Small Island<\/a> by Andrea Levy.\u00a0 It was Sangeeta’s choice.\u00a0 Jon enjoyed it.\u00a0 It was, he said, very well done.\u00a0 The characters were convincing.\u00a0 he was surprised when Bernard started narrating his own story – Jon had assumed that he’d be the villain character, and that he’d never introduce himself.\u00a0 He liked the way that the different points of view contradicted each other.\u00a0 It was sometimes heavy handed, and Jon wasn’t particularly keen on the fly-and-dog-shit brooch.\u00a0 Dog shit.\u00a0 It’s quite a pleasant phrase isn’t it?\u00a0 It trips off the tongue in such a way as bring a smile to even the glummest face.\u00a0 Jon didn’t think the book was profound, but it was easy to read – although the opening chapter, Queenie in Africa, was rubbish.\u00a0 He read somewhere that Small Island is the most popular book for reading groups at the moment, and that just about says it all.\u00a0 He reiterated that Time’s Arrow was awful.<\/p>\nIlona enjoyed the book.\u00a0 She read it very quickly over a week – she thought that she’d missed bookclub and thereby cunningly escaped the tedium of having to read a book.\u00a0 On discovering that she hadn’t missed anything after all, she panicked and read it in a rush – discovering that reading isn’t so bad after all.\u00a0 She liked the different perspectives on the same incidents, and she found Small Island to be a real page turner, an easy read.\u00a0 It was interesting to see the way the characters developed.\u00a0 I may have gotten some of that wrong.\u00a0 Whilst writing the minutes I also seemed to be busy inventing new letters – the result being that I can’t actually read my notes.\u00a0 Ilona also liked the way that the characters spoke in dialect.\u00a0 She could ‘hear’ them speak.\u00a0 John concurred.\u00a0 Ilona thought that the story was quite upbeat, and she couldn’t take it entirely seriously.<\/p>\n
James thought that the book was very realistic – he could visualise the period.\u00a0 He had mixed feelings about it, also the balance was in favour of his positive thoughts.\u00a0 He was particularly concerned by the opening chapters – he thought that the book would be in-your-face and worthy.\u00a0 Most of his fears were allayed until the coincidence, the reappearance of Michael Roberts, which James didn’t think quite rang true (i.e. he thought it was bollocks).\u00a0 On the upside, he liked the title.\u00a0 And he liked the way that nothing sensational happened.\u00a0 He felt that it was steeped in realism, with credible characters.\u00a0 So, overall, okay.\u00a0 With a few niggles.<\/p>\n
I agreed that the coincidence was a load of bollocks.\u00a0 I found Small Island to be quite slow to get into, and it certainly wasn’t a page turner.\u00a0 I didn’t dislike it, but I wasn’t gripped either – and so it took me longer than usual to read.\u00a0 I liked the way the characters evolved as the story progressed – there was no black and white, just shades of grey.\u00a0 Bernard turned out to have a redeeming feature, and Queenie displayed the capacity to be callous.\u00a0 The only character that I felt was good through-and-through was Gilbert.\u00a0 I certainly wasn’t gripped enough to want to read anything else by that author.<\/p>\n
Sangeeta found Small Island to be a well written and\u00a0touching novel that explored the theme of post war racism in a moving and sometimes humorous manner. She liked the way the characters were developed throughout the book and thought that the topic was handled sensitively. She thought that Queenie was probably the best character in terms of her na\u00efvety at what to expect from the English way of life and her sad disillusionment at the reality. I guess that since Queenie was English, Sangeeta actually meant Hortense. She liked Gilbert the least, finding him a bit boring, and she thought that some of the war dialogue was a bit long. Overall though she really enjoyed the book – very insightful and a good story.<\/p>\n
Sarah didn’t really believe in the characters in Small Island and she didn’t really like them either.\u00a0 She enjoyed the picture painted of Jamaica in terms of the carnival, the dress, the culture and the food. She was interested in they viewed England as a mother nation even though England couldn’t care less and, as they discovered, treated them very badly when they made it ‘home’.\u00a0 Gilbert was okay and Sarah wanted something good to happen regarding Michael and Ms. Trouble but it never did.\u00a0 Maybe it’s because nothing really ‘good’ happens in Small Island that Sarah lost interest.\u00a0 Everything was tough for everyone and no-one was particularly happy. It gets to be depressing after a while!<\/p>\n
Jon also read art books.\u00a0 He’s halfway through his course, and he’s enjoying it.\u00a0 He finds medieval perspective boring though.\u00a0 He’s also been reading Chronicles by Bob ‘short for Kate’ Dylan.\u00a0 It’s terrific.\u00a0 There’s no ghost writer, and there’s a great sense of atmosphere.\u00a0 He could smell the clubs that Bob played it.\u00a0 It’s a pity that Bob forgot so much because he was drugged up – but he liked the sense of bewilderment in waking up in a new place with no idea how he got there.\u00a0 It was a bit like On The Road.\u00a0 Only good. Fantastic.\u00a0 He’s gearing up for Chronicles II.<\/p>\n
Emphyrio by Jack Vance is good fun.\u00a0 It’s about a kid growing up on a planet dedicated to making arts & crafts, which are then sold across the galaxy.\u00a0 The heroes father is executed for using a photocopier.\u00a0 Jon bought the book because he liked the look of the cover. And that’s true. I didn’t make it up.<\/p>\n
Jon will be enjoying The Smoking Diaries next month.<\/p>\n
Ilona half read The Dice Man by Luke Rheinhart. It’s about a man who makes all his daily decisions by rolling dice and, Jon says, is inspired by a song by The Fall. It’s readable, but not recommendable.\u00a0 Not exciting at all, and so she got distracted by another book\u2026<\/p>\n
\u2026Which was also rubbish. The blurb for Nobody Loves a Ginger Baby by Laura Marnie suggested that it was comical.\u00a0 It wasn’t. The best bit was the ending – but only because Ilona could get on with reading something better.<\/p>\n
The Journal of Mortifying Moments by Robin Hardy is an easy read about a woman with relationship problems, it’s written like a diary.\u00a0 James commented that it sounds like a hell-fest, but apparently it’s very funny.<\/p>\n
Dot Homme by Jane Moore is about a woman who was bought an ad on a dating site by a friend.\u00a0 With friends like that eh? Apparently it’s very good.<\/p>\n
Ilona did read one good, non trashy book.\u00a0 The Pact by Jodi Picault is about a murder investigation into a suicide pact.\u00a0 It’s well written, and told from many different points of view. She has nothing else do say – but she said it with enthusiasm.<\/p>\n
James read my minutes. They were great.\u00a0 The best work of fiction that he read that week.\u00a0 He also wrote a speech – and, apparently, that was great too.<\/p>\n
He also read La Pest by Albert Camus.\u00a0 He read it in French, in case you didn’t guess from the title.\u00a0 It’s an allegory for the invasion of France by the Germans.\u00a0 It’s steeped in realism and very good.<\/p>\n
To Kill a Mocking Bird by Harper Lee is terrific.\u00a0 Actually,\u00a0 James hasn’t finished reading it yet so he shouldn’t really be talking about it here.\u00a0 He hasn’t even got to the trial yet.\u00a0 He’s loving it, and knows that he won’t be disappointed.<\/p>\n
The Empire position of the month is standing at the bar.\u00a0 Getting drunk.<\/p>\n
I read The Riddle of the Titanic by Robin Gardiner.\u00a0 It was a big load of conspiratorial clap-trap.\u00a0 Utter shite.\u00a0 I didn’t finish it.\u00a0 Apparently the Titanic didn’t sink.\u00a0 It was another ship.\u00a0 For the record, I think it was the Titanic that sank – but even if it didn’t, it was still a bloody big disaster.\u00a0 End of story.\u00a0 And no, I don’t think that the White Star Line deliberately sank her.\u00a0 Piffle.<\/p>\n
Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince by J. K. Rowling was crap.\u00a0 Harry Potter is an annoying little shit.\u00a0 And I was still conned into reading the damn book.\u00a0 And you know what?\u00a0 When the next book comes out I just know that I’ll end up reading that too.<\/p>\n
Fortunately, The Rotters Club by Jonathan Coe was great.\u00a0 Unputdownable.\u00a0 I was only a toddler at the time the book was set, but I still remember the sights and smells clearly.\u00a0 Besides, the knackered old busses and unionism persisted into the eighties.\u00a0 It describes the town where I grew up.\u00a0 I will be buying the sequel.\u00a0 Pure nostalgic delight.<\/p>\n
The Model by Ana\u00efs Nin is great.\u00a0 Get it now in Penguin 70’s.\u00a0 She is the mistress of erotic story telling.\u00a0 Can’t be beaten.\u00a0 Hmm.\u00a0 Actually, beatings have been known to take place in her stories!<\/p>\n
Sangeeta also read Morality for Beautiful Girls, The Kalahari Typing School for Men, The Cupboard Full of Life and In the Company of Cheerful Ladies. These are the remaining books in the No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency series by Alexander McCall Smith and, as you can see, she is addicted! The books are highly entertaining, very light reading but full of wry humour.<\/p>\n
The Time Travellers Wife by Audrey Niffenegger is a very good book about a man who time travels through life and about his relationship with his eventual wife. It has a slightly confusing style as it moves between years and places but it is worth persevering. The description of how their relationship progresses is, at times, very moving – the girls will probably need their hankies at the end.<\/p>\n
The Pianist by Wladyslaw Szpilman is an excellent book. It is Szpilman’s personal account of his life in German occupied Warsaw during the second world war and his extraordinary struggle to survive the torture and horror of this time. It’s really well written and manages to avoid being over sentimental despite the emotional torment and heartbreak he suffered. It was made into a harrowing film.<\/p>\n
White Teeth by Zadie Smith is an interesting book which covers the interlinking lives of three different cultures and their family backgrounds. Sangeeta really enjoyed it and found it quite humourous.<\/p>\n
Brother and Sister by Joanna Trollope explores an adopted brother and sister’s struggle to find their biological parents and the effect it has on their lives. It’s entertaining but nothing special.<\/p>\n
The Mango Season by Amulya Malludi is about an Indian girl who gets sent to America to study and work. She gets engaged to an American, but when she returns to India (during the mango season) she finds that her family are trying to arrange her marriage. The book explores her changed attitudes to the traditional views of her family, and her eventual revelation about her true life. The book is also interspersed with delicious mango recipes.<\/p>\n
The Best a Man Can Get by John O’Farrell is a light and entertaining read about a man who leads a double life, unable to deal with true domesticity. Eventually his wife finds out he has been spending half his time living in a bachelor flat and she is not amused. It’s a entertaining look at how the male mind works.<\/p>\n
Shopaholic Abroad by Sophie Kinsella is the second book in the shopaholic series and it is just as hilarious as the first. It’s nothing intellectual, but it is a laugh out loud read.<\/p>\n
Sarah did read some other books.\u00a0 I know.\u00a0 I saw her reading them.\u00a0 She can’t remember what they were though.\u00a0 Actually, neither can I.\u00a0 So perhaps I only imagined seeing her read them.\u00a0 It’s possible.<\/p>\n
I feel I should also point out the I saw The Pixies live.\u00a0 Again.\u00a0 They were great.\u00a0 They always are.\u00a0 Kim Deal is a Goddess.\u00a0 Sarah saw them too, and was most taken with Joey Santiago’s superb axemanship. David Lovering is the human incarnation of Animal – no-one bangs the drums like he bangs the drums.\u00a0 And as for Frank Black.\u00a0 I wish I could howl like he can howl.\u00a0 Tame?\u00a0 Not even slightly. Jon also saw The Pixies, and he loved them too.\u00a0 He saw them at Reading.\u00a0 James an Ilona didn’t see them.\u00a0 They are the weakest link.\u00a0 But I’ll forgive them.<\/p>\n
This month we will mostly be reading The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon.\u00a0 I’ve only read the blurb so far, but it looks like it’ll be a good ‘un.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Okay.\u00a0 This is my second stab at writing the minutes.\u00a0 The first was creative.\u00a0 Even by my standards.\u00a0 It was also entertainingly abusive.\u00a0 But you won’t be reading any of it because a) I absent mindedly threw it away.\u00a0 Irrevocably. Or b) I only dreamed I wrote them\u00a0 – in which case I need to … <\/p>\n
Continue reading “Small Island”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[6],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.45rpmsoftware.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.45rpmsoftware.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.45rpmsoftware.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.45rpmsoftware.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.45rpmsoftware.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=57"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.45rpmsoftware.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.45rpmsoftware.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=57"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.45rpmsoftware.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=57"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.45rpmsoftware.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=57"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}