Books reviewed by Diane Reeve
|
Cheating at Canasta by William Trevor |
This is a brilliant collection of short stories mostly set in rural Ireland. Bereavement, loss, fear, shame, deception, worn out relationships and the optimism of new ones are the subjects of these stories. Trevor's characters are teenagers, ordinary everyday folk, wealthier people whose lives have been changed by unexpected incidents or just the minutiae of daily life. His writing is calm and non-judgmental, leaving room for reflection. Well worth reading and immensely enjoyable.
(bwl 53 September 2009) |
|
|
Good Wives?: Mary, Fanny, Jennie and Me, 1845-2001 by Margaret Forster |
Forster explores four aspects of being a 'good wife', whether the total devotion of Mary, wife of David Livingstone, or the striving for independence by unconventional Fanny, wife of Robert Louis Stevenson. Jennie Lee, Aneurin Bevan's wife, initially adamant that she would never be a 'wife', bowed to convention for the sake of her career. Forster, also determined not to adopt a 'wifely' role, nevertheless succumbed to marriage and children. A good read, I enjoyed it.
(bwl 51 May 2009) |
|
|
The Member of the Wedding by Carson McCullers |
12 year old Frankie is lonely and bored during the long, hot summer in her racially divided, dull town. Days are passed with the family's maid and Frankie's younger cousin. War is raging in Europe and the Far East. Frankie feels disconnected with life till she has a startling idea to make her feel connected again. McCullers' more famous work is The Heart is a Lonely Hunter. The Member of the Wedding is well worth reading.
(bwl 50 March 2009) |
|
|
The Music of the Spheres by Elizabeth Redfern |
This is an intriguing tale of murder, espionage and the search for a hidden planet. 1795, an English army has been defeated by the French Republicans in the Low Countries. In London intelligence is being leaked through the public mail. What is the connection between the murders of young prostitutes, an exiled French brother and sister, a group of astronomers and the search for the hidden planet? This is a good read. I enjoyed it.
(bwl 45 April 2008) |
|
|
The Republic of Love by Carol Shields |
Written in 1992 and set in Winnipeg, Shields explores the meaning of love between mid-thirties, folklorist Fay - reluctant to commit to marriage - and Tom - almost forty, a late-night radio music and chat show host, three times married and divorced, but with optimism to start again. Shields writes engagingly about the ordinariness of their lives, friends and family. This is a gentle love story with some unexpected surprises.
(bwl 48 November 2008) |
|
|
