Last Orders, Graham Swift

I really liked this, it is unassuming and isn't dramatic, even though the subject matter means you're half expecting some big revelation. Last Orders is about a group of men who go to Margate to carry out their friend Jack's last wish of having his ashes scattered into the sea from Margate pier. The friends don't really understand why he wants to be scattered there (or at all) but do it anyway. Along the way we learn about Jack and the group of friends.

I feel the lack of a big revelation or drama is the novel's strength though. It describes ordinary lives, parts of which are quite remarkable though they are generally quite drab. It's written in very distinctive voices, you get a sense of personalities through actions and other character's opinions, not descriptions.
Perhaps because of this there is a feeling always of something beneath the surface - like interacting with people in reality, not everything is explained.

It's a little still, and not uplifting, but I really enjoyed it and it's no worse for not being glittery. Next I'm reading the controversial A Death in the Family by Karl Ove Knausgaard

The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry, Rachel Joyce

This is a really readable, lovely novel. It got a lot of attention while I was working in Waterstones, I wasn't blown away by The Unlikely Pilgrimage... but I did enjoy it and it has some beautiful moments.

We follow Harold Fry, a retiree as he walks from one end of the country to the other in the hope of saving a friend. It is a very touching story and describes the therapeutic nature of walking. As Harold walks he remembers, and starts to make sense of his life and the things he regrets. The walk takes Harold out of himself and allows him and his family the space to look back.

My only criticism of this book was that it was a little twee, however it did remind me of one of the reasons why I love to read. The Unlikely Pilgrimage.. really has a sense of putting you in someone else's shoes and understanding a different sort of life. It deserves a read. 

Next is Last Orders by Graham Swift.

The Name of the Rose, Umberto Eco

I really loved this book! It was quite strange - seeming like two different books smashed together, but it works really well and is pretty original.

For the most part (there is a short introduction which sets the scene) we follow a young German monk, Adso, who is apprenticed to Brother William of Baskerville, an Englishman. Brother William is sent to a Franciscan monastery in Italy to investigate heresy and partake in political talks. When he gets there he finds a young monk has died in mysterious circumstances, and investigates over the next seven days.

It is this which makes the novel such an odd one, the setting is in a monastery in 1327 but is at it's core a murder mystery. The subjects are monks, so the narrative is peppered with theological discussions and explorations of the political and religious landscapes of the time. It is hugely interesting and surprising. Eco has written a novel which is a prefect balance between a compelling story which drives you on to see what happens next, and a thoughtful exploration of a certain time and lifestyle. It is beautifully done, comes across as very well researched and is really readable, I highly recommend it.

Next I'm reading 'The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry' by Rachel Joyce. It was really popular when I worked in Waterstones but I didn't manage to get hold of a proof, I was happy to find this copy in a charity shop at the weekend.

Noon, Aatish Taseer

I am unsure what I think of Noon - it lost me somewhere in the middle, though may be it was because I didn't concentrate as much as I should have.

It is a novel in five distinct parts which describe different points in Rehan Tabassum's life. The novel is about a man split between two worlds, struggling to rceoncile himself with the violence of his homeland. The first two chapters I enjoyed, but I wasn't so sure of the others. Rehan seems distant, he disengages from the country he is in, and from the reader which makes it difficult to stay interested.

Now half way through The Name Of The Rose by Umberto Echo, which is a sort of literary whodunnit, really liking the first half! 

Moll Flanders, Daniel Defoe

The 

Fortunes

and 

Misfortunes

Of The Famous

Moll Flanders, &c.

*

Who was Born in Newgate.

and during a Life of continu'd Variety for

Threescore Years, besides her Childhood,

Was Twelve Year a Whore, five times a Wife

(whereof once to her own Brother) Twelve Year a Theif,

Eight Year a Transported Felon in Virginia,

at last grew Rich, liv'd Honest,

and died a Penitent,

Written from her own Memorandums

So reads the first page in the novel. It is a pretty good summary, if a little dated. I really enjoyed this, it was good to read something written in such a noticable style and which sticks with a charachter throughout their life. 

Apart from being an eventful story (see above!) Moll Flanders is really of it's time. In this book 'whore' just means anyone (actually it means a woman, but we'll not go there) not married to the person they are living/sleeping with. The book highlights the options for a woman in the 1700s, they either need to be rich or married, and moll spends her whole life trying to be both. It's hard to say weather or not she is likeable, she is interesting and understandable but definitely becomes hardened, and an accomplished liar. 

It's enjoyable and a bit of a history lesson so worth a read. I'm reading 'Noon' by Aatish Taseer now, not sure what I think of it so far (I'm possibly not paying enough attention).

The Lighthouse, Alison Moore

 

I absolutely didn't enjoy this book, it is populated by irritating and mostly pathetic, tepid characters. Futh, the protagonist, is a deeply pathetic and irritating man, he has just split up from his wife and is going on a walking holiday in Germany, in the hope that it will help him 'recover'. He is neurotic and has no ideas or thoughts of his own (his father went on a walking holiday when Futh's mother left him, so that's what Futh decides to do) and is terrifically needy. Moore does give reasons for his personality flaws - his mother left him and his dad is an alcoholic. But the upshot of having such a dislikable charachter is that I couldn't give a monkeys what happens to him, or doesn't happen to him. There is not one likeable character in this book. It is obviously a purposeful decision on the author's part, but the result is a complete disengagement on my part. The novel is also full of repetition, forced symbolism and unartful coincidences. Not for me.

Next I'm reading Moll Flanders by Daniel Defoe, which has to be better! 

Under the Net, Iris Murdoch

This one was a surprise, for some reason I expected it to be much more serious than it is. It is a very enjoyable, haphazard story, the kind which seemingly has no beginning, middle or end but is a series of connected events.

The whole is glued together by the personality of Jake Donaghue. He is a young, philosophical writer with a wry sense of humour. We meet him as he has been kicked out of his flat and he jumbles his way from one situation and encounter to another, involving a famous actress, the woman he loves, a canine filmstar an old friend (who may be an enemy) and Mrs Tinckham's shop. It is funny and light hearted, but also has an underlying seriousness which stops the story ever becoming too silly. Dry and highly enjoyable I would recommend it.