Alexi's Reading 2014

[Alexi]

#19 The Hacienda by Peter Hook

 

Synopsis: Peter Hook, as co-founder of Joy Division and New Order, has been shaping the course of popular music for thirty years. He provided the propulsive bass guitar melodies of 'Love Will Tear Us Apart' and the bestselling 12-inch single ever, 'Blue Monday' among many other songs.

 

As co-owner of Manchester's Hacienda club, Hook propelled the rise of acid house in the late 1980s, then suffered through its violent fall in the 1990s as gangs, drugs, greed and a hostile police force destroyed everything he and his friends had created. This is his memory of that era and 'it's far sadder, funnier, scarier and stranger' than anyone has imagined.

 

As young and naive musicians, the members of New Order were thrilled when their record label Factory opened a club. Yet as their career escalated, they toured the world and had top ten hits, their royalties were being ploughed into the Hacienda and they were only being paid £20 per week. Peter Hook looked back at that exciting and hilarious time to write HACIENDA. All the main characters appear - Tony Wilson, Barney, Shaun Ryder - and Hook tells it like it was - a rollercoaster of success, money, confusion and true faith.

 

Thoughts: I grew up in Manchester, but I'm too young to remember the days of the Hacienda - it closed when I was 11 years old. I do know of its history and the part it played in the Manchester club scene though - impossible to grow up there and not do, so I was interested to read the take on it from Hook.

 

The sub title is 'How not to run a club' and this really is a 101 of everything not to do. I'm not a business woman by any means, but I do understand the point of budgets, expenses and profit - the key being b does not exceed c! It makes you despair reading about the money they threw down the drain - especially when you realise they weren't seeing even 10% of their own royalties.

 

This is an enjoyable journey from the mid 80s when no one came to the hacienda, though to the glory days of acid house and the (almost inevitable) decline through drugs, gangsters and violence.

 

And what violence! Jesus, no wonder people stopped going as gangsters that couldn't be controlled by security or police ran riot.

 

Easy, enjoyable read. Just don't go into business with them.

 

3/5

[Alexi]

#20 The Cuckoo's Calling by Robert Galbraith

 

Synopsis: When a troubled model falls to her death from a snow-covered Mayfair balcony, it is assumed that she has committed suicide. However, her brother has his doubts, and calls in private investigator Cormoran Strike to look into the case.

 

Strike is a war veteran - wounded both physically and psychologically - and his life is in disarray. The case gives him a financial lifeline, but it comes at a personal cost: the more he delves into the young model's complex world, the darker things get - and the closer he gets to terrible danger . . .

 

Thoughts: as everyone knows, Galbraith is a pseudonym for J K Rowling, and I only bought this after learning that.

 

Curse my fall for a marketing gimmick! Of course, before that I didn't know the book existed so couldn't have bought it anyway. The perils of marketing. I did wait until it was under £2 on kindle though!

 

Ahem.

 

Anyway. I actually really enjoyed this. It was a slow start for me, going from an action-packed prologue to a girl on the bus (who I took an initial dislike to and thawed over time), but when it picked up I was gripped. It's a classic detective novel - who to trust, who not to, and fitting everything together, but I found Strike very likeable which helped matters greatly.

 

I didn't guess the solution, which always pleases and frustrates me in equal measure, and is was left thinking I would probably read the second in the series (when it is less than £2 on kindle).

 

4/5

Edited April 18, 2014 by Alexi

[Athena]

Great review ! I just bought this book a few days ago and look forward to read it.

[Alexi]

Thanks Athena I hope you enjoy it when you get to it!

[Athena]

Thanks, Alexi .

[Alexi]

I haven't been very well recently - struggling to shake off a few things really and not being able to rest very much due to the time of year.

 

I ways away at the weekend (bad timing!) coincidentally to Rutland, with the nearest town being Oakham - I really should have read Set in Stone in situ as it were!

 

Still, I did manage to get some reading done, so here are some reviews.

 

#21 The Worst of Friends by Colin Schindler

 

The Amazon synopsis is rather long winded, so this is a bit of a half assed review!

 

This book tells the tale of Manchester City during the times of Joe Mercer and Malcolm Allison. The two took over as manager and head coach in 1965, when the club was struggling in the second division to rapidly falling crowds and profit margins, and within 3 years they were the English Champions.

 

However, Allison (brought in as assistant/coach figure due to Joe's ill health wants to be top dog, and the house of cards comes tumbling down....

 

This is a fictionalised account of real events, a la The Damned United (and one wonders whether David Moyes will have one written about his ill fated tenure in years to come!) but the author was granted unusual behind the scenes access when Mercer allowed him to train with the squad during his summer vacation from Cambridge in the early 70s. Relations between Mercer and Allison were already in the doldrums by then so the author's words ring truer from his insider knowledge of the time.

 

It is interesting to read about the dynamic, the fictional Allison feels he doesn't get the credit for working day to day with the players, and while he is remembered fondly, Mercer has a road named after him and a statue at the new stadium.

 

The 1960s and 70s are a fascinating time for Manchester football on both sides of the city and this adds to the intrigue.

 

3/5

[Alexi]

#22 Life After Life by Kate Atkinson

 

Synopsis: What if you had the chance to live your life again and again, until you finally got it right?

 

During a snowstorm in England in 1910, a baby is born and dies before she can take her first breath.

 

During a snowstorm in England in 1910, the same baby is born and lives to tell the tale.

 

What if there were second chances? And third chances? In fact an infinite number of chances to live your life? Would you eventually be able to save the world from its own inevitable destiny? And would you even want to?

 

Life After Life follows Ursula Todd as she lives through the turbulent events of the last century again and again. With wit and compassion, Kate Atkinson finds warmth even in life's bleakest moments, and shows an extraordinary ability to evoke the past. Here she is at her most profound and inventive, in a novel that celebrates the best and worst of ourselves.

 

Thoughts: not sure what to think after finishing this one. I thought the first half was absolutely fantastic, but the book seemed to lose its way in the second half, when we relived World War II on several occasions. That's not to say I didn't enjoy reading about those times - I did - but I thought the overall narrative was lost a bit.

 

However, I loved the Todd family and the supporting cast of characters, and I enjoyed seeing the effects apparently small events had on their lives. The difficulty in changing events was also interesting - the most striking example being Bridget and Clarence's trip to London for the Armistice in 1918!

 

Atkinson is clever in weaving these plot lines together, and whatever life she lives Ursula remains Ursula, despite the terrible things that sometimes happened to her, family and friends.

 

I think the best thing about this book was Ursula was no Forrest Gump - although she was close to Hitler in one of her lives, she was mostly just an ordinary girl trying to make the best of each of her ordinary lives - although taken together she and they were anything but ordinary!

 

After halfway I thought this might be a 5/5, but on reflection I have downgraded it for a slight drop off in the second half.

 

4/5

[Athena]

Great review! I'm glad you enjoyed the book, though it's a shame the second half was less good (the book is on my wishlist).

[pontalba]

Great reviews, Alexi.  You've confirmed my thoughts on Life After Life, I was really on the fence about it, but I don't think I'll pick it up now.  An, for me, that's a good thing! 

[bobblybear]

Thoughts: not sure what to think after finishing this one. I thought the first half was absolutely fantastic, but the book seemed to lose its way in the second half, when we relived World War II on several occasions. That's not to say I didn't enjoy reading about those times - I did - but I thought the overall narrative was lost a bit.

 

Great review, and you've pretty much summed up my thoughts on the book. Some parts of the first half deserve top marks, but I really struggled to enjoy the second half.

[nursenblack]

I've wanted to get my hands on Life After Life for a while. It has had a lot of buzz. I'm glad you liked it. 

It is such a bummer when the first half has you enthralled, and the second is just "meh".

[Alexi]

Great review! I'm glad you enjoyed the book, though it's a shame the second half was less good (the book is on my wishlist).

  

 

Thanks Gaia, hope you enjoy it when you get to it

 

Great reviews, Alexi.  You've confirmed my thoughts on Life After Life, I was really on the fence about it, but I don't think I'll pick it up now.  An, for me, that's a good thing! 

  

 

Too many books, too little time?! I didn't mean to put anyone off, but glad to have helped anyway! I need to live forever so I can read all the books I want to before I kick the bucket.

 

Great review, and you've pretty much summed up my thoughts on the book. Some parts of the first half deserve top marks, but I really struggled to enjoy the second half.

 

 

Thank you! I couldn't really out my finger on exactly what went wrong as it were, but I did think we lost some purpose. We weren't really led into what had changed to get her there in quite the same way maybe.

 

I've wanted to get my hands on Life After Life for a while. It has had a lot of buzz. I'm glad you liked it. 

It is such a bummer when the first half has you enthralled, and the second is just "meh".

Thanks. My Mum thinks most endings let most books down - she often enjoys the first half more! I'm the opposite, I usually enjoy the second half more once I've got to know the characters, so this was even more frustrating really.

[Alexi]

Exciting news! I have finally finished Far From the Madding Crowd! Quite glad to get to the end of that one, to be quite frank. I will enjoy writing the review I suspect!

 

In the meantime, have ploughed on with this months RC choice, A Very Long Engagement.

[Janet]

Well done, but oh dear!  I've loved the two Hardys I've read so far - I wonder if it was the book that didn't suit you, or if it's the writer?!  I have this on my 'to read' pile (although I'll probably read it on my Kindle when I get round to it). 

[Alexi]

I'm wondering that too - my Dad loves Hardy and has been on at me to read him for years. I suspect it may be the writing style though - I highlighted a few snippets that really irked to share in my review, but it seemed like he'd swallowed a thesaurus at times and I felt the story suffered from overwriting if that makes sense.

 

I love Dickens, who is flowery and is probably too fond of the comma over the full stop, but his writing really adds to the flavour of his stories I feel, and his stories are fabulous! I felt Hardy's plot came second to his desire to show off his writing style at times.

[Athena]

I look forward to read that review, Alexi! It's a shame you didn't like the book, though.

[Alexi]

#23 Mary Poppins by P L Travers

 

Synopsis: From the moment Mary Poppins arrives at Number Seventeen Cherry-Tree Lane, everyday life at the Banks house is forever changed.

It all starts when Mary Poppins is blown by the east wind onto the doorstep of the Banks house. She becomes a most unusual nanny to Jane, Michael, and the twins. Who else but Mary Poppins can slide upbanisters, pull an entire armchair out of an empty carpetbag, and make a dose of medicine taste like delicious lime-juice cordial? A day with Mary Poppins is a day of magic and make-believe come to life!

 

Thoughts: I picked this book up from the library because a friend kindly bought me Mary Poppins, She Wrote, which is about the life of the author. I loved the Disney film as a kid but had never read any of the books, so thought it was time to put that right. 

 

I haven't seen the film for years, and so maybe I am remembering it unclearly, and through a child's eyes. But the film tells a wonderful tale of two children who are a bit neglected by their parents, with Mr Banks working all the time, and Mrs Banks involved in the suffragette movement. Obviously this is a book for children, but there was none of that here, instead Mary Poppins randomly blows in on the East Wind and stays until it suits her (whereas, in the film of course, as she leaves the family with parents in tow are finally off to spend some quality time together flying kites). 

 

The character of Mary Poppins is in some ways very difficult to warm to - she's very vain, and often quite dismissive of her charges. The magical things that happen don't have a story arc to them. 

 

I know this is a book for children, but the film can be enjoyed by the whole family (as Walt Disney does achieve so well!), whereas the book is clearly meant for children 8 or below and shouldn't be attempted by anyone above that age. 

 

2/5

[Alexi]

#24 Far From the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy

 

Synopsis: Independent and spirited Bathsheba Everdene has come to Weatherbury to take up her position as a farmer on the largest estate in the area. Her bold presence draws three very different suitors: the gentleman-farmer Boldwood, soldier-seducer Sergeant Troy and the devoted shepherd Gabriel Oak. Each, in contrasting ways, unsettles her decisions and complicates her life, and tragedy ensues, threatening the stability of the whole community. The first of his works set in Wessex, Hardy's novel of swiftpassion and slow courtship is imbued with his evocative descriptions of rural life and landscapes, and with unflinching honesty about sexual relationships. (Goodreads)

 

Thoughts: I have had this on my TBR for some years, after my Dad recommended Hardy to me (although he has since told me he hasn't read this particular novel, just seen the film!). I was finally pushed into reading it by the English Counties Challenge, where it is the choice for Dorset. 

 

To be honest, I just didn't get on with it. Whether that is the author, the specific book or the mood I was in when I read it, this wasn't enjoyable for me. 

 

The writing style grated continually, as I have mentioned already. Sometimes it did feel like he had used a thesaurus to every word - like Joey does in Friends when he is writing Monica and Chandler's letter of recommendation to the Adoption Agency. I have highlighted a few passages to illustrate it: 

 

"Troy's brow became heavily contracted."

 

"Nevertheless, that a male dissembler who be deluging her with untenable fictions charms the female wisely, may acquire powers reaching to the extremity of perdition, is a truth taught to many by unsought and wringing occurrences." 

 

As you can see, whether the sentence is long or short he seems very proud of the amount of big words he can throw into the text! I enjoy Dickens, but his flowery style is a pleasure to read and does not detract from the story. Here, I kept having to pause to consider the exact meaning of a sentence, or more likely just to cringe at why he bothered! 

 

The story was simple and predictable, which is no bad thing in itself, but it became subsumed by the writing style. 

 

The positives were Bathsheba. A heroine well ahead of her time, who wishes to run her own farm without a bailiff (until her problems with her husband change her outlook), and one who wishes to do plenty for herself. Good woman! 

 

Disappointing, but my Dad has begged me to try The Mayor of Casterbridge. Maybe in a few years...

 

2/5

[Athena]

Two nice reviews ! It's a shame you didn't enjoy the books more. Your quotes from Far From the Madding Crowd make me think it's better if I stay away from it, I found the second one unreadable. I hope your next read will be more enjoyable .

 

P.S. I remember that Friends scene you're referring to. Quite funny.

[bobblybear]

"Nevertheless, that a male dissembler who be deluging her with untenable fictions charms the female wisely, may acquire powers reaching to the extremity of perdition, is a truth taught to many by unsought and wringing occurrences." 

 

What? I don't think I would get along with that book either, Alexi.

[Alexi]

Thanks Athena! I love that scene too "they have full-sized aortic pumps"

 

I'm finally reading this May's RC book, which is fantastic so far I'm pleased to report!

 

ETA: Sorry BB we posted at the same time! It's a bit of a doozy that sentence isn't it?! I downloaded my copy from Project Gutenberg - I guess more recent versions may have changed some of the language slightly?

Edited May 20, 2014 by Alexi

[Alexi]

#25 A Very Long Engagement by Sebastien Japrisot

 

Synopsis: During the First World War five French soldiers, accused of a cowardly attempt to evade duty, are bundled into no man's land and certain death. Five bodies are later recovered; the families are notified that the men died in the line of duty...

 

After the war Mathilde, the fiancée of one of the men, receives a letter which hints at what might have happened, and she sets off to discover the fate of her beloved amid the carnage of battlefield. Her quest becomes an unusual and engrossing thriller as she discovers an increasing number of people trying to put her off the scent.

 

A Very Long Engagement is a suspenseful thriller and one which transforms a personal tragedy into the epitome of all wartime atrocities. The dénouement, when it finally happens, is moving and horribly convincing.

 

Thoughts: I had never heard of this book before it was picked for the reading circle, but I do like "war fiction" and this proved to be no exception. This is an odd book in that it deals with the emotional aftermath of World War I but is a mystery theme - what happened to these men? And we join Mathilde on her journey to find out.

 

Mathilde is an easy character to root for, and i enjoyed reading about her journey - even if the rest of the characters don't appear terribly well fleshed out and appear merely as vessels to help Mathilde. Through her memories, and those of others, we also get a feel for her fiancé, Manech, and their relationship.

 

The horrors of war are brought home, particularly the proximity to the battlefields. We meet people who owned land on which there was fighting, and those who lived virtually on top of it - not something we saw in the UK (although living through the war as a UK citizen was no picnic either).

 

I thought the ending was a bit predictable, but the way it was written tugged on the heart strings so I forgive the author - who can write wonderfully by the way. Emotive descriptions and beautiful prose display his talent without resorting to a thesaurus. Hardy do take note

 

4/5

[Alexi]

#26 The Return of the Soldier by Rebecca West

 

Synopsis: Set during World War I on an isolated country estate just outside London, Rebecca West’s haunting novel The Return of the Soldier follows Chris Baldry, a shell-shocked captain suffering from amnesia, as he makes a bittersweet homecoming to the three women who have helped shape his life. Will the devoted wife he can no longer recollect, the favorite cousin he remembers only as a childhood friend, and the poor innkeeper’s daughter he once courted leave Chris to languish in a safe, dreamy past—or will they help him recover his memory so that he can return to the front?(Goodreads)

 

Thoughts: Wow. I adored this book. The prose is simply gorgeous, and the plot fascinating - and apparently this is the first book about the Great War written by a woman (published 1918).

 

My initial thoughts were not good, with the opening scenes showing two of the main characters behaving in an extremely snobbish manner towards a third, simply because she is poor and they rich. It seems sad (and yet oh so realistic) that not even a major war can make people reevaluate their priorities. I hated these two characters throughout, but that never spoiled my enjoyment.

 

This is a novella (100 pages) but West packs a lot in, although I did feel sad when I reached the end - simply because I had enjoyed it so much!

 

But gosh, it's an emotional tearjerker! Chris is sent home not knowing his wife Kitty, yet is still in love with Margaret, who he courted as a young man before being called away to Mexico. It is revealed there is unfinished business between them, which complicates matters for Margaret. But while Chris lives in a happy world of youth, with no memories of war or death that have blighted the past 15 years, his wife is desperate for him to regain those memories and return to "normal".

 

In some ways this is a moral dilemma - what would you do? Return your husband to misery, but where he loves you (at least in theory), or let him live unencumbered by the horrors of recent times, but having no interest in restoring your relationship?

 

West's writing style is utterly delightful, and the story heartbreaking. One of my favourite reads of the year so far.

 

5/5

[Athena]

Great reviews , I'm glad you enjoyed both books.

[Alexi]

Thanks Gaia.

 

Really enjoying my reading at the moment, but looking through my ratings so far this year there are hardly any 3s! I seem to have either really enjoyed books (4s with the odd 5) or not enjoyed them very much (2s and a single 1).

 

Odd!