Book Review: Ten Days by Gillian Slovo

Overall I enjoyed this book but a felt it needed more work and didn’t reach its full potential.

The book is about some fictional London riots, it is inspired by the real riots in 2011.  We follow a cast of characters involved in various ways: a family who live on the estate at the heart of the riots, the chief of police, the ambitious Home Secretary and his scheming entourage.

Some of the characters are more engaging and convincing than others.  My favourite was Peter, the Home Secretary, had the whole book been about him and his plotting for power I think I would have enjoyed it much more.  The least convincing I found was Cathy, who lived on the Lovelace estate with her teenage daughter.  Her character felt very two dimensional and also not very entertaining, I mean you could say that a scheming politician is a two dimensional cliché – but at least they are fun to read!  Cathy is a sort of dull too-good-to-be-true do-gooder, she cares deeply about her community but seems like an outsider too, no real explanation is given as to why she is living in relative squalor on a estate that is about to be demolished.  The book doesn’t tell us her background but she doesn’t seem to originate from that estate which makes you ask “how did she end up there?”  It was interesting that I had a chance to go to an event where Gillian Slovo was talking about her work, one of the audience asked her what Cathy does for a living (the book mentions her coming and going from work) and Gillian said that she didn’t know, she hadn’t given her fictional character a job.  Now I think some novels go into too much detail about each character, leaving nothing to the reader’s imagination, so I don’t think we have to know every detail – but I think the author should know!  Perhaps because Gillian’s past work has often involved adapting other people’s words for the stage she hasn’t gotten into the habit of creating her own characters in detail, she says she doesn’t work that way – but I think she should try it, the novel was weaker because some of the characters felt half formed.

 

Apart from following Peter’s sordid tale my other favourite part of the novel was the build up to the riot.  It occurred during a boiling hot early summer and you can almost feel the heat coming off the pages as you read.  Slovo skilfully captures a tense overheated atmosphere of something about to erupt.  Unfortunately the scenes describing the actual riot didn’t live up to the early promise as they felt flat and unconvincing to me, I tried to picture what she was describing (considering I’ve never been in a riot of any kind!) but nothing realistic came into my mind – was this down to bad writing or my lack of imagination?  Not sure.

I felt the novel could have scored an extra point if it had just had another thorough edit or two.

3.5/5

See the Life Through Their Eyes – 13 YA Novels about Mental Health

Do you know someone that has a mental health condition? Would you like to know more about how hard are they struggling with their conditions? Would you like to find stories full of love, hate, sadness, happiness, tears, laughter, lost, pain, joy? Are you able to show empathy and patience towards all the people who need “someone to talk to”? We are not doctors, but we can be a friend, or a shoulder for someone that desperately needs it.

If the answer is YES, than have a look at the list bellow with books that shine a light on experiencing mental health difficulties. Young adult novels are powerful potions that can blow up the bridges between I’m fine and I’m not fine, and this stories remind us that above everything, we are Humans.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

By Georgiana

I define what defines me

I found myself “inventing” a few words in a desperate try to identify some of my book lover moods.
First one is BOOKOVER and I use this one to express my book hangover and by that I mean that feeling of still being inside the book, unable to finish “living” it. I do feel intensively a good book and when it gets me I’m just stuck in it for a few days and even if I try really hard, I can’t start reading another book. It’s just not over yet in my mind.

The second one is BOOKERFLY. And this word came in to my mind when someone called me a bookworm. I know what it means, but I’m just thinking that every good book that I read changes me, works like a chrysalis and, transforms me from a “very hungry caterpillar” into a butterfly. So, I’m not a worm, I’m a Phoenix butterfly that revives with every good book that challenges me.

And the third one is BOOKORDER, and it’s not about being organized or keeping books in an order. That order part from the word comes actually from disorder. I do believe, and my friends confirmed it, that I have some kind of disorder because I can’t restrain myself from buying books, even if I have plenty unread and some friends might call me a bookaholic and it is true but it doesn’t say all. I need a TBR pile next to me to feel safe and comfortable and collecting signed copies is an important goal. And last but not least, I do feel the need to check my books from time to time or to change the way they are shelved. So, because I have this special relation with my books some might call me bibliomaniac, but I prefer not to, and not because it isn’t true, just because disorder sound friendlier and understandable then mania.

Yours sincerely

The bookover bookorder bookerfly

Book Review: If You Go Away by Adele Parks

I’m afraid this book has gone on to my small life is too short pile of unfinished books.  The book was highly recommended to me by a friend so clearly not everyone feels this way!

It was just so humdrum and dull (IMO).  I gave it a fair chance, I got to page 233 before I decided that I had no interest in finding out what happened to these characters and would quite easily shut the book and never think of them again (obviously I’m thinking of them now – but only because I’m writing the review).

The book gives us alternate chapters following our heroine then hero over the same time period.  Our heroine is Vivian a very beautiful (we’re told this repeatedly) and slim (which we’re told over and over again) debutant.  Slim, beautiful Vivian is a popular girl who hopes to make a good marriage and help raise her family’s flagging fortunes but then when she fears she is losing the attentions of the man she has set her sights on she has sex with him in an attempt to seal their relationship.  This is a shocking thing for a high born young woman do to in 1914 and, although it is not clear that the details of her indiscretion are widely known, her reputation is damaged so her family rush her into a hasty marriage much more lowly than they had hoped for.  Her husband is not cruel or anything but he is cold and unaffectionate so their marriage is rather unsatisfactory.  It gets worse for Vivian when war breaks out her husband goes to war and it’s decided she should relocate from London to their relatively modest country home in the midlands where she is very lonely and isolated.

Our hero, Howard’s, story runs concurrently.  He a handsome (we are told this repeatedly), tall and manly (we are told this again and again) playwright who has a promising career ahead of him.  But then war breaks out and Howard is pressured to sign up, he resists because he does not agree with war and instead goes to the trenches as a journalist.  There he sees the horrors of war first hand and becomes even more convinced of the futility of war.  He returns to England just as conscription is introduced.  He becomes a conscientious objector and is imprisoned because of this.

Howard witnesses the horrors of life in the trenches

At this point I felt the time was coming for our heroes to meet as Vivian had befriended Howard’s mother in the country and she had started to talk to Vivian about the plight of her son.  That’s when I decided I just couldn’t go on.

It’s hard to put my finger on why this was so rubbish.  I guess in a way it wasn’t terrible just so so, it seemed to have nothing to offer that hadn’t been done better elsewhere.  There have been better books about lonely neglected wives and much better books about the horrors of war.  The characters were very two dimensional with nothing about them that drew you in or made you feel an emotionally linked to their journeys.  I just thought they both sounded fairly inoffensive but dull and I couldn’t imagine having an interesting conversation with either of them (even though I’m sure they would have been very nice to look at!)

I’d really like to hear from anyone who strongly disagrees with me on this.  What is it about this that you liked so much?  Does something extraordinary happen in the second half to make it all worthwhile?!

2/5

Zoe

Books to read to improve your health

As person who is trying to lead a more healthy more “organic” life (which I believe is a made up word for natural and before supermarkets and chemical engineers mess with perfectly good food) I can’t state how much I enjoy reading books by Dale Pinnock the Medicinal Chef. The recipes are easy to follow some use minimal ingredients but taste great for example the Kale chips. Also unlike some others there is no abuse of power words like revitalising and nourishing, instead he clearly explains the health benefits and goes into how different foods help skin, hair, digestion, respiratory system, immune system etc. His books even explain how food can be used to improve emotional health which included things like anxiety and depression.

I highly recommend these books to anyone wanting to eat and live well.

 

James

Book Review: Heresy by S.J. Parris

Cityread starts next month and you may already know that Prophesy by S.J. Parris has been chosen as this year’s title.  Hope you are planning to read it next month!  It is part of a series so I thought I would take a look at the first book in the series in preparation (Prophesy is number two in the series).

The sequence starts with Heresy, the first of five novels (so far) set in the late sixteenth century and following the story of Giordano Bruno, former monk turned travelling academic and part time sleuth!  Giordano Bruno was a real person and although all the novels are works of fiction they are littered with real characters and events.

The novel begins in Bruno’s youth as a monk in Italy and gives us a nice background into his character and situation.  Expelled from his monastery for reading banned books he has to go on the run and is then later excommunicated for his own controversial writings – making his existence even more perilous.

Portrait of the real Giordano Bruno

Despite his fugitive status he does find favour with some powerful people due to the brilliance of his philosophy and scientific ideas.  While this is a time of religious extremism and control it is also a time when learning and new ideas were embraced – these contradictions feature throughout the novels reflecting the confusing times he was living in.  After an exciting life on the run, including time spent working for the King of France, Bruno travels to England to a debate at Oxford University he is also hoping to locate a rare book he is eager to read – this is where the meat of this particular story begins.

Before travelling to Oxford Bruno is asked by Queen Elizabeth’s spymaster, Walsingham, to keep an eye out for Catholic Heretics while in Oxford.  Bruno admires Walsingham and also needs the money offered for the task!  He accepts with some reservations.

So you can see he’s in a bit of a pickle before he even begins!  He’s hated by some in Protestant England because of his Catholic background.  Hated by others because he has been excommunicated.  People tend not to trust him because he’s a foreigner.  He is eager to impress in a prestigious academic debate even though he doesn’t know the English debating style.  He wants to find a book, but can’t ask openly about it as it concerns elements of sorcery and could see him accused of witchcraft.  He has been told to look out for Catholics and report them to the authorities but his own instinct is for religious tolerance.  As soon as he arrives in Oxford he finds himself attracted to the beautiful and clever daughter of the University Rector – and she is very much out of bounds to a foreign former Catholic!

There is enough here for an exciting novel already…but then there is a grisly murder!

I won’t go into too much detail about the crime as this is basically a plot driven whodunit and I don’t want to spoil it for anyone.

I do definitely think it is worth a read.  The novel really immerses you in this fascinating era and the plot is pacey and exciting.  I suppose my only criticism is that, now I have also read Prophesy, the second novel is considerably better!  But this is a good sign as it hopefully means the series will develop and improve as it goes on.  In Hersey, while the ideas and feelings of the era seem well described, I often found it difficult to imagine the physical surroundings as S.J. Parris describes them (whereas in Prophesy the setting of Elizabethan London is extremely vivid).

3.5/5

#LovetoRead

Over the weekend on November 5-6, libraries all over Britain took part in a twitter hash tag called #LoveToRead, which involved workers and customers to take a picture of themselves and upload it onto Twitter. As the event was organised by the BBC, they put on various events across the country, one being a talk about books with singer Cerys Matthews on BBC 6 Music and another being various BBC television personalities taking part in the event, well mainly the news team. The BBC website also had interviews with famous authors about what books shaped them over the years. Of course, Brent Libraries took part in the event and you can see a selection on the @BrentCulture twitter.

 

 

Kieran from the Library at Willesden Green’s favourite book is Christopher Hitchens ‘Diary of a Young Contrarian’
The book by the noted Vanity Fair writer and essayist explains his views in greater detail and details his life and politics.

Adina, also from Willesden Green Library, chose Youth without Youth by Mircea Belidem, which was made into a film directed by Francis Ford Coppola starring Tim Roth

 

 

And finally (as we don’t want this to be all about selfies) Development Officer Kate chose two Charles Dickens classics that are not A Christmas Carol and Great Expectations; Nicholas Nickelby and A Tale of Two Cities

 

Well done to everyone in Brent who took part in the event during the weekend, it was a pleasure seeing the amazing variety of tastes and books on display there. The weekend shown that the library is a magical place in which anything can happen if you let your imagination wonder in it and choose a book that will make it flourish. The library is the only place (besides the internet, of course) where you do not have to pay for knowledge. Unlike the internet, in the library you can touch the knowledge, and no the iPad does not count!

I did not take part myself in the event due to intense selfie phobia but I do have a number of books that I would have liked to pose with if not for my various ailments. First is the Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay by Michael Chabon. It is famous in two ways: one for winning the Pulitzer Prize and secondly for being Seth Cohen’s favourite book in the O.C. The book centres on the two protagonists in the title over 16 years of their lives in pre and post war America. The book tackles a wide range of subjects from war, religion, immigration and sexual identity. Plus it’s about comics. Comics are fun.

The second is a book I discovered in highschool and would have loved to study but it’s of French origin and my French is bad. The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexander Dumas is a story about one man seeking revenge for the deeds his friends did to him years ago. He gets sent down and then discovers gold. Jackpot. Guess what happens next?

I must end it there but now I ask you: Did you take part in #LoveToRead? Do you have a book you love to pose with?

 

BY SOLMAZ

Halloween Blog- 3 Favourite Witches and Wizards of Literature

Of all the monsters and heroes that people often dress up as at Halloween, the favourite for everyone are witches and wizards. They both appear in literature sometimes as protagonists and support characters, but most often they are the villains of the story, witches more often than wizards. The rabble of characters I have selected for my list are all the stars of their respective stories and all have a thing in common with each other, see if you can spot it in the list!

1. Mildred Hubble – The Worst Witch Series – Jill Murphy

My personal favourite character on this list, Mildred is presented to us in Jill Murphy’s 80’s book of the same name as a bumbling, accident prone girl, a “worst witch” as you will. Everything seems to not go to her favour, from messing up in Potions class to not getting a black cat like the other girls but instead a grey coloured cat she calls ‘Tabby’. Mildred’s bumbling is actually her greatest strength in the books as she (unknowingly) saves the day in each one, with accidental consequences of course! What made Mildred my favourite over the years is that she was very gloriously average. Most characters I have read about up until then were Greek in their ways, flawless and ones to model ourselves after. Mildred in a way was us, and we were following her journey with her. I also thanks to Mildred, grew quite fond of tabby cats and used to always carry a beanie baby tabby cat with me and pretend I was Mildred, in fact I was her for Halloween three times in my life! Re-create the look by getting a black pinafore, thin scarf, blue shirt and witches hat. And don’t forget those famous plaits!

2. Wizard Howl – Howl Series – Diana Wynne Jones

I admit I did not know who Diana Wynne Jones was as a child and I first came across her as
a teenage anime fan, seeing the movie adaptation of her book Howl’s Moving Castle. But we are not here to talk about the movie version as this is a library blog. Howl is somewhat of a mysterious character when you are first introduced to him. Although the book is called ‘Howl’s Moving Castle’ you are seeing the events through the eyes off a milliner called Sophie Hatter. Sophie is turned into an old woman for much of the story, and her meeting Howl is a happy accident. Howl is presented to us as a vain if quirky wizard who is supposed to be this ‘heart eating demon’. Throughout the book, you see (through Sophie) Howls personality change from that to a selfless hero who is a powerful wizard. Complete the look for Halloween by finding the dandiest suit you can find and putting a blond wig on.

3. Hermione Granger – Harry Potter series- J.K Rowling

This series does not need any waffling from me to introduce it does it? Even though Harry is the main star of the series, it was his clever friend Hermione Granger that I always was in awe of. She was the straight woman of the 3 Man Band of Harry, Ron and herself. She would always use her cunning intelligence to get Harry and Ron out of trouble and lets face it, she was the real hero of the stories. Get the look by purchasing a Harry Potter Hogwarts uniform set from any fancy dress shop and letting you hair go wild.

 

Brent libraries are running Halloween events all half term so check brent.org/events for more details.

 

By Solmaz

Wildlife in the library?!

Autumn has arrived in full force which means falling leaves, bonfires, Halloween and the growing fascination with everything pumpkin spiced. But one little animal is as much autumn as the other things mentioned and is the topic of this blog. They are cute, spikey and some go fast! Out if ideas?

Well it is none other than the humble hedgehog! This bundle of spikes is a quaint autumn sight but numbers have been declining over the years. Here are a few tips to keep them safe and warm in the coming months:

• Check any bonfires you set up to see if there is a hedgehog sleeping there underneath. Bonfire piles attract hedgehogs because it is warm and away from danger but many get killed each year due to the bonfire so before you celebrate, always check your bonfire pile!

• Contrary to popular belief, hedgehogs do not like milk as they are lactose intolerant. That means their bodies cannot process the enzymes that are in milk and it makes them very sick indeed. Instead, give them water and any cooked meat you have lying around as it goes down a treat with the ‘hogs. Even better, if you keep pets that require them yourself, live mealworms are perfect as they are similar to what hedgehogs eat in the wild.

• You can always try building your own ‘hedgehog house’ out of leaves, sticks, moss and anything else that you can find in the garden. They must be well hidden as hedgehogs have quite a few predators lurking about ready to pounce. You can also include a blanket but it is preferred if you have any natural insulation, like feathers.

Some even keep hedgehogs as pets but it is not recommended that you pick one up from the streets. There are many licensed breeders online or better yet check if your local animal shelter or hedgehog re-homer have any looking for a home if you want to commit to having one as a pet. If not those tips will have a rabble of little hogs coming to you. Hedgehogs do not like us as much as we like them but they are fun to watch from afar.

Our Libraries have many books on hedgehogs, from fiction books in the Children’s section to hedgehog care and animal books in the Non Fiction section. One of the more popular hedgehog books is The Hodgeheg, By Dick King-Smith which is about a young hedgehog who decides to become a road safety hero to his family and other hedgehogs.

Brent Libraries are also having a Green Cities Arts and Crafts session this October and the theme is you guessed it, hedgehogs! Children can make their own paper hedgie out of paper and dried leaves. A tip is to bring your own dried leaves from your garden at home. You can colour your hedgehog’s ‘leaf spikes’ in all the colours of the autumn leaves. The next session in time of writing is at the Library at Willesden Green, Saturday 22^nd October at 2.30m,-4pm.

By Solmaz

Make your own hedgehog as our craft event!

150 Years of Beatrix Potter

2016 marks the 150^th birthday of beloved children’s author Beatrix Potter, famous for her whimsy tales of animals doing everyday things that had that English charm about them. Each tale featured a titular animal, often in clothes having many adventures in the countryside, in which Potter was most fond. Most of her stories contained rabbits, in which the two most famous ones, Benjamin Bunny and Peter Rabbit were modelled after two rabbits Potter had as a child. She loved her rabbits, often taking them on family holidays to Scotland and walking the, on leashes.

The most famous book and the one that launched her to national (and later worldwide) fame was of course, The Tale of Peter Rabbit. The story begins which our plucky hero Peter wanting to explore the world around him. His mother warns him that Mr. Macgregor’s vegetable patch is dangerous. His sisters, The Cottontails, obey but Peter’s thirst for adventure gets the better of him. He sneaks into the garden and starts to eat all the vegetables he could find. Not before long the garden owner Mr. Macgregor catches sight of Peter and tries to capture him. Peter quickly makes a run for it but gets stuck in the fence. Lucky for Peter he gets saved by Benjamin Bunny and then promises his mother never to wander far again.

Today, Peter Rabbit has an empire, from books, games, décor and even his own animated series!

My personal favourite Beatrix Potter tale was the one of Jemima Puddle Duck. I do not know what drew me to this what some might see at first glance a melancholy tale of a duck desperately wanting to have a family. Nevertheless, I watched the video every day and carried around a plush of her everywhere I went. As I grew older, I came to look at Beatrix Potter’s tales with new eyes and when I started working here at Brent Libraries, re-discovered the books I read in my youth. The charm of her books is that all ages can enjoy and take away their own views of the tales. Throughout her life, Beatrix Potter wrote 23 of them, each featuring animals that she would see on her walks across the countryside and later on at her very own farm, Hill Top.

Brent Libraries will be holding a number of events this autumn to mark her 150^th birthday. We will have a selection of her books out on display, including her “lost” tale, The Tale of Kitty in Boots, illustrated by Roald Dahl’s favourite, Quentin Blake. The Children’s Libraries across Brent will also be hosting craft sessions to celebrate, so why don’t you come along with your children and make their favourite character from the tales including the famous Peter Rabbit and my favourite always, Jemima Puddle Duck. The events will be on at the end of October so please check www.brent.gov.uk/events for your nearest library.

What is your favourite Beatrix Potter tale? Do you wish she made a tale from your favourite British animal? Please comment with your views.

 

By Solmaz