The Slap - Christos Tsiolkas

You know when you see a book in the charity shop that you have wanted read but haven't got round to buying and it is only 99p?

Ta-da!

The PR spin machine had been running at almost 6000 revs on The Slap by Christos Tsiolkas, particularly in the parenting circles, because of it's controversial story line. A man slaps a child in public. The child isn't his. I was sucked in and was excited to read it.

I expected an addictive thrilling ride, through emotional torment, character assignations, tears even. I didn't get that. Instead I got a slow meander through boring repetitive 'plot' development, a seeping, creeping plod. I did like that each section focuses on one of the characters, I would say main characters but we drift off with peripheral characters too that don't really do anything for the story or for me. Problem was, I just couldn't connect with any of them. Some you should loath, some you should feel pity for, but mostly I felt ambivalent.

I kept turning the pages, hopeful for a reprieve, a revelation but it didn't come. Frankly I just wanted to slap it!

Now you really must get yourselves over to MummyBarrow because she has started up a book club for which this is the first book. If you've read The Slap, add your thoughts either here on my blog or on MummyBarrows blog and join in. The August book for the club is The Man Who Climbed Out Of A Window And Disappeared by Jonas Jonasson.

A Cold Season by Alison Littlewood

Ah, Richard and Judy. How I love thee. I take your Book Club recommendations and devour them, safe in the knowledge that you know I don't have much time to choose books or even read these days (apart from toddler board books anyway). I trust you. And I want to read all of your books, ideally on an extended holiday, on a beach or by a pool, with a large G&T at my side and a bottle of factor 20. *snaps fingers* *wakes up*

So thank you WHSmith who answered my begging plea to join their review team for Spring's Book Club selection. It was a lucky dip kind of affair where I eagerly awaited a book shaped parcel to deposit itself on my mat. And sure enough "A Cold Season" by Alison Littlewood did just that.

In essence, this is the story of a mother who has retreated to a remote village that was once her childhood home, to try to build a cocoon of safety around herself and her son after the loss of her husband in Afghanistan. Her need for the familiar and also desire to run away from her most recent life, seem to be in direct contradiction and cause the reader to challenge her decision, that and the frequent references to her unhappy relationship with her father, a vicar. As the strap line on the cover warns, it will not be plain sailing.

In fact if you've even managed to turn the first page before realising that her decision to retreat is probably a bad idea, you are clearly not reading the same book that I was. She moves into an old mill that has been newly converted into flats but she has yet to see any neighbours, her son keeps getting a haunted look in is eyes, other parents at the school seem less than normal and there's an old man with an ancient dog who warns her of ill winds. Oh yes, and then it snows a lot, so when she does realise that she may have made a bad move, there are no phones or open roads. Three guesses how this is going to turn out!

This book is an easy read given that it is a psychological thriller but I did expect more from the plot than I got. The cult undercurrent that ran through the story could have been developed more to give more thrills and unexpected twists but the potential remained unfulfilled in my opinion. The characters were uncomplicated and predictable, and were a bit short of redeeming features to be honest. It is a rare day when I don't recommend a book but today is Leap Day so there you go.

Out of five I would give it two. Sorry Richard and Judy but this one wouldn't even cut the mustard on a beach, after several G&Ts.

My Three Books

What three books would you rescue from a burning building?

Thank you to A Mummy Too who has set the challenge to list your 3 favourite books.

Actually what I'm trying to do is identify one book for each stage of my life. One from my childhood, one from adulthood and one from the grave. No not really although that would be interesting wouldn't it? What book would you want to be buried with in case you weren't really dead and needed something to read to pass the time? But then you would need one of those clever book light thingummies. And spare batteries, because you know they would run out.
Have I digressed?
Oh yes, the third literary category is parenthood, what is your favourite book to read to your child? Do your kids like the same book night after night after night to the point that you can recite it with your eyes closed and the any sense of feeling is eradicated through sheer boredom? Not just me then.
So the challenge is to choose just one book from childhood, adulthood and parenthood.

Childhood
My love of mysteries started early with The Secret Seven, Enid Blyton.

Every Christmas and birthday I would ask for a new Secret Seven book and I would devour it immediately, right up to the last few pages when I would realise that it would soon be finished and I would have to wait months for the next one and I would savour the last few minutes of pleasure. Sadly, Mum and Dad are not big on childhood mementos and the books have all gone so I am going to have to re-buy the collection to ensure that my children get to experience The Secret Seven.
After I had consumed all of the books in the Secret Seven Series, I must have progressed to another series of mysteries which (given old age) I can no longer remember, before I moved on to status books, you know, ones that were at least an inch thick and involved *ahem* romance, like Riders.

Adulthood
How is it possible to choose just one book? If I was to choose a classic, having studied English Literature, it would be a Jane Austin, with Pride and Prejudice being my favourite. But the truth is I am a sucker for a good thriller, a suspense, a mystery (see Childhood) so an Agatha Christie could be top of the list but don't ask me to choose just one of her iconic stories.
Racking my brains and scanning the 'library' shelves, there are some great books there that are worthy of the short list like Donna Tartt's "The Secret History", a page turner that has got me turning the pages a couple of times, Margaret Atwood's "The Blind Assassin" which I could not put down on one memorable holiday or Anne Rice's "The Witching Hour" is the only fantasy novel I have ever read that grabbed me from the start and wouldn't let me put it down.
But the one book that rises above them all is Tracy Chevalier's "Girl With A Pearl Earring".

Much like I would be desperate to get the next Secret Seven mystery in my childhood, I pace the pavement outside the bookshop to get the new Tracey Chevalier novel. Her style is magical, simplistic and evocative, taking a slice of history and spinning a lace like web of a story around it that traps you and will not let you go until the final page is turned and you cannot help but let out a little sigh.


Parenthood
One classic that is right up there for me is "Peepo" by Janet and Allan Ahlberg. Lovely illustrations that reveal new pleasures every time you read it, and one that I will keep for many years to come.
A more modern book is one a friend of mine bought for my eldest son for his 4th birthday. It is about poo so of course, is a great hit in our house. It is "The Mole Who Knew It Was None Of His Business" by Werner Holzwarth.

Lovely illustrations, great animal characters and the best descriptions of animal poo you will ever read. I defy you to get bored of reading this to your children or for your children to stop giggling.

On that note I am off to colour co-ordinate my book collections.

What would your three books be?

Join in with A Mummy Too and have a gander at what other people class as their top three books.

The Help by Kathryn Stockett - A Review

You may have already read Actually Mummy's guest review of the film The Help but now you can read my review of the book, and what a corker it is.

I was totally absorbed by the deliciousness of this book, the characters, the writing and the story line. Each dripped with a sweetness and lightness that, despite the dark underlying theme, brought smiles to my face.

Skeeter, the daughter of a cotton farmer in Mississippi, is an aspiring writer who lands a job on the local newspaper writing a household tips column. Knowing next to nothing about housework, she enlists the assistance of Aibileen the maid to her friend Elizabeth. Talking to her reveals her deceased son's idea to write a book about the black maids in service and their tales, and this gets her naturally journalistic mind plotting. Together with another maid, Minny who has a bit of a reputation locally for talking back, Skeeter sets out to write the book.

Set in the 1960's when crossing racial boundaries was not tolerated, the relationships that develop between the black Help and the white employers is startlingly rich, involved  and sometimes very candid. It is interesting to see how the boundaries are crossed, a little here, and a little there, where a black maid is trusted to practically bring up a white child, just as Skeeter was brought up by her maid, yet they are required to use a separate bathroom because they are dirty and germ ridden. Today this seems completely outrageous and contradictory yet this was the way of life in this era.

I hate using the word 'journey' unless you are packing a bag and using some form of transport to get you somewhere, but following how Skeeter's character develops and grows as she returns from college and her career aspirations unfold, remind me exactly of a journey that is full of adventure. There are laughs along the way and a dalliance with romance, but the undercurrent of tension as each woman fears they may be found out, is perfectly balanced with day to day life.

All I can say is read this book. Even if you have seen the film, it is worth breaking the unwritten rule for. (The one where you should never watch the film of the book or read the book of the film).

(I've just written the unwritten rule now. Oh.)

The Help - A Review

This is a guest post from the very lovely (and ever so slightly lippy ;-) ) Actually Mummy who was treated by Disney to a fab night at the movies courtesy of Britmums.


"Mummy has been treated well this week, and me and the Bug have been abandoned children yet again. Her blogging friend invited her to a glitzy film screening of "The Help" in London, but couldn’t go at the last minute* and gave both her tickets to Mummy. She tried to get another blogger to go with her, but for some reason none of them were free (maybe it’s her reputation for drinking and talking rubbish – I’ve told her people like to get a word in edgeways sometimes).


Nor could she get a babysitter to allow Daddy to accompany her. Do you know what she did? She made our regular babysitter (who could only manage until 7.30) rope in some of her friends for the later stints, engineering a kind of babysitting relay of girls we (and she) had never met! Off she trotted with never a backward glance for ‘pre-screening drinks’. Oh yes, I know where Mummy’s priorities lie!

So, did she think the film was worth the weekend of reproach I have doled out? Well, she read Kathryn Stockett’s book a while ago, loved it, and has discussed it at her book club, so it wasn’t boding well. You know how it goes, love the book, hate the film and vice versa. (Although personally if they made a film of all 113…114….115…Rainbow Fairy books I would promise to love each and every one of them!).

Well, she came home happy, and it wasn’t just from the wine at the event. She says "The Help" is a great watch, although probably one to watch with the girls. Emma Stone as Skeeter was way more beautiful than depicted in the book, but was so engaging as the would-be journalist with a bee in her bonnet about the shoddy treatment of African-American maids at the hands of white homeowners in Mississippi during the 1960’s. Viola Davis shone with the dignity of Aibileen’s character in the book, but Mummy was surprised that Octavia Spencer as Minny was not as feisty as her literary counterpart. Even so, this is a great story, with some tears along the way, as well as a couple of wine-snorting moments of giggling. I would have liked to see that: 40 bloggers snorting wine must be an interesting sight! It seems that Mummy and Daddy had a great evening, and must surely owe Five Go Blogging a lovely treat sometime soon!

And how did our evening go? Pretty well, actually. We wound up our regular babysitter with the usual fun and games, and then conned the new girls into the belief that it is entirely normal to need warm milk and a packet of raisins an hour or two after going to bed!"


Thank you for the great review Actually Mummy. I hope daddy wasn't too bored and that the babysitters have recovered! I look forward to seeing Mummy very soon when it is highly possible more babysitters will be required!  

*I'm still narked about that!

Room by Emma Donoghue - Review

 As a parent you might pick up this book, read the blurb and think 'Maybe a bit too sinister and likely to render me a quivering useless wreck'.

Yes I know, not exactly a glowing review opening sentence but realistically, who would want to read about a teenage girl being kidnapped, held captive for years, being repeatedly raped, conceiving, giving birth in an outbuilding and bringing up a child in one single room? Well me apparently!

The concept of this book I thought was brilliant, very current and definitely appealing to a dark side of my personality. I was intrigued to see how the author would develop a plot, create narative and keep me hooked when there are essentially 2 characters and a single room. But she did.

The book is narrated by the son of the captive girl who describes his adventures and explores his world in a wonderfully innocent and beautiful way. He tells us about his world in such depth and colour that you would not possibly believe that it is just one room. But to him that is all he has ever known. No windows, just one door through which the night man comes and brings food and sunday treats and takes away rubbish. He has never seen the night man because when he comes he must hide in the wardrobe and wait there until Mama says he can come out.

As he grows, so does his curiosity and so does his Mama's anguish and depression. Yet there is hope. There is another world outside the room.

On occasion, the boys voice wasn't quite right and didn't fit a 5 year old. He used some very advanced vocabulary mixed with some niave words that just jarred for me.  But having said that, he isn't a normal 5 year old is he? And I much preferred the first half of the book to the second half, finding that it was just too offhand and not really believable. I did lose interest towards the end but the writing was excellent and a novel I would recommend, if only for the first half of the book!

I read this book as part of Dulwich Divorcee's Book Club! I look forward to the next interesting read!

Started Early, Took My Dog by Kate Atkinson

I'm joining in with Dulwich Divorcee's new book club who set this latest novel by Kate Atkinson as our homework for the month.

First of all, I'm bloomin' impressed with myself for finishing it within time. Miracle! I cannot go to sleep without having read something to switch my brain off from the normal drudgery. But normally I manage 3 or 4 pages before words start swimming in front of my eyes or I realise I've just read a whole paragraph and have absolutely no idea at all what I've read. Useless, I tell you. In addition I had 2 days without my reading glasses and couldn't actually read it! (Note to self: Get spare glasses)

Anyhow, I was delighted when this book won the vote (not sure if there was an actual vote) because a) I totally love Kate Atkinson and have read all her books, b) it was on my to-read list anyway and c) I found a copy in the local charity shop for 75p. Overall, a result.

On to the review.

Jackson Brodie, private investigator. With a name like that, what's not to lust like? He drifts around, picks up waifs and strays here and there and somehow ends up piecing things together in a not all together organised way. I like that about people. He's had a wife and a couple of significant others which has resulted in a disparate family so he wanders, continually searching for home. On his travels he stumbles upon Tracy, a retired police woman, now a player in shopping centre security, Courtney, a young girl being dragged through life, Tilly, an elderly actress about to be killed off and The Ambassador, a dog who needs rescuing. All the characters are drifting in one way or another which inevitably leads to collisions on the way, some fortuitous and others regrettable.

The main plot of the book follows Tracy who as a young PC was involved with an event 35 years previously. This event links so much of the plot together and is narrated as flashbacks through the novel, revealing just enough to keep the suspense going. I did get ever so slightly tangled up with the characters at one point (for heavens sake, there aren't that many! Must have been exhausted brain) but soon worked it out again.

The gentle pace and simple style of Atkinson's writing absorbs you into their world, and I found it was incredibly easy read, even after an exhausting day. There is a smattering of humour, enough background to connect with how Brodie got to where he is today (see Case Histories etc. for the preceding books featuring Brodie) and a convincing easy to follow plot to keep the pages turning. I suspect there will be another novel because there was one aspect of the story line left hanging which I felt should have been concluded, so I eagerly anticipate the next instalment.


I would definitely recommend this book for an easy, entertaining mystery without a hint of gore.

Now head over to Dulwich Divorcee to see what other readers thought of it.