The Midnight Library by Mathew Haig (166 Carolyn)

 'Everyman has two lives, and the second one starts when he realises he has just one' Confucious.  No more apt saying could describe this book.  An interesting premise where Nora Seed, protagonist of this novel, finds herself in the Midnight Libraray after an attempt to commit suicide, there she is offered the oppourtunity to live various lives - had she made different decisions.  The Book of Regrets weighs heavily in her hands as she reviews the decisions that led her to the point where she believed that this life was not worth living.  Despite the initial downbeat start, the book is actually rather upbeat.  The lives she experiences in the Midnight Library enables her to see that her decisions were not all wrong and that the life she lives can be better.  The author writes convincingly with a female voice, allowing empathy and self doubt to colour her character.  This book generated an interesting discussion on second chances, death, life and the decisions we make in life.

Marks out of 10:  between 6 - 8

Words used to describe it:  hopeful, struck a cord, reassuring, contemplative

Next book

The Pomegranate Tree by Vanessa Altin (Emma)

Next Meeting

Monday 27th June at either Olivia or Cindy's

Fear and Loathing in LA by Hunter J Thompson (165 Mandy)

The prose of this hedonistic, nialistic, misoganistic, rascist, drug and alcohol fueled road trip is lyrical. The story is a stream of concisousness escapade.  Difficult to follow the storyline, the protagonist, a journalist, with his accountant friend decide to crash an event in LA, to do so they top loaded on drugs - so many drugs, I had to look up what they all did. Up, down, round about, who knows they didn't care, the consdequence of taking all these pharmacuticals and booze is an hallusangentic, hedonistic roadtrip.  I watched the movie to try and make more sense of the story - that didn't really help although it did give a framework to the fact that it was hard to understand what was going on. It was interesting to note, rather like Oscar Wilde, how many phrases and words have now entered common parlance - 'Gonzo' anyone.  The cruel but accurate writing is a character as much as the people decribed.  A difficult if headonistic read.

Marks out of 10:  betwee 6 - 9

Words used to describe it:  Gonzo writing, halucinagentic, strangley remanicent, hedonistic, cooking with drugs

Next Book

The Midnight Library by Mathew Haig

Next Meeting 

Friday 13th May at Emma's

Kara and the Sun by Kazu Ishiguro (164 Carolyn)

 There is a lot of deep and intense anlaysis of the premise of this novel on the internet.  It could be considered at its heart a reflection on what is a soul.  Kara, is an artificial friend (AF) to Josie, a 14 year old 'lifted' (genetically altered) child who suffers from illnesses (not specified but possibly due to being lifted).  The story retold through the thoughts of Kara.  The novel explores what is love, what is intelligence, what is life.  Kara is willing to give a lot to enable Josie to live a full life.  It explores faith and science and that technology does not mean that you have to forgo faith or love. An interesting premise that generated a good disussion especially when compared with the novel by Ian McEwan - Machines Like Us.

Marks out of 10

Words used to describe it:

 

Next Book 

Fear and Loathing in LA by Hunter J Thompson

Next Meeting

Thursday April 14th at Mandy's