Category: Book Prizes

Categories
2008 2009 Other Prizes Recommended books

Blackmoor – Edward Hogan

Winner of the Desmond Elliott Prize 2009

Blackmoor is a small mining village in Derbyshire, England. The book is set during the 1990s, a time of fast decline for the mining industry, which eventually ends in the closure of the pit. The tight-nit community struggle to deal with the loss of employment, but have the added problem of methane building up beneath their homes.

Vincent is a teenager growing up surrounded by these problems, but the mystery of his past is a more pressing concern for him. Why did his mother die? Why is his father so distant from him?

The book flicks backwards and forwards, slowly revealing his mother’s secrets and snippets of Vincent’s confused life.

Vincent’s mother, Beth, is an amazing character. She is an albino, suffers from post-natal depression and is the source of much gossip within the village. The depiction of her strange behaviour was always respectful and gave a great insight into the mind of someone suffering from this type of depression.

Vincent was also amazingly well drawn. The confusion and innocence of a teenager’s mind was perfectly captured.

This is a really good book. The writing is simple, but it grabs your attention from the start. It is packed with twists and turns and had a very satisfying ending.

If you’d like to find out more about a very different side to English life then this is a great choice – it’s a really good first novel, and I will be looking out for more books from this author in the future.

Recommended.

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Categories
Booker Prize Other

Who is going to be on the Man Booker Longlist 2009?

The longlist for the Booker Prize is going to be annouced next week.

Here are my predictions for books which will make the list:


The Children’s Book – A. S. Byatt


Wolf Hall – Hilary Mantel


Kieron Smith, Boy – James Kelman


The Island at the End of the World – Sam Taylor


The Wilderness – Samantha Harvey


Brooklyn – Colm Toibin


Taste of Sorrow – Jude Morgan


Blackmoor – Edward Hogan


The Winter Vault – Anne Michaels

 

I really hope that The Wilderness wins the Booker Prize this year, but I have a feeling that The Children’s Book will win.

In many ways I hope that my predictions don’t come true. I’m really hoping that I discover some great new books via the list this year, and it isn’t just packed with previous winners.

Who do you think will win the Booker Prize 2009?

Who else do you think will make the longlist?

The longlist will be announced on 28th July 2009. Are you planning to read the Booker list this year?

Categories
2008 Booker Prize Historical Fiction

Sea of Poppies – Amitav Ghosh

Short Listed for the Booker Prize 2008

I had mixed feelings about this book. I loved the first section, set in an Indian poppy plantation. The descriptions of life as a poppy farmer fascinated me and the atmosphere was set perfectly. I would have loved the whole book to be about the lives of these rural Indians. Unfortunately, it wasn’t long before the atmosphere of the book was changed by the arrival of the white traders. These arrogant men crashed through the gentle prose and ruined everything for me. I found their dialogue hard to understand, and when the story moved on board the trading ship bound for Mauritius I started to lose interest in the book. Life on board ship would be of interest to those who are studying it, but most of the seafaring terms went over my head.

As the book progressed, the plot slowed, and the writing became weighed down in too much detail. The Sea of Poppies is the first book in a trilogy, and I have heard that it is just setting the scene for the next book. If this is the case then I felt it spent too long doing this. The fact it is a trilogy also meant that the ending was a bit flat – left open to allow for the sequel. I don’t think I’ll be reading the next one unless a trusted source informs me that it is a lot better than this one.

Recommended to anyone with a thirst for knowledge about life on a trading ship in the 19th century, but I’m afraid it wasn’t for me.

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Have you read Sea of Poppies?

Did you enjoy it? Are you planning to read the rest of the trilogy?

Have you read The Glass Palace or The Hungry Tide? Are they better than Sea of Poppies?

Categories
Booker Prize

Reading in the Dark – Seamus Deane

Short Listed for the Booker Prize 1996

Reading in the Dark is set during the troubled times of Ireland, between 1945 and 1961. The story is told through the eyes of a young boy growing up within the violence, under strict Catholic parents. The unnamed boy has to deal with family secrets, and his mother becoming unable to cope with it all. Religious beliefs and superstitions play a big part in his childhood, and his innocence means that he is often left bewildered.

It is similar to Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha in many respects, but much I found it much easier to read. This is because it lacks the stream of consciousness prose found in Paddy Clark Ha Ha Ha and the plot is easier to follow.

The main fault I found with the book is that it is very depressing. There is the odd glimmer of happiness occasionally, but it is quickly stamped out where-ever it tries to occur. This led to a book which I didn’t find enjoyable to read.  The plot seemed to move from one tragedy to the next and there never seemed to be any hope.

I didn’t really connect with the main character because he just seemed too caught up in his own emotions and a bit weak – I prefer my characters to have a bit of feistiness!

If you enjoyed Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha then I think you’ll love this, but it just wasn’t for me.

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I think Angela’s Ashes is my favourite book set in Ireland. What is yours?

Categories
Audies Other

The Audies 2009

The results of The Audies 2009, the award for audio books, were announced recently. I love listening to audio books, but until recently I have only been able to listen to them in the car. Then last week my lovely husband bought me an iPod for my birthday, so now I can listen to them while I do my housework.

It is quite hard to find good audio books, as it takes more than a great book to make an entertaining listening experience. For this reason I am going to concentrate my 2009 audio book listening on the Audie list.

I didn’t realise that the Audies gave out so many different awards, so I can’t name them all, but here are the ones which caught my attention.

Audio Book of the Year
The Graveyard Book – Neil Gaiman

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Thriller/Supense Winner
Child 44 – Tim Rob Smith

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Literary Fiction Winner
Elmer Gantry – Sinclair Lewis

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Multi-Voiced Performance Winner
Mudbound – Hilary Jordan

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Fiction – Winner
The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society – Mary Ann Shaffer, Annie Barrows

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The only one of these I’ve actually listened to is The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society  and I loved it! The fact the book is written entirely in letter form makes it perfect for listening to, and I think it makes character recognition a lot easier, especially in the early stages of the book.

I have read Mudbound, it was one of my favourite reads of 2008, so I won’t be listening to it, but if you haven’t read it yet, then why not seek out the audio book version?

I’ve tracked down a copy of Child 44 at a library not far from me, so I plan to listen to that soon, and then I’ll try to find The Graveyard Book somewhere. Hopefully you’ll see a lot more audio book reviews on this blog now. I’m looking forward to listening to some great books!

Have you listened to any of these books?

What is your favourite audio book?

 

Categories
2009 Commonwealth Writer's Prize Recommended books

The Slap – Christos Tsiolkas

Winner of the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize 2009

I think that The Slap is the most male book I have ever read. If you want to gain an insight into the male mind, then this book is essential reading, but I warn you that it isn’t a pretty sight. It is packed with swear words, thoughts on sex and an obsession with ‘the male dangly bits!’ This book is the male version of ‘chick lit’ and gives an insight into a male’s view of society that is rarely talked about.

The book begins at a suburban barbecue, where a three-year-old child is running riot. The father of another child slaps the toddler, as the toddler tries to injure his son. Everyone is shocked, and the guests at the barbecue are divided between those who thought the three-year-old’s parents should have had more control over their son, and those who thought that no-one should ever slap a child, especially one who isn’t there own. The book switches between the views of several guests at the party, and I loved the way that my opinion was changed after hearing things from each new perspective.

…These kids, they’re unbelievable. It’s like the world owes them everything. They’ve been spoilt by their parents and by their teachers and by the fu**ing media to believe that they all have these rights but no responsibilities so they have no decency, no moral values whatsoever. They’re selfish, ignorant little s**ts. I can’t stand them.

The debate over parental responsibility and slapping has caused a big stir in Australia, where this book originates, but I think this book covers all angles of the subject well. The book is easy to read, fast paced and has a satisfying ending.

The graphic sex, abusive language and controversial subject means that this book isn’t for everyone, but it will generate debate and isn’t that a great thing for a book to do?

Recommended.

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Have you read this book? Were you shocked and offended?

Do you think it is right for such a graphic book to win a prestigious prize?