
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The Women of Troy |
In this sequel to The Silence of the Girls (bwl 91) Barker takes the story of Briseis on from the fall of Troy. The triumphant Greeks want to go home, but the angry gods send impossible weather. Tensions rise among the idle warriors (heroes? Bah...). Briseis, now married and carrying dead Achilles's child, helps her captive sisters as she can. Barker's Regeneration trilogy denounced the human costs of war on men. Here she does the same for women. Excellent!
(Annabel Bedini - bwl 103 Winter 2022) |
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