The Lacuna by Barbara Kingsolver

Ummm, a difficult book to review, it's slow, restrained and vast - covering a startling period of recent American history - the McCarthy era.  Slowly through the recovered notebooks and snippets of newspapers horded in a bank depositary, Violet Brown,  Harrison William Shepherd's personal assistant pieces together his life. The book we read today, Brown reveals, was assembled by herself in 1959 from Shepherd’s junked notebooks and sealed for 50 years, to be opened in 2009 :  from his early years on the island of Isla Pixol with his flighty Mexican mother.  Through serendipitous happenings Will,  finds his way into the life and happenings of the Khalo/Rivera household, viewing and possibly involved in Trotsky's death.  Will moves to the US, where he keeps to the background, writing observing and commentating while slowly the omnipresent feeling of surveillance, how a word or writing perceived to be 'Un-American' could land you in trouble, despite being so careful the unassuming and quiet Will finds himself at the wrong end of the FBI/McCarthy inquisition.  

An interesting book that easily takes you through the recent history of Mexico and America, mixing fact with fiction.  Not a book to flick through it needed concentration.

Words used to describe it:  nicely crafted, little drama, good descriptions, fascinating
Marks out of 10:  between 6 & 8

Next Book

Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury

Next Meeting

Wednesday 6th January

130 Harbord St

How to Build a Girl by Caitlin Moran

"After all, how often do we get to hear the inner voice of a fat, funny, literate, working-class teenager from Wolverhampton? Quite." Barbara Ellen - The Guardian

Caitlin Moran has written a humorous coming of age novel, loosely based on her own life of a clever girl who took the chances that her writing offered her to make a life writing about music.  Lose her virginity and transform her perception of herself. With panache and verve she slides through the 80's music scene, London a young girl finding out about herself.  It is crude, it is brash, it is fun.  Moran has a wonderful turn of phrase and use of language.

“Self-harm - the world will come at you with knives anyway. You do not need to beat them to it.”

 “Because I am still learning to walk and talk, and it is a million times easier to be cynical and wield a sword, than it is to be open-hearted and stand there, holding a balloon and a birthday cake, with the infinite potential to look foolish.” 

 “Here’s the amazing thing about sex: you get a whole person to yourself, for the first time since you were a baby. Someone who is looking at you—just you—and thinking about you, and wanting you, and you haven’t even had to lie at the bottom of the stairs and pretend you’re dead to get them to do it.” 

 “I speculate, briefly, on how different the world would be if it were run by women. In that world, if you were a lonely, horny woman - as I am. As I always am- you'd see Blu-tacked postcards by Soho doorways that read 'Nice man in cardigan, 24, will talk to you about The Smiths whilst making you cheese-on-toast+come to parties with you. Apply within'.”

This book generated quite disparate views, some loved its rawness, some disliked its aggressive language, its no nonsense - in your face - take it or leave it - fuck you attitude - and some loved that! 

Marks out of 10:  between 6 & 8

Words used to describe it:  
aggressively teenager, great wordsmith, rude, blatant, liberating.

Next book

The Lacuna by Barbara Kingsolver

Next Meeting 

Tuesday 17th November

117 Harbord St