Category: 2013

Categories
2013 Uncategorized

First Novel by Nicholas Royle

First Novel

Five words from the blurb: creative, writing, mystery, blend, fact

First Novel is an original, experimental piece of meta-fiction. The central character teaches creative writing at a university in Manchester and has an obsession with first novels. The book is packed with literary references, but these are the only things in the book that are reliable. Everything else is ambiguous, leaving the reader to puzzle over events.

I normally love meta fiction, but for some reason First Novel didn’t work for me – I thought it was trying too hard to be clever. Lots of people love it, but I found it detached. The ambiguous writing style also annoyed me and I began to crave some actual facts:

In the morning I walk down the dismantled railway line as far as the bottom of Burnage Lane, where I stop and listen to the sound of my own breathing. I face a choice. Either I go left up Didsbury Road and catch a bus to Stockport in order to pick up the car, or I go straight on through the little tunnel and then down to the river and Overcoat Man. Either or.

It felt like a creative writing exercise, but perhaps it is supposed to come across that way and I just missed the satire? The majority of other reviews praise the shocking plot twist, but I’m afraid I wasn’t connected enough to the characters to care and so took the twist as just another example of the writer trying too hard.

On a positive note, I loved the way Manchester was portrayed in the book. I have been to some of the areas and it was lovely to see so many familiar streets on paper.

In the past I have struggled with other experimental novels (for example, The Rehearsal by  Eleanor Catton and Light Boxes by Shane Jones), but if you enjoy books that push the boundaries in this way then I think you’ll love First Novel. Many people are predicting this book will be longlisted for the Booker Prize. I think they’re probably right – it takes a special book to annoy me, but still make me want to read to the end!

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The thoughts of other bloggers:

…this is a progressive, intensely contemporary, brilliant work which challenges the easy certainties of the traditional novel. Words of Mercury

 If the writing assignment was to use all the most interesting techniques of postmodernism to create an intellectually stimulating, funny, serious and clever novel, Nicholas Royle has more than made the grade. Slightly Bookist

The real majesty comes from the construction of the novel and how easy it is to read despite the origami-like concepts. Dog Ear Discs

Categories
2013 Novella

Magda by Meike Ziervogel

Magda

WARNING: Review contains spoilers. If you are unfamiliar with Magda Goebbels’ story and are sensitive to spoilers I recommend that you read the book, not the review!

Five words from the blurb: Goebbells. Hitler, relationship, mother, foreboding

A few years ago I read The History of History by Ida Hattemer-Higgins, a fantastic, albeit slightly weird, book set in Berlin. It introduced me to the story of Magda Goebbels and numerous other families who committed suicide during WWII. Since then I’ve been intrigued by the forces that drive people to kill their own children;  so when I was offered a review copy of Magda I jumped at the chance to read another book on the subject. The fact this one was written by Meike Ziervogel, the founder of Peirene Press, was an added bonus. She has published lots of fantastic novellas over the years and I was interested to see what kind of book she’d write herself.

Magda was an illegitimate child who had a difficult start in life. Her problems seemed to be solved when she fell in love with Josef Goebbels, but his place by Hitler’s side only lead to further heartache.

Humans need hope and faith in order to live. Some are born with the ability to have faith, to have hope. They are the blessed ones, like the Führer, Father and Mother. Most people, however, are born without hope and faith, but they can learn it from a Führer. And then there are people like me. We have to struggle, to fight for our faith and hope. We have to be continuously aware of the enemy inside us. We are never allowed to let go.

The book gives a brief glimpse into Magda Goebbels’ early life, but as the second world war draws to a close, and the family move into Hitler’s bunker, the point-of-view switches to that of her eldest daughter, Helga. I was initially disappointed to see the focus taken away from Magda, but as the book reached its conclusion I realised what a clever structure this was.

The plot was simple and, despite knowing how the story ends, it was still a heart wrenching shock to read the final chapter. The book shares many similarities with Beside the Sea by Veronique Olmi*, one of my favourite books. They both have the same sense of foreboding that permeates every page and a simple clarity that allows the characters and their emotions to shine.

The book left me with many questions about Magda’s decisions, but filling in the gaps gave the story an enduring quality and left me wanting to know even more about the women in Hitler’s bunker.

This is a brief, but powerful book. I highly recommend it.

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*published by Meike’s Peirene Press

Categories
2013 Recommended books Uncategorized

The First Book of Calamity Leek by Paula Lichtarowicz

The First Book of Calamity Leek

Five words from the blurb: believe, world, constructed, books, explain

Calamity Leek lives with 11 ‘sisters’ in a large house. The garden is surrounded by a high wall and the girls are taught to fear life on the other side of it. ‘Mother’ and ‘Aunty’ impose a strict series of rules on the girls. These are explained in a book, along with a twisted version of history, which the children must learn by heart. As the girls grow up they begin to question their surroundings and the reason for their isolated life is slowly revealed.

This book was wonderfully atmospheric! The writing took a little bit of time to get used to, as the girls speak in their own dialect and have invented words for things, but once adjusted it was fascinating to learn about their life.

Aunty’s eye looked over us, and her mouth snapped open in a full-teethed smile. ‘My eye, but I’ve missed you, nieces. It shocks me to say it, but I really have.’Mr Stick went counting down the row one by one, and bounced on the belly of Adelaide Worthing. ‘But where was I? Oh yes, I was saying there’s a wonderful surprise waiting outside. Oh, but hush my mouth, I don’t want to ruin it. Chop-chop, girls, headscarves on, and out with you!’

I was gripped throughout, desperate to learn the reason for their captivity.

The book drew heavily from classic pieces of literature. I spotted similarities to  Never Let Me Go, Room and Lord of the Flies, but I’m sure there were many other literary references in there too.

The First Book of Calamity Leek wasn’t without faults – certain aspects of the plot didn’t quite add up and I was a little bit disappointed with (mild spoiler, highlight to read) the reason for their captivity. I was expecting a more profound, thought provoking revelation of a dystopian nature. But I’m willing to forgive these minor issues because the plot was so compelling. I was totally absorbed in their story, loved their debates about the outside world, and felt their conflicting emotions as they decided who they could trust. 

The structure of the book was also very clever. I admired the way that some scenes were flashbacks and these, along with the fact that certain words were given different names, meant that the reader had to work hard to decipher the truth.

The originality of the writing style was refreshing and I highly recommend this book to anyone looking for something a little different.

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Categories
2013 Historical Fiction Uncategorized

Secrecy by Rupert Thomson

Secrecy

Five words from the blurb: Italy, sculptor, hidden, dangers, revelations

Last year I read The Book of Revelation by Rupert Thomson and was impressed by its original and thought provoking plot. So when an unsolicited review copy of Thomson’s latest book popped through my letter box I was keen to see what he’d written. Secrecy is very different in style to The Book of Revelation, but his ability to write such accomplished books in different genres is a testament to his skill as an author.

Secrecy is a vivid piece of historical fiction set in 17th Century Italy. The central character, Zummo, is an artist who creates macabre models from wax. Zummo has many secrets and is forced to flee from his home town to Palermo, then Naples. Luckily he finds favour with Tuscany’s Medici ruler, Cosimo III, who commissions him to make a large wax sculpture, the nature of which is to be kept secret from everyone around them.

The writing was atmospheric and reminded me of Pure by Andrew Miller in the way it also contained depth and insight:

Secrecy has many faces. If it was imposed on you, against your will, it could be a scourge – the bane of your existence. On the other hand, you might well seek it out. Nurture it. Rely on it. You might find life impossible without it. But there was a third kind of secrecy, which you carried unknowingly, like a disease, or the hour of your death. Things that could be kept from you, maybe for ever.

The plot contained many twists and turns, but none were jaw-dropping – it was simply good old-fashioned story telling. Unfortunately I never connected emotionally with Zummo, but I remained interested in his story throughout. He was a fantastic character and I loved the fact that he was so flawed; encouraging the reader to be disgusted by him one moment and then feel sympathy for him the next.

This period of history was unfamiliar to me so I enjoyed learning at little about life in the Medici court. This book was clearly very well researched, but I liked the way that the historical facts were present, but never over-burdening.

Overall this was an enjoyable read and I’d recommend it to anyone looking for a good piece of literary historical fiction.

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Categories
2013 Audio Book

One Last Thing Before I Go by Jonathan Tropper (Audio Book)

One Last Thing Before I Go

Five words from the blurb: mistakes, divorced, refuse, operation, relationships

Jonathan Tropper is one of those authors that I’ve always wanted to try, but for some reason he never made it to the top of my TBR pile. When Sandy raved about the audio version of his latest book I added it straight to my wishlist. Since the book wasn’t published in the UK at the time she kindly offered to send her copy across to me. I’m so pleased that she did as this is a beautifully written book that works very well on audio.

One Last Thing Before I Go centres on Silver, a dysfunctional middle-aged man who is told that he will die unless he has surgery on his heart. Silver decides not to have the operation and is surprised when his ex-wife, daughter, and everyone else, try to persuade him that his life is worth living.

I have to admit that I initially struggled with this book. The first disc (of seven) bored me. I had no interest in this former rock star, his divorce, or his grumpy outlook on life.

Silver is forty-four years old, if you can believe it, out of shape, and depressed—although he doesn’t know if you call it depression when you have good reason to be; maybe then you’re simply sad, or lonely, or just painfully aware, on a daily basis, of all the things you can never get back.*

Then, part way into the second disc, Silver had his medical emergency and I was instantly engaged. The tone of the book changed as Silver began to think about his fate and I almost began to like him.

Many readers rave about the humour in this book, but I’m afraid it never made me laugh. The jokes were so dry that I barely registered their presence and I suspect that a lot of them went over my head as the Jewish culture is unfamiliar to me. Despite this problem I was impressed by the way Tropper made me sympathise with a man I’d never normally be interested in. His observations of a dysfunctional family felt realistic and there were many pieces of wisdom sprinkled through the text.

I initially thought the narrator was dry and boring, but as the book progressed I realised he was the perfect choice. He sounded exactly as I imagined Silver to be and his lack of enthusiasm reflected that of the character. By the end I was very impressed with everything he’d done.

One Last Thing Before I Go is one of those rare books that enables you empathise with characters that are initially repulsive. Recommended to those who like darker insights into dysfunctional families.

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Have you read this book?

Which of Jonathan Tropper’s books should I read next?

* Quote taken from Goodreads, as it is difficult to get quotes from audio books.

Categories
2013 Non Fiction Recommended books

Far From the Tree by Andrew Solomon

Far From The Tree: A Dozen Kinds of Love

Five words from the blurb: parents, exceptional, children, difference, acceptance.

Far From the Tree is the most important book I’ve ever read. It is a masterpiece of research; giving an impressive insight into human relationships and our tolerance of those who are different. If everyone read this book the world would be a better place.

I requested a review copy of this book because, as the mother of a child with autism, I was hoping for some insight into the way my relationship with my son might develop. The book not only managed to do this, but also had a profound impact on the way I view the rest of society. It made me appreciate the similarities that exist between groups that I’d previously thought of as quite separate and it gave me an insight into the problems faced by other parents around the world.

The title takes its name from the phrase “the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree” and, through 700 pages of outstanding non-fiction, Andrew Solomon investigates how parents cope when their children turn out to be different from themselves. The book begins with Solomon’s own experiences as a gay man, and continues to include chapters on many different groups, including the parents of children who are dwarfs, deaf or born from rape. I expected to find the chapter on autism the most interesting, but this wasn’t the case as the details were already familiar to me. I was surprised to discover that I was most interested in the conditions I knew less about – the chapter on schizophrenia was particularly eye-opening and I found myself sympathising with those parents, along with the parents of children who committed horrific crimes, the most.

I normally like to make a note of the important passages that I find whilst reading a book, but just 10 pages into this one I gave up. Almost every page contained some sort of profound insight and this was especially true of the first chapter, Son.

Insofar as our children resemble us, they are our most precious admirers, and insofar as they differ, they can be our most vehement detractors. From the beginning, we tempt them into imitation of us and long for what might be life’s most profound compliment: their choosing to live according to our own system of values. Though many of us take pride in how different we are from our parents, we are endlessly sad at how different our children are from us.

This opening section was one of the most impressive pieces of writing I’ve ever read and, if the length of the entire book intimidates you, I urge you to at least read the first 48 pages – they summarise the key findings of Solomon’s research and, although you’ll miss out on many wonderful examples of parents explaining their problems and accomplishments, you’ll come to realise how people can be united and supported by others who experience difference.

The only negative aspect of this book was that after a while some of the parent’s testimonies began to feel repetitive. Overall this was a good thing as it emphasized the fact that the parents of this diverse range of children all experienced the same set of emotions.

For me, the take home message of this book comes from Ari Ne’eem, a man with Asperger’s syndrome who is quoted in the chapter on autism:

Society has developed a tendency to examine things from the point of view of a bell curve. How far away am I from normal? What can I do to fit in better? But what is at the top of the bell curve? Mediocrity. That is the fate of American society if we insist on pathologising difference.

I cannot over-emphasize the importance of this book. It is a modern masterpiece and I’m sure it will be quoted from and referred to for many years to come.

Very highly recommended.

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