Book Review

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I enjoyed this book so very much. I think I would have loved it – and wept just as many tears over it, even without being an ardent cat lover. It is about so many things that relate to the human (and animal) condition and the many connections that we all make throughout our individual lifespans (and perhaps beyond). Even dedicated cynics might feel they have a little bit of grit or something in their eyes when reading this – and perhaps a far wider range of feelings than simple sadness and joy.

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If you didn’t know before, I’m a new volunteer at Ketts books and am a member of the young adult reading group. I have recently read Miss Peregrines home for peculiar children and found it thoroughly enjoyable. Definitely found it strange at first because I don’t normally read those types of books. It was a real page turner and it had larger than life characters with amazing abilities: from being able to make fire out of nothing to being invisible. The fast pace was sustained throughout and many parts were suspenseful. I found that it was a mixture of lots of different genres but particularly focused on the super natural genre. In my opinion the main character was realistic and very relate-able(apart from his conflicts with monsters of course!). I enjoyed it so much that I think I’ll read the next one, its a trilogy (I think). Normally I read books by Ben Kane, Terry Pratchett and George R.R Martin (Song of Ice and fire or better known as Game of Thrones). Recently I’ve started reading classics like: Fahrenheit 451, The Iliad, Brave new world, 1984 and others. Definitely a must read from me. The only negative I have about this book is I sometimes found the pictures jarring because I like to imagine the characters. I’d give it five stars. Looking forward to discussing further the pros and the cons of the book in question. Looking forward also to see what books you’d recommend and enjoyed.

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Fans of His Dark Materials have waited nearly 20 years for more about Lyra; I decided that I could not wait until Christmas but had to buy my copy of the first volume of Philip Pullman’s new trilogy straight away, and of course I was not disappointed.

This is the story of how 6 month old Lyra is taken to safety as the waters rise around Oxford. Except it is not really Lyra’s story, but, that of Malcolm, the 11 year old owner of the canoe La Belle Sauvage, and his companion Alice (15 and rather more of a cynic), their courage and determination against a range of foes: the forces of the Consistorial Court of Discipline, the Office of Child Protection and a fearsomely, vicious character called Gerard Bonneville, who Pullman may have overused, including him in one too many scenes for my liking.

This book is based in the same fantasy world as Northern Lights – an Oxford which is at once similar, but, at the same time old-fashioned and different with its ‘anbaric’ lighting, and a cast of characters who all have their own daemons, animal representations of their individual personalities and an extension of their characters.

This book will appeal to readers from 12+, creating a new generation of fans and sustaining his existing readership, engaging readers of all ages in conversations about books, Dust, daemons, the forces of authority, and individuals coming together and risking their lives to defeat illiberal forces – parallels of a sort can of course be made with Britain today but these would probably be misleading. Pullman has revealed that Books Two and Three of the new trilogy will jump forward in time, and may pick up where His Dark Materials finished. Not so long to wait this time …enjoy the first volume over Christmas.

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This is the first in a planned quartet of novels from Ali Smith using the seasons as both direct reference and metaphor. In this book the main events are taking place during the transition from midsummer to autumn 2016, as Daniel (100 years old) is near the end of his life. Elisabeth,32 years old, has known Daniel since she chose him as the focus for a homework project when she was eight. Sitting at Daniel’s bedside, she reflects on her life, her career, and post-referendum Britain, but, most of all Daniel’s legacy of the stories and the discussions they had on art and books.

Autumn has been described as the first Brexit novel, possibly more by an accident of timing than overwhelming political intent; however in a brilliant two-page chapter, which encapsulates the way she uses language to describe emotions and to paint pictures, the author describes the schism affecting the country, divided by different beliefs, hopes, fears and a huge feeling of uncertainty. As we learn more we wonder whether Daniel has seen better times in the post-war years of social change, but, we also learn about the wartime experiences that he had not shared with Elisabeth. With her he was always positive, his first question was always ‘what are you reading’, and then they would talk about books, mind pictures, or artists he had known.

Smith conjures dream landscapes of organic imagery and contrasts this with some of the harsher realities of what is happening to the countryside and by extension to the country as a whole. It is a thought provoking read, shot through with a love of life, colour and contrast; we also fall slightly in love with Daniel and wish we had had such a teacher. It is a novel you will probably want to quickly re-read to pick up on all the imagery you missed first time, and I am now looking forward to Winter, the second novel, which is published this month.