The Power of One

In Feburary the group enjoyed dicussing Andy's choice of book, The Power of One by Bryce Courtenay. That's not the same as saying everyone enjoyed the book, but clashing opinions always enliven the discussion. Andy's the long-suffering 'token male' in the group and so we look forward to his 'man-book' choices as something outside our usual reading.

The Power of One is a big South Africa saga, the tale of one man's progression from a terrified and bullied bed-wetter in boarding school, to a young man of almost Messiah-like qualities. The early death of his only friend -a scraggy chicken called Granpa Chook - at the hands of the bullies seems to be a vengeful driving force. It could seem a bit odd for the death of a chicken to guide your life, but the life and death of Granpa Chook was genuinely powerful and touching, emphasising the loneliness of our hero, Peekay.

Peekay's life then proceeds, from a chance encounter with a boxer on a train, through a chain of events spurred on by his ambition to be Welterweight Champion of the World. He's a remarkable boy - excels at everything he does (well, at music he's merely 'good') - and people begin to be drawn to him. This high-achieving caused some dissension in the group - some found it unnatural and unbelievable, reckoned nobody is so good both physically and intellectually. Others though, found the story inspiring and epic - it was the story of a hero, a future leader perhaps, and of what you can do if you really try, body and soul. Apparently this is the favourite book of Ben Fogle, and of some of our top sportsmen, and you can see why it would be a memorable read for young men.

The book is set in South Africa in the 1940s and 50s, so race plays a big part in the story, and there are many powerful and upsetting scenes. The author doesn't shirk from showing the inbuilt racism of even the generally positive characters. On the other hand there is a lot of humour in the book too. At his best Peekay is a very engaging character. There are some very vivid descriptions - of a mining community for example - and a lot of the background seems to come from the author's own life.

The story is told in a completely linear style, and it's a long book. For some of the group, it dragged. For others, it was completely engaging from start to finish. Andy had gone on to read the 900-page sequel, Tandia. For some of the group this seemed like a form of self-torture, but on the whole Power of One was an enjoyable read leading to a robust and interesting discussion.

One Day

The group read David Nicholls book One Day for the January meeting. Janet,who chose the book,bought it a few months ago without realising it had already developed something of a cult following. The influence of Thomas Hardy was apparent-missed chances, fate, the letter which is never received etc. The characters were believable and the dialogue sharp and witty. Nicholls has captured the feel of the era perfectly. The ending is quite devestating, but everything seemed to fall into place as the book came full circle.

Kathleen found it an easy read and Helen found the plot plausible, while Karen liked the fact that there weren't too many flashbacks. Marghie and Morag loved the book and found it impossible to put down. The Larkin influence was also apparent. The group were devided on the character of Ian, but felt he was memorable , as were all the other minor characters. Helen liked Emma's referral to Dex as being like a two piece jigsaw. Karen liked the way the final description of what happened at the beginning of the book made everything clear. The humour was what kept the book alive for everyone. All in all, a fantastic read. Some discussion took place of the forthcoming film and we all agreed that Jim Sturgess makes a perfect Dex!

Small islands

For the December meeting a suitably Christmas feeling was provided by mulled wine, pumpkin cake, home made mince pies, vegetarian crisps, etc. Thank you everyone who baked and brewed!

Chosen by Helen, this month's read was Andrea Levy's award winning novel Small Island . It tells the story of Caribbeans coming to Britain during WWII to help defend the 'Mother Country' and their subsequent migration here in 1948 on the S.S. Empire Windrush. Told by four voices (two black and two white) the book has many themes: new beginnings; casual, and not so casual, racism; the British Empire; duty; and love.

Although a little slow to start, everyone in the group enjoyed the book. I found the war time experiences of Gilbert especially enlightening. The notion that the U.S. army's segregation applied to black G.I.s even though they were in Britain was maddening. As a black Caribbean Gilbert's treatment was in many ways much better (and maybe that was the reason he chose to return).

Karen judged Hortense snooty, high minded and naive; and found her experience with the interview and the broom cupboard both amusing and saddening. Possibly this was the point when the reader started to empathise with her...

Queenie was liked by June and Jen. Some thought the description of pork pie making too much, but it did introduce Queenie as a 'salt of the earth' no nonsense character who treats Gilbert without prejudice. Marghie enjoyed the vignette provided by the sweet shop owning auntie who encourages Queenie to talk to the respectable, reserved, Bernard.

Janet and Margaret felt Bernard cold and unfeeling; many in the group had no sympathy for the character or his adventures in the war. I surmised he was a vehicle for the feelings of returning soldiers who wanted their country and jobs back. Morag thought his story added little to the plot at that late stage and the reason for his stay in Brighton was amusing to say the least...

Helen said that the ending, with Queenie giving birth to Michael Robert's black child, was predictable. Maybe a twist too many, but overall the group felt it had been another in a series of highly edifying and pleasurable book group choices for 2010.

The Girl on the Landing

In November, the group read Paul Torday's The Girl on the Landing. This was a novel we found to share comparisons with 19th Century sensationalism/ghost story novels. It was written in a style akin to that where we thought it may be set during an earlier time not that of a more contemporary time. The novel is original, not plot prescriptive and is suspense story more than a thriller, with a touch of Rebecca and Turn of the Screw to it.

To begin with we all found the characters to be unlikeable but then as time went on we did start to feel sorry for them. With the narration of the novel alternating between Michael and Elizabeth Gascoigne, it certainly aided in the character development throughout the novel as well as creating an atmosphere of suspense.

The novel covered very topical subjects including racism, schizophrenia/mental health issues and genetics. Issues that raised a lot of debate and discussion over them.

The novel sparked a great deal of discussion amongst all the members in terms of whether Michael Gascoigne was suffering from schizophrenia or was it the supernatural. It was a bit 'muddy' at times and, looking at it from a critical viewpoint, we felt it had to be more plausible at times. With the dog sensing the supernatural, it really was left open to the reader's own interpretation.

We debated the relevance of certain things, e.g. the linen press and the dog disappearing. Again, it seems to be left open to the reader's own interpretation.

The nature of the story led naturally into a discussion on mental health in the community and the question of how far do you go to medicate someone and change them completely? We also discussed the possibility of there being people who operate on a different level of sensitivity. There was varying opinion in the group on whether Michael was on a different level of extra-sensory sensitivity, mentally ill or just plain bad.

Several members of the group were disappointed with the somewhat rushed ending of the book. Overall, the general consensus was that this was an enjoyable novel with many of us considering reading more of Paul Torday's work.

On the Beach

In September the group read Neville Shute's sombre fifties classic On the Beach. Janet, who suggested the book, explained that she had been prompted to go back to this book after recently reading another post-apocalypse story, Cormac McCarthy's The Road. She noted there are a great many tales of Armageddon, but On the Beach is the only one where all the characters die. Despite the odd glimmer of hope (a radio signal from the blighted northern hemisphere, a failed theory that the radiation is lessening) this is just a story of the people of Australia waiting, pretty calmly, to die of the inevitable radiation poisoning from a disasterous nuclear war in the North. Quite a brave thing for the author to do, to write something so bleak (get so scarily possible). This must have summed up pretty well the fears of people during the early Cold War, and fed into the consciousness that generation.

This was a book we all found fascinating and it gave us a lot to speak about. The submarine journey to North America is a compelling storyline, especially the moment when a crew member jumps ship to die in his home city - the only living being alive in that hemisphere for the few days he will last. There is the very occasional humourous detail, like the determined gentlemen in the club determinedly drinking their way through all the best port.

The group discussed how some of the characters were pretty wooden, but that this didn't detract from the book. It's power lies in the ordered suburban society being juxtaposed with the approaching nightmare, and since this was set in the conservative 195os in conservative Melbourne among a naval community, the stilted stiff-upper-lip behaviour of many of the characters is believable. People continue to go to work, to plant crops, to plan the future - and it's not as crazy as it seems. If you only have a few days to live, you may panic and go mad, but if you have months to wait you can't keep that kind of behaviour up for long. And if you must go, why not on a nice beach with a government-issue suicide pill and a bottle of brandy? Better -surely? - than the savage struggle for survival depicted in The Road? It is both seductive and terrifying how people in On the Beach accept the inevitable. A very powerful book.

The Book Thief

Would you choose to read a story told by Death? Many of us in the book group were unsure until we were gripped by the story itself.
Death narrator of The Book Thief tells the story of a girl, Liesel, sent away from her family to be fostered during the rise of the Third Reich and the small town where she and her foster parents live. In many ways, given the prevalence of death during this period of Germany’s history, Death's a central voice in the novel makes perfect sense. What was surprising to the group was the fact that Death’s voice was both poetic and sympathetic. Death loves colour both the dark and the light. The story he tells is about both the vitality of life and love and the brutality of war and oppression.

Liesel is the book thief of the title and it is her relationship to words, particularly written words, which shape her understanding of the world. She picks up a handbook for grave-diggers at the gravesite of her brother and as she uses it to learn to read, builds a relationship with the foster father. Books become entwined in her life even though they are difficult to acquire. Liesel “steals” books from the mayor’s wife who not only turns a blind eye but aids the “theft”. When Liesel’s family hide a young Jewish man, he makes her a book by using the over painted pages of “Mein Kampf” a nod towards the destructive power of words.

The group particularly enjoyed the rich characters of Rudy (Liesel's rebellious and loving friend), Hans (her mench of a foster father), Rosa (acid tongued but loving foster mother) and Max (the Jewish fist-fighter who teaches Liesel how to write her own story).

The book led the group into a discussion of how ordinary people who lived in Germany during World War II have been depicted in the aftermath of the war and the discovery of the death camps. The Book Thief gives an even handed view of how the inhabitants of a German town might have reacted to Hitler’s master plan. Some bought into the plan and some resisted in various ways but all were affected.

Ferry across to Bressay

A slight hitch in accessing our blog has meant that, in true librarian spirit, we have been silent for over a month, but all is well now! It has been left up to me to recall our annual night out on the 9th of July, when six of us braved the unseasonal cold and wet weather and headed to the Maryfield in Bressay to discuss Stieg Larsson's Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.
The book was my choice -mainly because I had recently read it and was onto the third book of the trilogy.
The location of our meeting may or may not have been influenced by the island theme of the book, but at least noone mysteriously disappeared! Over our starters of calamari and garlic stuffed mushrooms, we mused on how the lack of editing in the book meant that parts of it were overly long and in places there were sub-plots which were never fully developed.
As we moved onto our grilled steak and halibut courses, we debated some of the situations, primarily the disappearance of Harriet Vanger and the characters of Blomkvist and Berger.
Karen thought much of the violence was overdone, but was more upset about what happened to the cat! Everyone however,was intrigued by the character of Salander, finding her plausible and unique , and not be easily forgotten.
All in all,despite its length,we found this to be a good enjoyable read. After a couple of glasses of wine and an Ameretto and coffee, we headed off to catch the ferry home.