Willoyd's Reading 2015

[willoyd]

It's funny, that Tracey Chevalier is probably best known for Girl with a Pearl Earring. That was good, very good, but for me it's still not quite of the same class as Falling Angels. It's a while since I read either though, so memory could be at fault, but at the respective times I gave the former 5 stars, and the latter 6 (my top rating).

[Nollaig]

I've never read either of those, but I did read another one by her (the Unicorn tapestry one, can't remember the title) and I did enjoy it, so I might give Falling Angels a go since its the one people seem to like

[willoyd]

A Symphony of Echoes by Jodi Taylor ****
 
Another enjoyable, light read, in the same mould as the first of the series, One Damned Thing After Another. Again, it's not great literatue, but it's not meant to be. Rather it kept me entertained and glued to my seat wondering how things were going to turn out. I do occasionally get lost in the plot twists, but overall it's fairly easily trackable.

Edited February 25, 2015 by willoyd

[willoyd]

The Mauritius Command by Patrick O'Brian ******
 
This was the last of my rereads of the Aubrey-Maturin series; from here on it's new territory. If it keeps up the same standard as these first four books (and all indications are that it does), then that's a whole lot of fabulous reading ahead.

Of these first four, The Mauritius Command proved particularly satisfying as the book centres on one complete event, the Indian Ocean campaign of 1810. It's firmly based on historical reality, with Aubrey written in for Captain (later Admiral) Sir Josias Rowley. O'Brian does tweak the narrative in places, but essentially the warfare sticks quite closely to what really happened, a thrilling account of which appears in Stephen Taylor's excellent Storm and Conquest. Having said that, O'Brian then applies his own brand of fiction to it, to produce a story that is almost equally character driven, as Aubrey and Maturin combine to dramatic effect.

I think another reason for the satisfactory feel to the story is that little is included to detract from the maritime adventure: certainly the story starts with Aubrey landbound, obviously a few years after the previous book as he is now not only married, but with young children, encumbered with a live-in mother-in-law who has, it is revealed, had time to make a mess of her and her daughter's finances. The future doesn't look too bright, until Maturin steps in. We then go to sea, and, just as Jack Aubrey has returned to his natural element, so, it feels, have we......

All the characteristics of previous books are present, but now there seems a tighter focus (and definitely more action!) than before. The result is one of the best naval novels I've yet read, and up there with the best of all genres. It was completely unputdownable: only total necessity meant that this wasn't a one sitting read.

Up to now, I've said that whilst the series was an out and out six star read, the books in themselves didn't quite make that rating, not least because their completeness depends on being part of a series. To some extent this is true of The Mauritius Command, but it would only take a few very minor tweaks for this to work as a completely independent book: it would certainly not leave lost any reader new to the series, and in many respects would be a better introduction to the series than the first book. As a result (although HMS Surprise may eventually have that sixth star confirmed) this is the first in the series to earn the full six stars from me - confirming my estimation last time I read the book.

And so, once I have one or two other books out of the way, including March's book group read, on into the O'Brian unknown, with Desolation Island.....

 

[Athena]

You and Steve seem to be really enjoying this series, great review !

[Karsa Orlong]

And so, once I have one or two other books out of the way, including March's book group read, on into the O'Brian unknown, with Desolation Island.....

 

 

 

You're in for a treat.  It's here that the series really kicks off, imo.

[willoyd]

We Are Completely Beside Ourselves by Karen Jay Fowler **

 

Well, it had to happen sooner or later, but at least it took until the back end of February: the first disappointing read of the year. This is slightly out of order, but I'll return to submit my The Mesmerist review later.

 

It's a few years since I read The Jane Austen Book Club, before the time I started writing reviews, but I remember it as an enjoyable enough read (3*), even if the film was, unusually, better. Whether my tastes have changed, or the styles are significantly different, I'm not certain, but whatever it is, this really didn't score on any front for me.

 

Firstly, the main protagonist, Rosemary, really has little of interest going for her: she's a not particularly interesting, or indeed particularly likeable, college student, rather self-obsessed if anything. None of the rest of her family are particularly likeable either, and, anyway, we're kept very much at a distance, so have little chance to engage with them other than on Rosemary's terms, which aren't conducive to getting to know them beyond the caricature level.

 

Then the plot, what there is of it, is horribly disjointed, jumping backwards and forwards from past to present like a yo-yo: as Rosemary (Fowler) openly confesses, she starts in the middle of the story. This all enables the author to leave her big twist until about a quarter of the way through the book, and it is a dramatic one - I certainly didn't expect it. Unfortunately, rather than engaging my interest, it completely switched me off, and it was at that point that I totally (rather than mostly) lost interest. I didn't get much further.

 

To be honest, I think the main problem is that the whole subject matter was just not me. OH agreed. She took one look at the blurb and said that she wouldn't have even bothered picking it up at the browse level. She's right - reading the blurb again left me wondering why I had got that far, let alone buying the book (fortunately cheaply).

 

So, as a piece of writing, this is fine - it is well written (at least, IMO). However, as a novel, it did little, indeed nothing for me, and is now contributing to the increasingly healthy height of my charity book pile. It's not that I disliked it, I just didn't like it (a difference!) - so enough for two stars, but barely.

Edited February 28, 2015 by willoyd

[bobblybear]

Interesting review. I just looked on Amazon, and I bought this for the Kindle in December 2014. I think it was one of their daily deals.

 

Just skimming the Amazon reviews, it has received many mixed comments, with most people being rather lukewarm about it.

 

I will give it a read eventually, but will probably push it a bit further down my TBR pile. The part that puts me off is the jumping backwards and forwards in time. Some books do this very well, and don't leave you confused and wondering which time-frame you are in. Others....well, it's why I didn't get on with The Crow Road, as it jumped all over the place, with very little hint which time period we were in.

 

Hopefully your future reads will be better!

[willoyd]

The part that puts me off is the jumping backwards and forwards in time. Some books do this very well, and don't leave you confused and wondering which time-frame you are in. Others....well, it's why I didn't get on with The Crow Road, as it jumped all over the place, with very little hint which time period we were in.

Funnily enought, that didn't bother me in The Crow Road, which I got on rather better with (not a lot, but enough!), if nothing else because the first sentence was a real grabber!

Edited February 28, 2015 by willoyd

[chesilbeach]

As far as I remember, I couldn't even finish The Jane Austen Book Club, so despite the fact We Are Completely Beside Ourselves was Booker nominated and lots of people reviewed it positively, I resisted buying it when it was in the Kindle sale.  Based on your review, I think I made the right choice. 

[poppyshake]

There was a bit of a buzz around We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves when it came out last year .. as if it was THE book to read. I thought about getting it but then, I wasn't sure when I read the blurb (part of it intrigues me) and a couple of people, whose opinions I trust, didn't think it was all that special or deserving of the hype. I didn't enjoy The Jane Austen Book Club .. didn't like her characters much (I think I may even have abandoned .. which is almost unheard of but that may have been because my expectations were high given the title etc) so I decided that .. unless I trip over it at the library or something ... I'll give it a miss. Nothing you've said here convinces me to change my mind  

[willoyd]

There was a bit of a buzz around We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves when it came out last year .. as if it was THE book to read. I thought about getting it but then, I wasn't sure when I read the blurb....

 

I think that was when I must have bought it - swept up a bit in the wave.  But then, I'd had a bit more of a positive experience of The Jane Austen Book Club - much of it through the film I have to say!

 

Anyway, have now started on Middlemarch.  I read this once upon a time as a teenager for A-level, and have often meant to go back to it.  Now it's part of the English Counties book challenge, and I've promised myself to tackle a few more doorstoppers this year, it's almost required reading!  Not the best time to get started, I usually reserve books like this for the holidays, but it's sort of crept up on me and insisted on being read!  It might be a while before my next book review (once I've written up The Mesmerist, of course!).

[bobblybear]

Funnily enough, that didn't bother me in The Crow Road, which I got on rather better with (not a lot, but enough!), if nothing else because the first sentence was a real grabber!

 

"It was the day my grandmother exploded", or something similar. The first chapter was just as good, but for me it was a slow downhill slope from there.

[Alexi]

I'm another that didn't get on with The Jane Austen Book Club. After your review I don't think I shall be looking too hard for the rest of Fowler's work!

[willoyd]

The Mesmerist by Barbara Ewing ****
 
Too old to obtain work as an actress (some things never change!), Cordelia Preston sets herself up in business with best friend Rillie Spoons as a mesmerist, exploiting a talent she appears to have inherited from her mother and aunt. As this is the early nineteenth century, this is virtually unheard of, but against all odds they succeed and achieve a level of respectability unimagineable before they started.

And then it all goes very badly wrong as Cordelia's past comes back to haunt her, and the carefully constructed house of cards threatens to come crashing down around her and Rillie's ears.

This is the second book of Barbara Ewing's I've read, following on from Rosetta, which earned the full six stars. To a large extent it is in the same mould in terms of historical setting and having a strong female lead. Both support the idea that Ewing is distinctly underrated, hardly featuring in the book reading landscape.

The Mesmerist, in spite of its dramatic plot, actually feels a lighter book than Rosetta, certainly not quite as rich in depth (I described it as a 'plum pudding' of a novel), with a stronger streak of humour and an underlying feeling that it'll still turn out alright in the end (you'll need to read it to find out!), but there are still some desperately dark aspects, and the body count is surprisingly high. It also took, for me, a bit longer to warm up, and there were some moments in the first half when I felt it needing a bit of a kickstart. However, those feeling were soon dispelled, and for the first time in ages, I actually stayed up into the early hours to finish a book, oblivious to the time. Cordelia and Rillie are both fascinating and sympathetic characters, whilst Ewing consistently demonstrates she's done her homework on the period, without feeling the urge to prove it to us all the time, whilst her plotting is has a generally well balanced feel to it.

Overall, therefore, this was a really enjoyable, immersive read, and I'm already lining up the sequel, Circus of Ghosts, for reading in the near future.

[willoyd]

Middlemarch by George Eliot ******

(Note: this review has been copied to the English County Challenge thread for Middlemarch).

Once upon a time, way back in my long distance youth, I studied Middlemarch for A-Level.  It's so far in the past, I don't remember much about it, other than I didn't rate is as highly as, say Jane Austen.  Middlemarch has been long overdue a reread, and when better than as part of the  English Counties Challenge?!
 
It's big.  That might seem a teensy-weensy bit obvious, and it's why I've not added anything to my blog for over a fortnight, but some tomes don't really make a big impact.  By the end of Middlemarch (actually, long before the end) you realise that you're reading something that has huge depth and weight.  This is partly Eliot's style: while she's not as flowery as Dickens, she still doesn't write with the conciseness of an Austen or a Woolf, and can rather belabour a point.  However, it's also down to the content, covering a wide range of characters and a veritable tapestry of interwoven themes.  Like a tapestry too, it generates a vivid overall picture, whilst enabling the reader to zoom in and pick apart matters at a much closer level. It's such a huge book that I can barely scrape the surface here, and too much detail would of necessity involve some fairly significant spoilers (which is why I never read 'introductions' until after I've read the book - ridiculous but necessary!) so I'll just touch on a few aspects:
 
Middlemarch concentrates primarily on the lives of three 'couples' (although one is more a trio).  At the heart of the trio is Dorothea Brooke, a strongly opinionated and socially conscious nineteen year old, who, believing in his intellectual greatness, decides to marry the crusty and elderly Edward Casaubon in preference to the rather more bucolic local landowner, Sir James Chettam, who lands up marrying Dorothea's sister, Celia.  On her honeymoon she meets her husband's much younger cousin, Will Ladislaw, of decidely mixed parentage, who Dorothea feels has been badly treated, and of whom Casaubon is both resentful and suspicious.  Tertius Lydgate, an ambitious and idealistic doctor, arrives in Middlemarch and meets and marries the beautiful but thoroughly self-centred and status obsessed Rosamund Vincy, whilst her well meaning but spendthrift and rather careless brother loves Mary Garth, who the rest of his family look down on, but who is in fact thoroughly down to earth and clear sighted, but poor.  The bulk of the rest of the cast is made up of those with whom these three couples are either related or closely interact in other ways, the resulting tight network of relationships being a hallmark of the provinciality of Middlemarch: everybody knows everybody!  All this is set against the background of the lead up to the Great Reform Act of 1832, the provincial world showing increasing restiveness.

 Through the lives of these characters, Eliot threads a number of themes.  Particularly prominent is that of the role of women, particularly in the partnership of marriage, with all three of the above relationships involving strong female contributions, both negative and positive. Eliot also examines with some rigour characters' efforts to achieve what they perceive as important in their lives, from the thoroughly worthy to the utterly shallow, but particularly those who are seeking some kind of self-fulfilment.  Not all are successful, whilst others find that they reach the goal in rather a different way to that intended! Then there is the influence of the setting: the bustling, Midlands town (much of it probably based on Coventry and Nuneaton), where rumour and counter-rumour spread like wildfire and can transform someone's life, almost in minutes: it's not what you do or who you are that matters so much as how others perceive you.
 
In other words, Eliot is talking about living lives, lives that touch on so much that is relevant to us all, and drawn with so much detail and colour that we cannot help being pulled deep into the narrative ourselves. It may sound a bit of cliche, but it is true nonetheless, that the characters and their world came thoroughly to life, to the extent that for just over a fortnight, I was never happier than visiting Middlemarch!  It is also very easy to see why so many have rated Middlemarch as one of the great novels of English literature, it featuring frequently in 'greatest ever' lists.  It's not perfect - not least because of the wordiness on occasions - but life itself isn't, and Middlemarch's greatest strength is its reflection of life.  And, anyway, the lack of perfection is sometimes what gives things their interest.

Edited March 21, 2015 by willoyd

[willoyd]

For various reasons, have found myself acquiring quite a few books lately. The current year to-read list gets ever longer!


Books
Tambora, The Eruption that changed the World - Gillen D'Arcy Wood (Amazon, hb)
George Eliot - Jenny Uglow (Amazon, pb)
The Rosie Effect - Graeme Simsion (local, pb)
The Unexpected Professor - John Carey (local, pb)[/i]
Counting Sheep - Philip Walling (local, pb)
A Brief History of Time - Stephen Hawkin (local, pb)
An Introduction to Behavioural Ecology - Nicholas Davies et al (Amazon, pb)
The Spanish Ulcer - David Gates (Amazon, pb)
Waterloo, The Aftermath - Paul O'Keefe (Amazon, hb)

E-books
The Devil in the Marshalsea - Antonia Hodgson
The Story of Film - Mark Cousins
The Living Mountain - Nan Shepherd
Napoleon and his Marshals - AG Macdonell
 

Edited March 26, 2015 by willoyd

[Athena]

I hope you enjoy your new books ! I'd be interested to hear what you think of The Rosie Effect and A Brief History of Time, in particular. But I hope you enjoy them all .

[willoyd]

The Road to Middlemarch by Rebecca Mead ****

 

Rebecca Mead, a Brit now working as a journalist in the US, reflects on the influence Middlemarch has had on her life, and on the life of George Eliot, particularly in relation to her writing. The combination of memoir, biography and lit crit (of the gentlest sort) works well in the author's hands to make a thoroughly readable and enlightening book. Divided into eight chapters to reflect the eight books that make up Middlemarch, each chapter reflects, even if somewhat obliquely at times, aspects of the linked book.

 

I initially read this for greater insight into Middlemarch itself, which I'd just finished, and it certainly made me think about the book more deeply on a couple of occasions, but what made the greatest impact on me was in fact the biographical aspect: George Eliot is a particularly fascinating, and obviously strong minded, individual, about whom I definitely want to read more!

 

My one downer on the book is that, aside from the biography, it was all so easy flowing, that I actually reached the end without absorbing very much else. Looks like I'll have to reread it, and stay somewhat more alert!

Edited April 2, 2015 by willoyd

[vodkafan]

Nice review of Middlemarch, which I have not yet read, but I am half -way through a TV adaptation, which bears (bares?) out the themes you pick up on. The train crash marriage is particularly painful to watch.

[chesilbeach]

The Road to Middlemarch by Rebecca Mead ****

I remember hearing her interviewed when the book first came out, and I was interested in reading it, but figured I ought to read Middlemarch first … that will soon be rectified, so as you've reminded me of this one again now, I've made a note for later purchase.

[willoyd]

I remember hearing her interviewed when the book first came out, and I was interested in reading it, but figured I ought to read Middlemarch first … that will soon be rectified, so as you've reminded me of this one again now, I've made a note for later purchase.

Definitely one to read afterwards. I enjoyed it all the more for having only just finished Middlemarch, so it was still fresh in my mind. Edited April 2, 2015 by willoyd

[willoyd]

The Apple: Crimson Petal stories by Michel Faber ****

I was uncertain about this. First of all, I'm not a great fan of short stories. Then, the reviews were very mixed: I was keen to find out more about what happened after the main narrative of The Crimson Petal and The White ended - the ending was a bit of stunner, coming completely out of the blue - and all the reviews suggested that this isn't what Faber wrote about in this book.

 

Well, the answer to the latter doubt was certainly true - Michel Faber doesn't reveal 'what happened next'. However, several of the seven short stories do provide an insight into future lives. Almost inevitably, given how the author wrote the original book, one has to read between the lines, but I actually found this more interesting than being told directly - a classic example I suppose of 'show not tell'. In a funny way, and certainly not in accordance with quite a few other readers, I found Faber's approach strangely more satisfying, particularly after the last story.

 

It's not just about the future. There are flashbacks too, and on a couple of occasions it took some time to work out whether one had gone backwards or forwards (he never provides a parallel narrative - now that could have been confusing!). However, what is always obvious is Faber's masterly handling of setting and character. These may only be short stories, but there are as richly detailed as anything in the original book.

 

So, at the end I closed the book with a somewhat contented smile: it was good to have read more of Faber's Victorian orientated writing, of which there isn't anywhere near enough - I can't say his other books appeal half as much - and it was good to have some further insight into the characters' lives from the author himself (I rarely enjoy extensions of books written by other authors, generally preferring to stick with the original author's work, with one or two exceptions) - and I think Faber did right in not dotting the 'i's or crossing 't's on what happened next - something that could have diminished the original narrative, at least in my eyes.

[Athena]

I'm glad you enjoyed this book. I really liked The Crimson Petal and the White, so I think I'd probably enjoy this collection (I think it's on my wishlist / want to read list). Great review!

Edited April 8, 2015 by Athena

[frankie]

For various reasons, have found myself acquiring quite a few books lately. The current year to-read list gets ever longer!

 

The Rosie Effect - Graeme Simsion (local, pb)

 

I can't wait to hear what you think of this So far almost everyone I've talked to about the book has loved it just about as much as the first novel, except for Athena.