Category: Booker Prize

Categories
2011 Booker Prize

Half Blood Blues – Esi Edugyan

Half Blood Blues Short listed for 2011 Booker Prize

Five words from the blurb: Berlin, black, betrayal, cabaret, secrets

Half Blood Blues begins in 1940s Paris and follows the members of a jazz band who have fled to the city to escape the Nazi regime. The star of the band is Hiero, a trumpet player of outstanding talent. But as a black man of German origin he finds that Paris soon becomes just as dangerous as the German home that he left behind. The other band members, Sid and Chip, are African-Americans, but as US citizens they have less to fear. The story follows Sid and Chip as they reunite fifty years later and begin deal with the guilt they feel for the events that took place in Paris all those years ago.

This book has a fantastic atmosphere. The dialect instantly transports you into the lives of this little known section of society.

A real racket started up across the street. I looked up to see Hieronymus yanking on the bug’s door like he meant to break in. Like he reckoned he got the power to pop every damn lock in this city. When it didn’t open, what did he do but press his fool face up to the glass like a child. Hell, though, he was a child. Stupid young for what he could do on a horn. You heard a lifetime in one brutal note.  

Initially I found the writing very engaging, but it did lose some momentum in the central section. This slight lull in plot was quickly forgotten as I reached the final pages – I loved the emotional ending.

Despite these positives I didn’t fall in love with this book. I think this is mainly due to the fact that I am not a big lover of music, especially jazz. I’m sure that anyone with an interest in the jazz scene will enjoy this book a lot more than I did.

My second problem was that although this book covered a refreshingly different section of society it basically tells the same type of WWII story that I’ve read many times before.

If you are a jazz fan then I highly recommend this book to you, but tread carefully if you’re after literary depth or a new way of looking at the world.

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The thoughts of other bloggers:

I can’t say I really connected with the characters. Lucy Bird Books

I like little corners of  World war two, like this one…. Winstonsdad’s Blog 

Despite plenty of research, the story seems to lack veracity… The Art of Fiction 

Categories
Booker Prize Other

The 2011 Booker Prize Short List

The 2011 Booker short list has just been announced as:

(all links go to my thoughts on each book)

The Sisters Brothers by Patrick deWitt

Half Blood Blues by Esi Edgyan

Jamrach’s Menagerie by Carol Birch

The Sense of an Ending by Julian Barnes

Pigeon English by Stephen Kelman

Snowdrops by A.D. Miller DNF

 

SnowdropsThe Sisters BrothersPigeon English

Half Blood Blues: From Berlin to Paris. Two Friends. One BetrayalThe Sense of an EndingJamrach's Menagerie

I predicted 4/6 correctly, so can’t say I was very surprised by the announcement; although I must have failed to see something in Pigeon English, as I predicted it would be the book least likely to make the cut.

I’m pleased I can now put the Booker prize behind me for another year and concentrate on some more random reading.

Categories
Booker Prize Other

Who will make the 2011 Booker Short List?

I have now attempted to read all the books on this year’s Booker long list and am sad to report that I haven’t had much luck with them. I only found two books I really enjoyed; the rest were a mixture of average reads and ones that irritated me.

Predicting a short list is an almost impossible task so I decided to summarise my thoughts by ordering the long list a) according to my preference and b) in the order I think reflects their relative literary merit (writing quality, re-readability etc).

Bookers ordered to my preference:

(all links go to my thoughts on each book)

  1. A Cupboard Full of Coats by Yvvette Edwards
  2. The Sisters Brothers by Patrick deWitt
  3. The Last Hundred Days by Patrick McGuinness
  4. Half Blood Blues by Esi Edgyan 
  5. On Canaan’s Side by Sebastian Barry
  6. The Stranger’s Child by Alan Hollinghurst
  7. Far to Go by Alison Pick
  8. Jamrach’s Menagerie by Carol Birch
  9. Derby Day by DJ Taylor
  10. The Testament of Jessie Lamb by Jane Rogers
  11. The Sense of an Ending by Julian Barnes
  12. Pigeon English by Stephen Kelman
  13. Snowdrops by A.D. Miller

Bookers in order of literary merit:

  1. The Sense of an Ending by Julian Barnes
  2. On Canaan’s Side by Sebastian Barry
  3. Snowdrops by A.D. Miller
  4. Half Blood Blues by Esi Edgyan
  5. Jamrach’s Menagerie by Carol Birch
  6. The Stranger’s Child by Alan Hollinghurst
  7. Derby Day by DJ Taylor
  8. The Last Hundred Days by Patrick McGuinness
  9. A Cupboard Full of Coats by Yvvette Edwards
  10. The Sisters Brothers by Patrick deWitt
  11. Far to Go by Alison Pick
  12. The Testament of Jessie Lamb by Jane Rogers
  13. Pigeon English by Stephen Kelman

In each case the top six titles (in bold) would make it to their respective short lists. The exception being :

  • The Sense of an Ending by Julian Barnes
  • On Canaan’s Side by Sebastian Barry

where I think the books are too similar for both to be put through to the short list together. I think The Sense of an Ending is the slightly stronger book and so I predict it will go through at the expense of On Canaan’s Side. I’m hoping that the books are selected on literary merit and so therefore predict that the Booker short list revealed on 6th September will be:

 

The Stranger's ChildSnowdropsDerby Day

Half Blood Blues: From Berlin to Paris. Two Friends. One BetrayalThe Sense of an EndingJamrach's Menagerie

 Which books do you think will make it onto the Booker short list?

Categories
2011 Booker Prize

The Last Hundred Days – Patrick McGuinness

The Last Hundred Days Long listed for 2011 Booker Prize

Five words from the blurb: Romanians, danger, corruption, destroy, Ceausescu

The Last Hundred Days explains what life was like for Romanians in the final months of Ceausescu’s reign. The story is told through the eyes of an English student who arrives in Bucharest after being given a job, despite not turning up for the interview. From the perspective of this outsider we see the destruction of the city, the corruption required to get everything from food to medical supplies, and the violence that regularly occurs.

The book was very well researched, giving a vivid snapshot of life in Bucharest during 1989. The problem was that it read like a non-fiction title. The detail will prove fascinating to anyone interested in researching the city, but is too much for the average reader.

I also found the writing to be quite detached. I couldn’t connect to any of the characters and so failed to form an emotional response to any of the scenes in the book, no matter how disturbing the content. The fact that the narrator was from England also added a level of detachment to the plot. As a newcomer to the city he couldn’t fully explain the pain that the residents felt seeing their city destroyed and there was always the knowledge that he could leave and return to his normal life at any point.

Unlike the majority of the Booker long list, this book did have a plot. The problem was that I didn’t really care about it – things happened, but I had no real interest in the outcome.

Despite these criticisms this book did engage me enough to read to the end. I learnt a lot about life under Ceausescu, including the fact that having a miscarriage was a crime.

A ‘celibacy tax’ was imposed on women who could have children but did not, while officials were sent to interrogate women about their sexual habits. ‘Anyone who avoids having children is a deserter,’ proclaimed Ceausescu, announcing the ‘Mama Eroica’ scheme to reward mothers with five or more children. But there was no milk, no food; it was impossible to find sterilised feeding equipment; electricity was now as random and inscrutable as Acts of God had been for ancient civilisations.

The book does a fantastic job of teaching the reader about this period of history, but if you like to form an emotional connection to the characters/plot then it probably isn’t for you.

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The thoughts of other bloggers:

McGuinness has done an awe-inspiring job of capturing the sordid, decaying and disjointed “communist way of life” in Bucharest during the summer of ’89. Permanently Uncached

…factual mistakes started accruing at an alarmingly fast rate…. Fantasy Book Critic

I’d say the major flaw here was the disjointed nature of the story telling and the philosophical musings. Chazz W

 

Categories
2011 Booker Prize Recommended books

A Cupboard Full of Coats by Yvvette Edwards

A Cupboard Full of Coats Long listed for 2011 Booker Prize

Five words from the blurb: mother, murdered, guilt, memories, violence

I’m pleased to announce that this year’s Booker long list has finally rewarded me with a wonderful book. I wouldn’t have discovered A Cupboard Full of Coats if it hadn’t been on the long list and so my efforts of trying them all have finally been rewarded.

A Cupboard Full of Coats is an emotional book describing the life of Jinx, a woman haunted by the thought that she was partly responsible for the murder of her mother.

Jinx suffered from a violent childhood and finds it hard to connect with her five-year-old son. I found their endless misunderstandings heart-breaking to read:

I caught up with him he had ripped three or four heads off the crocuses planted along the thin bed that ran the length of the path from the gate to the door.
‘Ben, don’t do that please,’ I said as he started tearing off another. Ignoring me, he yanked it off anyway, adding it to the collection in his other hand.
‘Will you bloody stop!’ I said.
When he looked at me, those enormous eyes were filled with tears. He held out his hand. His voice was tiny. ‘These are for you,’ he said.
And I looked at the small, fresh, squashed bouquet held out to me, and for a second I could have taken his gift and smiled, then cuddled and whispered to my son, Forgive me. I love you.
But the words that came out of my mouth instead were:
‘Great! Why don’t you kill every single flower you can see?

I was gripped by this book from the very first page. I flew through it, desperate to know what part Jinx had played in the murder of her mother and how everything would be resolved.

I found the characters well formed and realistic, and the descriptions of life as a Caribbean in East London were evocative and atmospheric. Details of food preparation were particularly mouth-watering.

The writing isn’t perfect and I spotted a few typographical errors (for example, see the first line of the quote) but I was so absorbed in the story that these didn’t bother me.

If you enjoyed Chris Cleave’s, The Other Hand, then I’m sure you’ll love, A Cupboard Full of Coats. I don’t think the writing quality is good enough to justify its place on the Booker long list, but it will gain a spot in my list of favourite books published in 2011.

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The thoughts of other bloggers:

…an elegantly structured story of guilt and redemption. Literary License

…a very worthy idea that has been badly executed. Kevin from Canada

I was sucked into the world of the novel and the mind of Jinx, the main character. Revcherylreads

 

Categories
2011 Booker Prize Novella

The Sense of an Ending – Julian Barnes

The Sense of an Ending Winner of 2011 Booker Prize

Five words from the blurb: retired, memory, imperfect, insight, past

The Sense of an Ending is a quiet, reflective book and if you know me then you’ll immediately hear the alarm bells ringing. This book has virtually no plot and, unlike the fabulous Anne Enright, Julian Barnes failed to to engage me in his slow tale.

The story is seen through the eyes of Tony, a retired man who is suffering from loneliness and the depressing knowledge that his life won’t go on forever. He reflects on his life, worrying that he hasn’t achieved anything noteworthy.

There are some plot elements, but I wont explain them here for fear of spoiling this brief book; all I can say is that they didn’t excite me.

On a positive note The Sense of an Ending is quick and easy to read. There are also lots of little snippets of wisdom.  

The less time there remains in your life, the less you want to waste it. That’s logical, isn’t it? Though how you use the saved-up hours…well, that’s another thing you probably wouldn’t have predicted in youth. For instance, I spend a lot of time clearing things up – and I’m not even a messy person.

I can see why this made the Booker long list, but I’m probably just too young to appreciate this sort of book.

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