Reading Matters . . .

It does to me anyway!  A quick rundown of five books on my 'I am reading' list:

Four stars: don't miss     One star: don't bother

The Battle for Christabel ~ Margaret Forster 

****

Well written story of what happens to a small child when her unmarried (and rather unstable) mother dies.  Unwanted by the grandparents, who still wish to have a say in her future, she is placed for adoption.  Adoption, however, is not as easy a process as her family envisage because the girl is of mixed race which then has to be written into the choice of a family.  The tale is told in the first person by the mother's erstwhile friend (who also, while still acknowledging a certain sense of responsibility, has no wish to take the child on).   Although quite a harrowing tale in many ways this was such a good book that I would have no hesitation in recommending it as a 'Good Read'.

The hundred year old man who climbed out of a window and disappeared ~ Jonasson (translated from Swedish)

***

This was an extraordinary tale of a man, Allan, who does indeed behave exactly as the title describes.  It is certainly a very funny book and, like Forrest Gump, he meets and influences all the major players of the twentieth century.  The book was subsequently made into a film which I would like to see (but haven't yet).  It became a bit of a cult read at one point and I did enjoy the bizarre nature of Allan's adventures but ultimately I found the totally off-the-wall situations just a little bit boring.  I felt it could have been cut by about a fifth.

My Brilliant Friend ~ Ferrante

**

This was a book club read and some of us liked it and others didn't.  I found it tedious and totally missed the point about Mafia involvement (although it was set in Naples ~ you would have thought I would know!).  I felt that the characters were not well drawn and I had difficulty in remembering who everybody was and didn't really care about any of them anyway.  I have given it two stars as I could appreciate the points my friends made ~ just found it hard to engage with the story myself. 

The Storyteller ~ Picoult

****

I have read a couple of other books by Jodie Picoult and this is by far the best so far.  It's the story, told in (much!) later life, of two brothers growing up in Nazi Germany and their participation in events during the Second World War.  That's the basic plot and I will say no more ~ mainly because I don't want to give anything away!  Just read it!  I thought it was marvellous.

A Life like other people's ~ Alan Bennett

****

Who doesn't love Alan Bennett?  This is a memoir of his parents' lives, other family members and his own childhood.  As you read you can almost hear him speaking.  Gentle, humorous, kindly, entertaining ~ Alan Bennett at his best!