FICTION

The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet by David Mitchell

I was interested to read this in light of our recent trip to Japan, where it is still obvious, even in the 21st century, that Japan's idiosyncracies are a result of so many centuries to isolation and resistance to colonisation. The plot is set in Dejima, a peninsula and port close to Nagasaki, at the very beginning of the 19th century and recounts the interactions between Dutch traders and the Japanese bureaucracy, with emphasis on the life of a minor Dutch merchant, Jacob de Zoet. The book gets off to a difficult start, with seemingly irrelevant descriptions of trading arrangements, but it is worth persevering as the storyline starts to probe the corruption and intrigue of the times and becomes a compulsive read. 5*

Sally Rooney: Normal People

Well deserved accolades for this second novel from Sally Rooney, although it's quite difficult to define why it is so appealing. The story is extremely simple: the on-off relationship between two young people, starting at school and progressing for a few years via university. The genius of the writing lies in the attention to detail -- small observations made about the characters' environment -- that serve to bring the reader right inside the scene to share in the emotional experience of the characters. Superb. 5*

Sam Byers: Perfidious Albion

An ambitious novel set in a dystopic not-very-distant future. A lengthy story that starts out as a rather overworked satire on the times, dealing with multiple issues: housing insecurity, the power of multinationals, lack of accountability of social media, the integrity of journalism in the face of right-wing politics. Such a wide range of topics needs to be managed well and the novel has some difficulty in keeping the storyline clear as the plots for each of the characters start to interact. But the novel avoids falling into the trap of an easy resolution and the reader is left disturbed by the plausibility of a future exactly as portrayed here. 3* Sally Rooney: Conversations with Friends No identification with the characters, main or otherwise, here, but a captivating first novel about a young person discovering the intricacies and subtleties of relationships. Very sharply observed in its writing, as indicated bythe multiple awards and nominations it has received. 4*

Michael Ondaatje: Warlight

Much-heralded latest from Booker-50 overall prizewinner for The English Patient. The plotline was interesting and painted a picture of London during the second world war that is rarely portrayed. However, the main theme, viz. the attempts by a boy, a teenager at the time, to discover the real identity and profession of his mother, somehow faded without being fully resolved by the end of the novel. Some characters were drawn in great detail, while others one hoped would appear in greater relief, were never properly developed. Disappointing, but then The English Patient was never one of my favourite novels. 2*

Jon McGregor: Reservoir 13

Interesting literary technique from this prize-winning author (new to me). The novel appears to start as a thriller but soon goes on to become a presentation of the minutiae of the inhabitants of a rural village over a 10-year span. The objectively framed accounts on the incidents, some important, others trivial, in their lives are interspersed with observations of natural occurrences, thus giving a sense of time passing at a uniform rate throughout the book. Not for speed-reading: you have to concentrate to deal with the large numbers of characters and the multiple momentary snapshots of their daily lives. 3*

David Park: Travelling in a strange land

This is reminiscent of the film Locke (2013), in which the whole narrative is relayed through the car phone speaker of the sole actor as he drives from Brimingham to London. In the case of this novel, the main character is driving from N. Ireland to Sunderland to collect his unwell younger son from university during a Christmas-time snowstorm that has closed the airports. We learn that he is a photographer and get an insight into his mental state primarily in relation to his elder son, whose fate is gradually revealed throughout the novel. The writing is sound and the story compelling, but the ending is strangely abrupt, more in the manner of a short story than a full novel. 3*

George Saunders: Lincoln in the Bardo

This would have won the Man Booker Prize because of its originality, not, in any sense, because it is a 'good read'. The bizarre plot -- a series of reminiscences by dead individuals waiting in a graveyard for the time when they might be re-tested for release to heaven or hell from their state of limbo, and their relationship with the newly dead son of Abraham Lincoln -- is certainly original. The mode of writing is also unique: rather then place their utterances in quotes, the statements by the various "ghosts" are followed by a reference to who was responsible for making the statement. The book also uses similar references for factual material from contemporary sources relating to the incident of Willy Lincoln's death and the President's subsequent behaviour. This literary technique makes the book tough-going to read. I expected to become interested in the history of each of the graveyard residents, but that didn't happen as their utterances were too disjointed to make a memorable narrative. I did complete reading the book, but on sufferance, as I don't like to leave books unfinished unless they are of absolutely no merit. 1*

Sarah Winman: Tin Man

Shortlisted for 2017 Costa Novel Award. A story of two men brought up together in Oxford and their relationship with each other and with the partner of one of them, until a tragic incident occurs. Uses the technique of relating the same story from the view point of two separate individuals -- successful in Turning for Home (not dissimilar in the storyline), but not so here, as the two veiwpoints are not sufficiently different. The main narrative is effectively a series of flashbacks from life after the incident. It lacks the historical detail and sense of place that make that technique fully convincing. 2*

Barney Norris: Turning for Home

Follow-up of excellent debut novel Five Rivers Met on a Wooded Plain, which I enjoyed in 2016. The author excels at getting into the mindset of his characters as he lets them speak directly to the reader in a very compelling way. Best fiction recommendation of 2018 so far. 4*

Javier Marias: Thus Bad Begins

Lengthy (500 pages, but you don't realise that when you get it on Kindle!) novel. Amazon says: "Award-winning author Javier Marías examines a household living in unhappy the shadow of history, and explores the cruel, tender punishments we exact on those we love." Flashback on youthful obsession of storyteller with his employer's wife at the time of the Franco regime in Spain. First time for this poular Spanish author (in translation from Spanish); worth investigating other novels. 4*

William McIlvanney: The Kiln

An attempt to portray the mindset of a teenage boy and how his current life is affected by his early years. Not memorable 1*

Edward St. Aubyn: Dunbar (King Lear Retold)

Amazon says: "Dunbar is a devastating family story and an excoriating novel for and of our times – an examination of power, money and the value of forgiveness." Loosely based on the father-daughter relationship of King Lear. Unconvincing characterisation spoils the reasonable attempt to replace the power of monarchy with that of capitalist corruption and incorporate it into a farcical adventure story 2*

Colson Whitehead: The Underground Railroad

"Praised by Barack Obama and an Oprah Book Club Pick, The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead won the National Book Award 2016 and the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction 2017." Unsentimental, frightening and gripping account of how it was to grow up and survive as a slave in North America 4*

Daniel Margariel: One of the Boys

Amazon says: "One of the Boys delivers a superbly nuanced portrait of a violent and menacing man, manipulating the world around him that it might service his idea of himself. Brutal and urgent, this masterful debut is a story of survival: two brothers driven to protect each other from the father they once trusted." Meaninful attempt to deal with the strange and abusive relationship between a disturbed man and his teenage sons. 3*

Stanley Middleton: Holiday

Booker prizewinner in 1974. A nostalgic read for its traditional, but effective, writing style and for the attitudes to class, relationships etc. that are addressed. Worth looking for more of his books.

Ali Smith: Autumn

Disappointing in light of its wide publicity as the first "post-Brexit" novel. I didn't see the relevance of that comment. The storyline was interesting but the seminal relationship between the storyteller and her elderly friend got lost somewhere in the middle of the book. The interaction between mother and daughter was nicely drawn but too inconsistent to seem real. 3*

Sebastian Barry: A Long Long Way

My book of the year. The author captures perfectly both the brutality of the First World War and the innocence of the young men that were sent to their deaths in the chaotic and meaningless slaughter. Deeply moving. 5*

Karl Ove Knausgaard: A Death in the Family (My Struggle Book 1)

The fourth of his novels I have read -- there is something addictive about them -- and probably the most enjoyable. You either love his writing style of give up after the first chapter. 4*

Bernard McLaverty: Midwinter Break

Awarded "Book of the Year" by various reputable sources. A reflection on a longstanding marriage that is under threat from several directions: differences in ideology, complacency and alcohol dependence (in no particular order). One might have been able to identify with the characters on account of one's similar age, but I didn't easily do so and so lost interest in the outcome. 3*

Eimar McBride: The Lesser Bohemians

Very explicit account of an intense relationship between a student and an older (30-something!) man. There seemed to be no reason for the novel until about the halfway mark when details of one of the character's shocking childhood history started to be revealed and the novel finally took shape in a quite satisfactory way. 3*

Mike McCormack: Solar Bones

Prizewinning and prize-nominated novel relating what would appear to be the ordinary day-to-day experience of a structural engineer. Whether because of, or despite, its strange grammatical structure (no full stops -- but you soon get over the initial reaction to this), the story is compelling and the dramatic ending enhances the impact of the book. 4*

Viet Thanh Nguyen: The Sympathizer

Pulitzer Prize winner 2016. An attempt to provide some of the inside story of the Viet Nam War; no just the violence but the intrigues and the internal politics told from the viewpoint of a Viet Cong double agent. Difficult to follow at times as to where the action was taking place and the role of the individual characters. I kind of lost interest. 1*

Helen Dunmore: Exposure

Inexplicable review from the Guardian: "Will haunt you for months, if not years". I'm not so surprised, though, that the comment "if you only buy one book, make it this one" came from Good Housekeeping. A very old-fashioned spy story, with a stronly English domestic feel to it. The author was recommended to me, as I had never read any of her books, but I am not yet encouraged to venture further. 2*

Sebastian Barry: Days Without End

Costa Prize-winning and other prize-nominated novel set imaginatively in the American Civil War and told from the view point of two orphan refugees. The author narrates the story in a dramatic and moving way yet manages to create a completely believable scenario throughout. Superb. 5*

David Szalay: All That Man Is

Interesting sylistically in linking what are effectively seven short stories connected only by the general theme of loss or perceived deficiency of each of the male characters. Despite the tenuous link, the novel holds together well Sadly perhaps, it was quite possible to identify with several of the characters and to be moved by their plight (real or imagined). An excellent book. 5*

NON-FICTION

John Boughton: Municipal Dreams: the Rise and Fall of Council Housing

Much-anticipated book by one of the experts in the field. He hits the right level for the lay-person between anecdotal and fully referenced material. The book presents a fascinating historical account of the development of social housing and, in particular, the housing estate. The author also presents cogent arguments to support his criticism of the attitude of both the public and of politicians towards social housing. Neither side of the political divide is seen as blameless. Clearly the 'right-to-buy' policy so enthusiastically endorsed (but not invented) by Margaret Thatcher and the Tory belief that homeowners have a natural inclination to vote Conservative have a lot to answer for. But New Labour ignored the resultant emerging housing crisis when other matters appeared to require their attention. The author summarises the problems nicely: "...council estates are not the cause of our economic and social woes but their victims. With this understanding, we should see them not as a problem but as a solution -- offering secure and affordable housing -- to the low pay and insecure employment which affect so many. That reluctance to invest in social housing looked all the more suspect as the global economic crisis hit in 2008. New completions plummeted and the £1.5 billion boost to housing investment announced that year was largely dedicated to the rescue of a private market in crisis." There may be some optimism that at least the problem is now being fully recognised but in the current politicial climate almost no evidence that it is being dealt with. Only one criticism: the dustcover with its usual advertising quotes needs revision. "Follows the epic story of British council ...housing"; "....crucial for understanding the state of housing in Britain"; ".... presents an alternative history of Britain." Alas, that should read England (and very much London). Scotland, where council housing until relatively recently predominated, is mentioned only twice and then only to point out that Scotland was "different". 5*

Anne Robbins: Lake Keitele, a Vision of Finland

The book of the recent National Gallery exhibition on the work of Akseli Gallen-Kallela (1865 - 1931), who obsessively painted, among other things, this lake in Finland in a wide variety of different atmosphieric conditions. 4*

Madison Cox: The Gardener's Garden, Inspiration across Continents and Centuries

With thanks to Ann and Phill: lavishly illustrated handbook with gardens from all over the world -- some to see before you die, others you will die without ever being able to see. 4*