bwl 38 - February 2007
Fiction
| Jane Gardam - The Flight of the Maidens
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| Hetty, Una and Lieselotte, three young women waiting to go to university in the post-war summer of 1946, stretch their wings and discover themselves and the wider world. As always with Gardam, the apparent simplicity disguises a host of rich veins of insight, in this case into rites of passage and how these relate with the past. A lovely, intelligent, humorous and extremely readable book. (Annabel Bedini)
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| Elizabeth George - In the Presence of the Enemy
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| This is one of the last in George's series woven around the aristocratic policeman, Inspector Thomas Lynley, and his family and friends. Although purported to be a psychological thriller, it is difficult to put it into any strict category. In this superior and rewarding 'crime' read George addresses the all too current issue of child kidnapping, the various motivating forces which lead to it and the legal and social machinery which deal with it (Kathie Somerwil Ayrton)
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| Elizabeth George - With No One as Witness
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| This latest in the Lynley series deals with the trials and tribulations of his romance with Lady Helen Clyde, and with a complicated crime story and analysis of all the issues involved in police work. George is one of the few writers who manage to develop and grow with every book, and this could be considered her very best to date. The promised sequel is a compulsive must for all who read this book
(Kathie Somerwil Ayrton)
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| Elizabeth George - What Came Before He Shot Her
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| After the superb Inspector Lynley series, those who have waited impatiently for the next EG might be put off by the unprepossessing title, not even good English. It is of course an author's - laudable - prerogative to engage in a complete 'turn-around': underprivileged, mixed-race social outcasts instead of wealthy detective-aristocrats, but in my view this is forced, unpleasant, disappointing and probably unintelligible to people new to her work. Would love to read other opinions. (Kathie Somerwil Ayrton)
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| Tove Jansson - A Winter Book
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| This follows A Summer Book (bwl 20) - can't wait to read that - a collection of writing for adults from the writer of the 'Moomin' books. A refreshing antidote to Christmas excess - atmosphere stripped to the basics in stories from her life with artist parents in Helsinki and sometimes solitary weeks on a remote island, relying on optimism, the boat, provisions or enough firewood. A wonderful retreat from crowded modern life and one to read again soon. (Victoria Grey-Edwards)
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| Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa - The Leopard
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| Set at the time of the Risorgimento, this intensely personal account of the fading of an aristocratic Sicilian family is an extraordinary read. It scarcely seems to qualify as a novel there is so little plot or characterisation. Lampedusa creates an album portraying a lost world of tradition, ritual and boredom, unchanged for centuries, now gone - and the images remain even after the book is closed. A classic - I think so - but judge for yourself. (Ferelith Hordon)
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| James Meek - The People's Act of Love
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| Siberia, 1919, a company of Czech soldiers precariously holds out against the advancing Bolsheviks. A mysterious stranger arrives with tales of escape from a prison camp. Is he being chased by a cannibal? And what is the beautiful widow Anna's secret? This extraordinary tale weaves secret religious sects, taiga magic, military horrors and straightforward love into a compellingly gruesome web of life on the edge. A sort of giant Russian thriller told with exhilarating verve. (Annabel Bedini)
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| Linda Newbery - Set in Stone
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Samuel Goodwin is employed by Mr Farrow as drawing master to his daughters. It seems an ideal job - patronage, elegant surroundings, charming company. But appearances deceive. Samuel - and the reader - are drawn into a mystery; the denouement is a horrifying and dramatic revelation. The style echoes Brontë and Collins; the subject is entirely modern. This is a rewarding read for anyone who is happy to blur the boundaries between adults and children.
* This novel has just won the Costa Award (ex Whitbread) in its Children's category. (Ferelith Hordon)
* This novel has just won the Costa Award (ex Whitbread) in its Children's category. |
| Stella Rimington - At Risk
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| A worthy successor to le Carré? Perhaps not, but nevertheless an expert on the mechanics of anti-terrorism in the West, which is not surprising as the author is a former chief of MI5. An Al-Qaeda terrorist has landed in England on a mission of destruction. But of what? Read this exciting suspense-filled thriller to find out. I was enthralled. (Jeremy Swann)
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| C J Sansom - Winter in Madrid
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| This highly-charged, fast-moving saga vividly depicts war-time Spain. A traumatised Dunkirk veteran is recruited by the British to spy on a former school friend, now a shady businessman in Madrid, whose girlfriend is secretly searching for her former lover who vanished during the Civil War. The characters might be a bit stereotypical but the author does not spare us or them from the harshness of reality or from facing unpleasant truths. A great film perhaps? (Jenny Baker)
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| Markus Zusak - The Book Thief
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| "Just don't ask me to be nice. Nice has nothing to do with me". This is Death, narrator of The Book Thief, dispassionate, ironic, full of wry humour. Set in Nazi Germany, this is the story of Liesel Meminger, left by her mother to be fostered by Hans and Rosa Huberman. It is a story of ordinary Germans struggling to make a living under an increasingly despotic regime. Funny, moving, tragic - read it now. (Ferelith Hordon)
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Non-Fiction
| William Dalrymple - The Age of Kali
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| Although many critics still call Dalrymple a travel writer, he is so much more than that: a reporter, a historian, a political analyst, and in this book he seems to be 'the voice of India'. Never losing his objectivity or sense of humour, everything seems inexhaustibly fresh to him. As he says himself, this is 'a work of love', conveying his enthusiasm and affection to the reader. Magic! (Kathie Somerwil Ayrton)
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| Thomas Friedman - The World is FLAT
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| The author, New York Times correspondent, describes how the evolution since1991 in information and communications technology has led to a revolution in working methods, particularly across national boundaries. The author quotes many examples found during interviews with industry leaders all over the world. Although I found him verbosely chatty at times and too US-oriented, especially where he foresees future problems, this is a vitally relevant study today. (Jeremy Swann)
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| Clive James - Unreliable Memoirs & Falling Towards England
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| Revisiting the first two volumes of James's memoirs is like rediscovering an old friend. I had forgotten just how accomplished a word-smith he is - his verbal fireworks make me laugh as much as his wry self appraisal, the hilarious muddles, hopeless attempts and occasional successes of his journey from Australian childhood to the first steps on the ladder of fame and fortune. I thoroughly recommend these (and probably the third, when I can find it!). (Annabel Bedini)
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| Ted Morgan - An Uncertain Hour - The French, The Germans, The Jews, The Klaus Barbie Trial, and the City of Lyon, 1940-1945
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| Why were the French so easily defeated and why did so many collaborate, either actively or passively with the Germans? This fascinating and disturbing book provides some answers. As well as details of the Barbie trial, it covers many stories including the search for the Resistance leader, Jean Moulin, the disastrous struggle of the maquis in the Vercors and the tale of the fate of the 44 inhabitants of the Jewish children's home in Izieu. (Jenny Baker)
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| Feedback |
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Annie Noble writes:
I would go even further than the Feedback in bwl 35 on Ishiguro's Never Let Me Go. Although I didn't find it disturbing - for me it didn't come alive enough to achieve that - and it's more than just the huge plot hole of why they don't run away: there is nothing about it that makes it worth reading. Storylines aren't really developed; characters are weakly drawn; and the explanation towards the end is Hercule Poirot-like in the way it ties up loose ends. I feel reading it has been a complete waste of my time - and a waste of what could have been a great idea.
Ed's Note: Has anyone read this book and managed to enjoy it?
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Jenny Baker writes:
I needed a perfect book to while away those winter blues, and found it in Martin Davies's The Conjuror's Bird (bwl 36). It has everything to keep those pages turning: mystery, intrigue, greed, suspense, a secret love story, all set against a background based on historical facts.
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Jeremy Swann writes:
As a voluntary part-time librarian I attended a course recently on detective and mystery stories worldwide during which the lecturer reviewed the history of this genre, starting with Edgar Alan Poe and including Raymond Chandler as a milestone. I have a few treasured copies of the latter's work which I have been re-reading with great pleasure. Humphrey Bogart was ideally cast as the hard-boiled private eye Philip Marlowe in at least one film based on a Chandler story. The author's style with much clipped dialogue and vivid similes so redolent of American speech was a joy to savour again. I strongly recommend any thriller enthusiast who has not read Chandler's novels to give them a try.
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