Five From the Archive (no.11)

It's been a few weeks since I last did a Five From the Archive, and perhaps My Life in Books has brought a few new readers (hello!), so I'll quickly explain what it is.  Once I'd been blogging for five years, I had a glance back at the hundreds of books I'd written about, and thought that it was a shame that wonderful titles would be lost in the annals of my archive.  So every week now and then, I'll pick a theme and choose five great books from my review archive to fit it - it's fun finding unexpected connections between much-loved books.  An index of all previous Five From the Archive posts can be found here.  This week, inspired by the wonderful school scene in Blue Remembered Hills, I have picked an apposite theme:

Five... Books About School

1.) St. Clare's series (1941-5) by Enid Blyton

In short: I could fill this list with children's school stories, but I'll stick with this series which I loved as a child - mischievous (but, of course, good-hearted) twins Pat and Isabel get up to schoolgirl antics.

From my review: "Blyton appears to have had a pathological hatred of 'tell-tales' (which always seems to me to be invented as an excuse for teachers to ignore the majority of children's squabbles) and a fervour for sport, and Janet (in the 'good egg' category) is so bluntly rude that I wanted to push her down a well - despite all these things, I've been joyously reliving my youth through these books."

2.) More Women Than Men (1933) by Ivy Compton-Burnett

In short: My favourite ICB novel so far, the politics and in-fighting of a girls' school provide a perfect setting for Compton-Burnett's characteristic wit and discord.  There is only one line of dialogue from a pupil...

From my review: "Would people talk like this?  No, definitely not.  Would people act like this?  Probably no.   But would people feel like these characters feel?  Yes - absolutely - and it is Ivy Compton-Burnett's genius that she can interweave the genuine and the bizarre."

3.) Curriculum Vitae (1992) by Muriel Spark

In short: I would pick The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie if I'd ever reviewed it here - so this is the next best thing.  Spark's brilliant autobiography includes wonderful sections on Miss Christina Kay, Spark's teacher and the inspiration for Miss Jean Brodie.

From my review: "There are definitely signs of Spark-the-novelist in the structuring of the autobiography.  Her usual trick of playing around with time makes an appearance, but it's the enticingly disjointed beginning which made me realise Spark-the-autobiographer was no real distance from Spark-the-novelist."

4.) Dusty Answer (1927) by Rosamond Lehmann

In short: We follow only-child Judith Earle through childhood and emotional student days (I'm stretching a point), as she is forever tethered to the family that lived next door.

From my review: "It takes a talented writer to write about childhood without the novel feeling like a children's book, and Lehmann achieves this wonderfully."

5.) The Well-Tempered Clavier (2008) by William Coles

In short: A cross between Othello and Notes on a Scandal, an affair between pupil and piano teacher at Eton becomes a study in jealousy.

From my review: "The Well-Tempered Clavier is a beautiful book, managing to use a simple narrative voice without a consequently bland style - honesty, beauty, and passion pervade the novel, but so do humour, youthfulness and energy."


As always - your suggestions, please!

Five From the Archive (no.10)

In case you've not spotted this feature before at SiaB, it's one where I look back through my 5+ years of blogging, and pick out five reviews of good books which have an interesting or unusual connection...

Reading At Freddie's made me wonder why I hadn't previously thought of today's FFTA topic, since it is one which I actively seek in the books I read... and then I was surprised by how few I could find in my past reviews.  But enough to compile a list for you!  (I would have included Wise Children by Angela Carter, but it already appeared under books about twins.)  As always, feel free to use the idea and logo, and do add your own suggestions in the comments - in fact, this is a category for which I'd really value suggestions, especially novels, so put your thinking caps on!  (oh, and the cartoon took AGES, so... you'd make my day if you said something nice about it!)

Five... Books About The Theatre

...that theatre...

1.) To Tell My Story (1948) by Irene Vanbrugh

In short: A largely forgotten name now, Dame Irene was once a much-loved stage actress - she was Gwendoline in the first The Importance of Being Earnest; co-founded R.A.D.A., and appeared in the first British colour film.  She also appeared in many of A.A. Milne's plays, which is what attracted me to her autobiography.

From my review: "Although Vanbrugh rarely delves into her private life too deeply, she does talk about becoming a widow. Much of To Tell My Story moves away from tales of specific performances to more general, and very fascinating, ruminations upon all manner of aspects of acting - from etiquette, to creating a part, to being in a revival."

2.) And Furthermore (2010) by Judi Dench and John Miller

In short: One of Britain's - nay, the world's - favourite actresses gives anecdotes from her many years of success on stage and screen.  (It makes for a fascinating contrast and comparison with Irene Vanbrugh's autobiography.) 

From my review: "As a rule, a biography focuses on the career and an autobiography on the childhood - or so I have found - so it's nice to have an autobiography which looks mostly at the area which interests me most. Because it is Dench's decades of theatrical experience which captivate me - each play seems to come with its own amusing or intriguing incidents, and I love the atmosphere conveyed of being part of the company."

3.) The Town in Bloom (1965) by Dodie Smith

In short: Friends reuniting and reminiscing 45 years after their youth spent in a 'club' kicks off a novel about a girl's life in the 1920s theatrical world, with some intrigue and romance thrown in.  First half brilliant, second half tedious... the brilliant first half earns the novel its place in FFTA.

From my review: "It was a brave, and a delicious, decision on Dodie Smith's part to make Mouse no prodigy - she is an appalling actress, and no amount of advice from Crossway can make her anything else. So, instead, she starts working in one of the theatre offices with Eve Lester, a kind, sensible, and wise woman in an environment of those who are often kind, but rarely the rest."

4.) Being George Devine's Daughter (2006) by Harriet Devine

In short: Best known to most of us as a blogger, Harriet's father was the director George Devine.  This book combines autobiography with biography of him, and offers the fascinating perspective of a child who met everyone in the theatre.

From my review: "It must be tempting, writing about oneself and one's family, to have all sorts of references to jokes the reader won't understand, or people who are relevant for one story but never again. Harriet doesn't do this - there is nothing here that would be edited out if the book were fiction; it all comes together to form a structured narrative whole. Throughout it all, Harriet's tone is beautifully honest and thoughtful, without being unduly introspective or (conversely) coolly detached. It is the perfect tone for autobiography."

5.) The Dover Road (1921) by A.A. Milne

In short: Not about theatre per se, but I had to include a play somewhere.  An eloping couple found their car breaks down outside a very curious hotel... and meet a very interfering (and hilarious) proprietor.

From my review: "Yes, the scenario is a little contrived, but who cares about that - The Dover Road is a very funny play about the benign meddling of Latimer and the various mismatched pairings under his roof."

Five From the Archive (no.9)

I'm still enjoying these jaunts down memory lane - I'm not sure how much longer I'll be able to think of themes which encompass five great books each time, but even with 45 titles down, I have about 300 other reviews to consider... fun!  Do use the Five From the Archive idea and badge, if you so wish.

Five... Books About Holidays

This may be cruel, as the summer quietly dies, but (if it helps) some of these holidays are far from desirable...

1.) The Enchanted April (1922) by Elizabeth von Arnim

In brief: Four seemingly incompatible women join each other for a month in beautiful Italy - which has a powerful effect on them all.

From my review: "The castle is described beautifully, and especially the garden - attention drawn often to the wistaria, which happens to be my favourite plant. Everywhere is brightly sunny, airy, thick with the scent of flowers and bursting with nature. It could have been horribly overdone, but E von A strikes just the right note."

2.) Illyrian Spring (1935) by Ann Bridge

In brief: Another idyllic trip to Italy sets off an intriguing friendship between (Lady) Grace Kilmichael and young artist Nicholas.  Heavy on snobbery, but made up for by being simply beautiful.

From my review: "There are a few, a very few, authors who manage to write about the visual in ways which focus upon characters' emotions and their responses, even if this isn't stated explicitly, and that works for me. I'm thinking the moment when Jude looks out over Christminster in Jude the Obscure, and more or less every moment of Elizabeth von Arnim's The Enchanted April. Ann Bridge joins that select few, for me."

3.) The Great Western Beach (2008) by Emma Smith

In brief: A lovely childhood memoir of visits to Cornwall, which manages to be joyful despite some tough subject matter.

From my review: "I think the most useful way I can write about this book is to describe the style. First person, but neither from the author's current perspective, nor from the child's. It is all written as though she were looking back at the events from a distance of only a couple years - some hindsight and analysis is permitted, but alongside childhood ignorance of certain things, and a child's language."

4.) Straw Without Bricks (1937) by E.M. Delafield

In brief: Not a traditional holiday, perhaps, but here Delafield casts her witty and sensible eye over Soviet Russia, even living in a commune.

From my review: "This is certainly not the 'funny book' that her publisher was hoping for. Delafield's own political leanings were to the left, though not as far as Communism, and she treats the country and its inhabitants seriously. Much of this is with a subdued horror - at the indoctrination, the lack of freedom, the systematic removal of beauty and individualism - but she never makes Communism's adherents appear ridiculous. The humour is often directed towards her fellow tourists, or such quintessentially British anxieties as having to wait around for something to happen, or wondering how to pass someone one is keen not to engage in trivial conversation."


5.) Beside the Sea (2001) by Veronique Olmi

In brief: Easily the darkest of these books, a mother struggles with two young sons while staying in a dingy hotel beside the sea.

From my review: "I was initially thrown by the tone of the novel, being so different from what I expected - and I did worry that it would be like so many other novels, in a 'real' voice which is so jarring and unsatisfying. But Olmi is much cleverer than that - though the reader might think at the start that this is an average mother, it is soon obvious that she is not. Unreliable narrators always make for interesting reading, and this one gives away only so much - and how much of that is true or reasonable is difficult to gauge..."

a gold star if you can spot the pun... ahem.

As always - over to you!  These themes are just to make us think a bit out of the box, or make unusual connections between books we've read, so... holidays in fact or fiction, folk?

Five From the Archive (no.8)

It's getting to the point where I can't remember which books have featured in Five From The Archive and which haven't, so I'm doing my best to think up new aleatory connections between the books in my review archive... and the one I came up with for today is definitely unusual!

Five... Books About Hands

1.) Halfway to Venus (2008) by Sarah Anderson

In short: Anderson runs a travel bookshop, and had an arm amputated after a severe childhood illness.  Halfway to Venus is a fascinating personal, social, and cultural history of amputation and limbs.

From my review: "It is to Anderson's credit that Halfway to Venus brings out so many questions and reflections and reactions. A very honest book of autobiography, it is also a fascinating compedium, and with an engaging writing style which is all too often omitted from well-researched non-fiction."

2.) The World I Live In (1908) by Helen Keller

In short: the counterpart to Anderson's book, Keller explores the significance of hands when they provide the main sense-based interaction with the world.

From my review: "When I say that Keller's worth as an author is not merely as a novelty, I mean that she should not be patronised, nor her writing viewed as some sort of scientific experiment.  She is too good and perceptive a writer for that."

3.) Maestro (1989) by Peter Goldsworthy

In short: Eduard Keller is a Viennese refugee in Australia, teaching 15 year-old Paul the piano in an unorthodox manner - which begins with studying the importance of each individual finger.

From my review: "Their relationship isn't romantic or fatherly or even particularly close.  Keller resists any sort of emotional connection, and Paul is far too full of youthful insensitivity to do anything but blunder into conversations in which he is too immature to participate, even if Keller were willing.  But what Goldsworthy builds between Keller and the Crabbes is still somehow beautiful.  The connection between people who never open up to one another; the legacies left behind a relationship which could not even be called a friendship.  Goldsworthy has done this beautifully."

4.) Observatory Mansions (2001) by Edward Carey

In short: Francis Orme works as a living statue, but concentrates most of his efforts on an underground exhibition of sentimental objects he has stolen from residents of Observatory Mansions.  This book comes under 'hands' because Orme is very protective of his, always wearing white gloves, which he removes and archives as soon as they get slightly dirty.

From my review: "I probably overuse the word 'quirky', but no other description will do for Carey's work."

5.) Immortality (1988) by Milan Kundera

In short: Kundera's postmodern narrative starts with him seeing a woman's distinctive gesture with her arm.  He names her Agnes and invents a story around her, around that gesture. And then weaves it into a literary, historical intertextuality that darts all over the place, including Rubens, Goethe, Hemingway, Beethoven...

From my review: "I don't know why postmodern stuff is so often annoying, but with Kundera, it isn't annoying at all. He completely disrupts the novel form, and throws the reading experience into a whole new category, but it isn't self-indulgent. His writing is so good, he is so very, very perceptive, that it works."

Over to you!  A rather tricky category, but let me know if you have any suggestions...

Five From the Archive (no.7)

I was thinking about doing a FFTA about unmarried women, because I've read a lot of those in the past year or so, and I imagine that one day I will - but I thought it might be more interesting, and more unusual, to select books about pairs of women.  Because there turned out to be a few in my reviews archive.  None of these are about romantic pairings (well... one could be, but it's not overtly) but instead female friendships (and, er, unfriendships.)  It's a surprisingly rich and varied vein of the books I've read - well, five of them at least! - and I'd be interested to hear your suggestions.  As always, the books don't have to be novels - one of mine is not, for starters.  On with the show!

Five... Books About Pairs of Women

1.) Two Serious Ladies (1943) by Jane Bowles

In short: A dry, barbed, wonderfully strange account of Miss Goering and Mrs. Copperfield, whose eccentric lives only overlap for a few moments.

From my review: "In many ways the novel doesn't follow any progression at all - the ladies merely experience a great deal, whether grasping at it enthusiastically or raising an ambivalent eyebrow at life.  Bowles' astonishing talent is creating a dynamic that, if not unique, is highly unusual - strange, surreal, and yet grounded to the mundane.  Her ear for dialogue is astonishing - dialogue which is almost never realistic, but always striking."

2.) Fair Play (1989) by Tove Jansson

In short: Two artists live on an island together, in this set of calm vignettes.

From my review: "Each chapter has a small incident occur, and Jansson wraps her delicious prose around it. By the end she has provided a beautiful portrait of an unconventional couple, co-dependent and close rather than affectionate."

3.) Keeping Up Appearances (1928) by Rose Macaulay

In short: Half-sisters Daisy (30, shy, secretly a popular novelist under a pseudonym) and Daphne (25, self-assured intellectual) try to mingle in the same social circles, with mixed success.

From my review: "Though Keeping Up Appearances isn't as funny as Crewe Train, nor quite as memorable, it does present a clever idea. Because, dear reader, I haven't told you the central concept which surprises the reader and twists the interpretation completely, which comes about halfway through the novel."

4.) Sex Education (2002) by Janni Visman

In short: Two women grow up together, but their friendship turns to rivalry...

From my review: "It's a presentation of the rivalry between friends, and the damaging effects of jealousy - but a quirkier edge would have catapaulted the novel into a higher league. I've no idea how the quirkiness could have been added - but obviously Visman did, because she delivered it in Yellow."

5.) Joyce & Ginnie: the letters of Joyce Grenfell and Virginia Graham (1997)

In short: well, it's the letters of Joyce Grenfell and Virginia Graham!

From my review: "The exchange of letters between the two women spans many, many years, and offers a unique perspective upon the lives of each - life as they wished to convey it to their closest friend. Without the modesty (assumed or otherwise) requisite for autobiography, or the idolatry of biography, reading letters may feel a little like encroaching upon a friendship, but also allows closer and more genuine understanding of the women than available elsewhere."


And.... over to you!

Five From the Archive (no.6)

This week I wanted my Five From The Archive (where I revisit old reviews from my blog - it's been a while, so some of you might not know about it!) to be novels about families.  Obviously that encompasses many, many novels - so I decided to be a little more specific, and insist that they have a relative of some sort in the title.  Makes it more fun to pick them!  Here are my five - as always, let me know which you'd suggest...

Five... Books about Family

1.) Sisters By A River (1947) by Barbara Comyns

In short: The surreal account of Barbara Comyns' childhood by the Avon in Warwickshire, paving the way for her later, equally surreal, novels.

From the review: "Tales of ugly dresses and bad haircuts are told in the same captivating, undemonstrative style as those of Grannie dying and Father throwing a beehive over Mother. If this motley assortment of remembrances were made-up... well, I don't think they could have been. Such a bizarre childhood, so of its time, and yet utterly fascinating."

2.) Travels With My Aunt (1969) by Graham Greene

In short: Meeting his Aunt Augusta at his mother's funeral, Henry is caught up in her bizarre (and often illegal) cavorting around the globe.

From the review: "But the characters have the same indomitable spirit, eccentric manner, and amusingly unpredictable speech. The success of Greene's novel, for me, is through character - through Augusta and Henry's conversations, where two wholly different characters meet and travel together."


3.) Parents and Children (1941) by Ivy Compton-Burnett

In short: A typically Ivy Compton-Burnett novel - sprawling family, endless brilliant dialogue, and occasional doses of rather surprising action.

From the review: "Life-changing events are encompassed by lengthy, facetious discussions - gently vicious and cruelly precise, always picking up on the things said by others. Calmness permeates even the most emotional responses, and ICB's writing is always astonishing in its use of dialogue."

4.) My Cousin Rachel (1951) by Daphne du Maurier

In short: Philip's cousin Ambrose goes to Italy, marries Rachel, and (er, spoiler) dies - leaving Philip, and the reader, in doubt regarding Rachel's culpability or innocence...

From the review: "The novel has a lot in common with Rebecca - and not just the setting. The same intrigue, power, and issues about what is left unspoken in relationships. [...] My Cousin Rachel is brilliantly successful in the sense that I have never left a novel so uncertain as to a character's guilt or lack of it - and either interpretation seems quite valid."

5.) Brother of the More Famous Jack (1982) by Barbara Trapido

In short: Katherine is an ingenuous 18 year old when she meets the Goldman family, but living alongside this enchanting (but bewildering) assortment of people - most of whose names begin with J - helps propel her into adulthood.

From the review: "Katherine herself it is difficult not to like, if only for this: 'I reverted, as I do in moments of crisis, to rereading Emma, with cotton wool in my ears.'"

Over to you!

Five From the Archive (no.5)

I hope the Canadian bloggers among you don't mind my affectionate teasing in the sketch(!)  Although I've never been to Canada, I feel a certain affinity with that nation - we Brits (when we're not binge-drinking football fans) also radiate politeness (even when seething), and apologise when someone bumps into us.  Kate Fox's Watching the English is a brilliant read for this sort of thing, and will probably appear in a Five from the Archive at some point - but, for today...

Five... Books By Canadians.

1.) Too Much Happiness (2009) by Alice Munro

In short: A collection by one of the world's most acclaimed short story writers.  Munro examines many themes, but particularly death and intrusion.

From the review: "In playing with the short story genre, Munro invents a formless form appropriate to her superlative talent as an observer of human nature and human interaction."

2.) Literary Lapses (1910) by Stephen Leacock

In short: Very amusing sketches by an exceptionally gifted comic writer, not well known outside his native land.

From the review: "Stephen Leacock is a humorist par excellence. If I utter his name in the same breath as PG Wodehouse, it is not because their styles are all that similar (though both make fantastic use of stylistic exaggeration) but because Leacock is the only writer I would dare hold up to Wodehouse."

3.) Crow Lake (2002) by Mary Lawson

In short: A sister returns to visit her family, feeling guilty that she has studied for a PhD while her siblings have had to sacrifice their education... but things become more complex than that...

From the review: "Lawson writes with so many character nuances, and is concerned with subtle issues of empathy, sympathy, unity, hope, hopelessness, courage, foolishness, pride, misunderstanding - it's all there."

4.) The Penelopiad (2005) by Margaret Atwood

In short: A re-telling of The Odyssey from Penelope's perspective.

From the review: "The 'hook' of Atwood's narrative, though - a more original feminist viewpoint - is the death of Penelope's twelve maids. Odysseus apparently had them hanged upon his return from his voyage. I suspect this is a footnote in Homer's original, but Atwood plays it to its full potential, and it really is an ingenious angle: why were they killed, when they had aided Penelope?"

5.) Let's Kill Uncle (1963) by Rohan O'Grady

In short: A troubled orphan, Barnaby, is sent to a Canadian island and befriends a local girl, Christie.  Nobody would believe that Barnaby's kindly uncle is, in fact, a manipulative, evil man, intent on killing him.  Barnaby and Christie hatch a plan to kill the uncle first...

From the review: "When I read in the blurb that Donna Tartt had called Let's Kill Uncle a 'dark, whimsical, startling book', I was a little confused. Surely those words clash a bit when placed together? And I'm still not sure that there is much whimsy in the novel, unless you describe any scene without blood as whimsical - but it's certainly the lightest dark book I've ever read. Or possibly the darkest light book."

*  *  *

Over to you!  Which would you suggest?  (I chosen this 'five' theme because I've read so few Canadians - I imagine many of you would be able to suggest dozens.)

I should add that I loved The Stone Angel by Margaret Laurence, but apparently never blogged about it.  And, before you suggest it, I really did not like The Handmaid's Tale...

Five From the Archive (no.4)

Didn't we all get excited over the past couple of days?  Mum and I have very much enjoyed the debates we've been having - your comments have been hilarious.  Some of you I'll never look at in quite the same light again.

Anyway, on with the show - and another trip down memory lane for Five From The Archive.  This week...

Five... Books About Death

A quick note.  I am definitely not intending to be glib about death or grief - but I think it is fascinating to see the many and varied ways in which death is treated in fiction and non-fiction.  Obviously 'death' is a huge topic, but it's thought-provoking to see how it has influenced such different books - some treating death with reverence and mourning; some as a matter of historical interest; some as merely a plot point.

I had the delight of seeing Karen/Cornflower on Sunday, and she laughed nervously when I asked her whether or not she thought it would be a good idea... but I'm going to go ahead, trusting that you know I wouldn't intend to be flippant about grief.  Ok?  Ok.

1.) Death and the Maidens (2007) by Janet Todd

In short: Todd uses the suicide of little-known Fanny Wollstonecraft as the starting point for exploring the strange and fascinating, intertwining lives of the Shelleys, Wollstonecrafts, and Godwins.

From the review: "According to Hogg (and also quoted by Todd), Shelley was 'altogether incapable of rendering an account of any transaction whatsoever, according to the strict and precise truth, and the bare naked realities of actual life'. It is to Todd's great credit that the reverse is true for her - what could have become sensationalised or hand-wringing is, in fact, told with a caring honesty. Death and the Maidens does not fall into the other trap, which much literary biography does, of dryness and dullness - though the research is doubtless impeccable, Todd does not write this work in an overly-scholarly manner."

2.) In the Springtime of the Year (1974) by Susan Hill

In short: A young woman comes to terms with the sudden death of her husband.

From the review: "Some of my favourite writers are those who can weave an involving narrative without huge set pieces or plot turns. The biggest event having happened in the first few pages, this novel is more a study of grief than a rollercoaster of events. From the immediate aftermath; the funeral; Ruth's difficult relations with Ben's family; closer kinship with Ben's younger brother; dealing with Ben's possessions; moving onwards to the future without him - each stage is subtly and intimately shown - never too much introspection, and always writing of so high a standard that it doesn't feel like cliché."

3.) Let Not The Waves of the Sea (2011) by Simon Stephenson

In short: Easily the most moving book on this list.  Stephenson's brother was killed in the new year tsunami, and this beautiful book traces past and future - a biography, autobiography, travelogue, and even a philosophy.

From the review: "It is often said that first-time authors put everything into their book - with novels, this is meant is a criticism.  Every idea is thrown in, to the detriment of the structure and unity required of fiction.  With non-fiction, with Let Not The Waves of the Sea, putting everything in is what makes Stephenson's book so special. [...] This book is as full and varied and complex as the life it commemorates, and I consider it a privilege to have been able to read it."

4.) The Driver's Seat (1970) by Muriel Spark

In short: My third Spark, and the one which made me love her - we learn early on that eccentric tourist Lise has been killed, and this short novel traces the curious events leading up to her death.

From the review: "The novel [is] some sort of waiting game, the reader never being quite sure where they stand. Spark's prose is deliberately - and deliciously - disorientating. We move in and out of Lise's thoughts, never quite grasping hold of her perspective, nor yet letting it slip entirely out of reach."

5.) Murder at the Vicarage (1930) by Agatha Christie

In short: You know the score with Agatha Christie... it's interesting how death has become emotionless for the reader in murder mysteries, isn't it?  All the usual red herrings and impossibilities in typical Christie fare.

From the review: "What I wasn't expecting, what I had somehow either forgotten or never noticed, was how funny Christie is. The problems the vicar and his wife have with their servant are written so amusingly, I laughed out loud a few times. She also has the drifting 'oh gosh how we simply shrieked' type down pat too."

This is probably the vastest topic yet in Five From the Archive, but which great books (fiction or non-fiction) would you recommend under the theme of death?   Over to you!  Hope you're enjoying this series - I'm really loving a trawl back through the archives - and it's fun to be thinking up sketches again.

Five From The Archive (no.3)

In honour of Beryl Bainbridge Reading Week - and being a bit teasing about the morose face she seems to have in every photo...

Beryl Bainbridge was famously nominated for the Booker Prize five times but never won - and so, also in my honour, this week's five from the archive are...

Five... Shortlisted Booker Titles (which didn't win)

1.) Loitering With Intent (shortlisted 1981) by Muriel Spark

In short: My favourite Spark novel, as I'm sure you all heard during Muriel Spark Reading Week, it concerns Fleur's somewhat mad involvement with arrogant Sir Quentin, his Autobiographical Association, and the world of publishing.

From the review: "This becomes the crux of the novel - where does Fleur's imagination end, and where does plagiarism begin? Similarities between the Autobiographical Association's activities and the manuscript of Warrender Chase grow ever greater - how much is coincidence, how much does Fleur absorb, and how much does she write before it happens? "

2.) The Bookshop (shortlisted 1978) by Penelope Fitzgerald

In short: A woman tries to open a bookshop in a small town, but finds that the town takes against her.

From the review:  "Between Christine and Florence a rather touching, but unsentimental, friendship develops. If that sounds remotely mawkish, trust me, it isn't. Penelope Fitzgerald doesn't do mawkish. Her writing is spare, very spare, and there isn't room for emotions - we simply see the people interact, and can quite easily understand the emotions they must be experiencing."

3.) A Month in the Country (shortlisted 1980) by J.L. Carr

In short: Tom has been hired to uncover a medieval mural in a northern village church - this gentle novel shows his relationships with the other villagers, and quiet absorption in his work.  (I'm afraid the 'review' is hardly that... one of my scatterbrain days.)

From the review: "The most interesting scene is that when Tom visits the vicar and his amiable wife, Alice, only to discover their monstrous and secluded vicarage seems to alter both their personalities. Like the rest of the novel, this is shown subtly and calmly, but is a fascinating glimpse into one facet of the village."

4.) The Little Stranger (shortlisted 2009) by Sarah Waters

In short: Creepy events start to happen in an old mansion in the post-war 1940s.  Visiting Dr. Faraday narrates them, but is uncertain whether or not the supernatural is to blame...

From the review: "It's something of a truism to say that 'the house is itself a character', but you have to take your hat off to Waters' ability to invest Hundreds Hall with this power without it becoming a caricature of Gothic literature. The house remains comfort and terror; mystery and simplicity; homely and unhomely."

5.) Black Dogs (shortlisted 1992) by Ian McEwan

In short: Something happens on a couple's honeymoon, involving two black dogs.  We see the impact of this event without, for a long time, knowing precisely what took place...

From the review:  "It certainly battles out with Atonement for being my favourite McEwan - people have recommended 'early McEwan' to me, and I can see why. The writing here is compact, tense - so often I'd finish reading paragraphs or phrases and think "wow" - quite the opposite of Saturday."

As always, I want to know - which would you suggest?  To give you a hand, here is a link to all the shortlisted titles.

Five From The Archive (no.2)

Thanks for all your encouragement for Five from the Archive last week - it was great to hear your suggestions, and I think this will be a fun feature.  (If you missed my explanation for this new feature, click here for no.1.)  Now I've even made myself a logo for it!  Feel free to borrow it if you want to use the idea.  This week...

Five... Books Set in World War II


1.) Miss Ranskill Comes Home (1946) by Barbara Euphan Todd

In short: Published by Persephone Books, this novel tells of Miss Ranskill, a woman who was stranded on a desert island and returns to find England at war - and is mystified by this 'brave new world'.

From the review: "Miss Ranskill Comes Home has plenty of comedy, but it is comedy heavily dosed with pathos and even a tinge of the tragic. Certain scenes, such as that where Miss R tries and fails to give a speech to a local society on Life on a Desert Island, are painful to read in their awkward sadness. But the novel still manages to have plenty of light-hearted moments alongside."


2.) Put Out More Flags (1942) by Evelyn Waugh

In short: a satire on the War Office and its administration attempts - especially concerning evacuees, all with Waugh's recognisably spiky humour.

From the review: "Waugh's idea of humour is mostly on the mark, and he uses comic language superbly (I laughed out loud several times) but too often the undercurrent was too nasty for me. I need to read a Wodehouse or two as an antidote."


3.) Suite Francaise (2004) by Irene Nemirovsky

In short: Two books in a planned trilogy, about life in Occupied France.  Written with an astonishing ability to see the human in everyone, especially since Nemirovksy would later tragically die at Auschwitz - the manuscripts for these novellas were discovered decades later.

From the review: "Nemirovsky is an incredibly gifted novelist. Had these been further edited; had the trilogy been complete, this could have been one of twentieth century's most important works."


4.) A House in the Country (1944) by Jocelyn Playfair

In short: Another Persephone title, about war and the home front - captivating, complex Cressida takes in paying guests, and awaits the return of her soldier husband.

From the review: "A House in the Country is not a cosy paean to countryside ways, but a deep, moving, and surprisingly controversial novel. [...Playfair is] brave in her extremely honest, often critical discussions of warfare. Characters suggest that war is futile; that few soldiers know why they are fighting, and that ideals are far below blind obedience, when it comes to motive."


5.) Henrietta's War (1985) by Joyce Dennys

In short: The serialised diaries of an average woman during war, published in a magazine during the war and later republished together.

From the review: "Henrietta represents the middle-class women in England, plucky and determined to carry on as normally as possible. [...] Henrietta's War is quite simply a wonderful, witty, charming, and occasionally very moving book."

Over to you - which titles would you suggest?

Five From The Archive (no.1)

Whilst I was away from blogging, I came up with a fun idea (which you're welcome to borrow, if you like it)...  One of the anomalies I've noticed about blogging is that we all put a lot of time and effort into reviews - creating really great, extensive resources about incredible books - and yet these reviews are only likely to be read for a week or so, and then disappear into the hazy mists of the blog archive.  I thought it would be fun, and maybe useful, to highlight and group past books.

Since I've now celebrated my fifth blogging anniversary, I'm going to start an ongoing series Five From The Archive, where I post excerpts and links to five reviews from my past five years, grouped in some way.  That might be something obvious -  like 'books in translation' - or something a bit wackier.  And then I'll ask you to contribute your own suggestions.  I'm even hoping to post a (new) relevant sketch with each one - but you know how slack I get at that - kicking off with one of me and Colin.

They'll be appearing on Wednesdays, but probably not every week.

I'll start with a very Stuck-in-a-Book topic...  


Five Books Featuring Twins or Doubles

1.) Christopher and Columbus (1919) by Elizabeth von Arnim

In short: Half-German/half-American twins are exiled to America during the war.  They meet a friendly young American man on the boat, and the three embark on rather mad travels.  Somehow both wickedly cynical and totally heart-warming.

From the review: "The most delicious thing about this novel (and it is a very delicious novel) is undoubtedly the twins' dialogue.  It's such a delight to read.  [...] They both have such a captivatingly unusual outlook on life.  Their logic swirls in circles which dizzy the listener; their conversations would feel at home at the Mad Hatter's Tea Party - and yet they are lovely, kind, fundamentally good people - and without being remotely irritating."

2.) The Icarus Girl (2005) by Helen Oyeyemi

In short: Introverted eight-year-old Jessamy meets TillyTilly, seemingly her double, whilst in her mother's native Nigeria.  Their friendship grows gradually more unsettling...

From the review: "What starts as a novel about loneliness and isolation becomes infused with issues of obsession, possession, power and, most sophisticatedly, doubleness."

3.) Alva & Irva (2003) by Edward Carey

In short: One twin helps battle the other's agoraphobia, even as their bond is challenged, by building a scale replica of their town through plasticine - and it's all presented as a travel guide.  Surreally brilliant, and surprisingly moving.

From the review: "It is a novel filled with grotesque characters (in the sense of exaggerated and strange) - the father who is obsessed with stamps, for example. The novel is actually, in many ways, about obsession - whether with objects or people or tasks."

4.) A Lifetime Burning (2006) by Linda Gillard

In short: A compelling, involving novel about the dramas and conflicts within a tempestuous family - including twins whose relationship is far from normal.  Sadly my review was far too brief - I must re-read!

From the review: "Though the novel jumps all over the place, I never found it confusing - rather a path towards illumination and comprehension of the characters, understanding (rather than sanctioning) the way they act. Linda Gillard writes with lyrical intensity."

5.) Identical Strangers (2007) by Elyse Schein and Paula Bernstein

In short: An autobiographical account of twin sisters only meeting at age 35 - and how they cope with this shift in their lives, and their different needs and responses.

From the review: "We follow Paula and Elyse through a couple of years - the joy, the excitement, the bickering, the discovering of their extraordinary relationship. [...] A fascinating topic, well told by engaging, honest people experiencing a rollercoaster of events."


Over to you!

Which title (or titles) would you add for this category?  Let me know!