This month we had a choice of three books – Remarkably Bright
Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt, The Inheritance of Loss by Karen Desai and Dream
Builders by Oindrila Mukherjee.
REMARKABLY BRIGHT
CREATURES BY SHELBY VAN PELT
JUDY: This is a story of friendship between
Marcellus, a giant Pacific octopus and Tova, a widow who cleans at the aquarium
where Marcellus lives. Tova has taken
this job after the death of her husband, but she is still grieving over the
unexplained death of her only son, Eric, 30 years before. Into her life comes
Cameron, a young man, unable to maintain a relationship or a job. He then sets
out on a quest to find his father who he had never met, having also been
abandoned by his mother when he was nine years old. It’s a story about humans
grappling with change, grief, abandonment and loneliness. All the characters need each other, connected
by their loss and grief. Judy said it
was a delightful and surprisingly enjoyable read and very informative about the
life of these amazing creatures.
Judy told us about the Dala horse or
“Dalahast,” from Sweden which is very important to Tova as it is a part of her
Swedish heritage. It is a traditional Swedish folk art craft and a national
symbol of Sweden. Originating in the
Dalarna province, it’s a carved and painted wooden horse, typically red, that
represents strength, good luck and Swedish heritage. It’s a beloved symbol of Swedish culture,
often given as a gift to represent happiness and prosperity.
KELLY
loved this feel good book and said it was easy to read.
SHEILA also
loved this book. She said it was very
good for a first book, and it finished well.
JO loved
it and VAL also enjoyed
it. Val said the ending was a bit twee,
but it didn’t detract from a very enjoyable book.
KRIS enjoyed this book as well, although found it a bit slow to begin with. Her favourite character was Marcellus, the giant Pacific octopus. The book is divided into chapters and Marcellus has his own chapters where we hear his thoughts on life, his surroundings, his longings and what he thinks of the people in his life. Tova and Marcellus form an attachment as she cleans the aquarium in the evenings. Tova is a very private and independent woman, but she feels the loneliness of not having any family left after her only child, a son disappeared at sea, presumed dead. More recently her husband died. A young man turns up in Sowell Bay looking for his father. He gets a job taking over from Tova while she recuperates after breaking her leg. What they eventually find out about each other will change their lives forever.
KERRIE liked it but did
not love it. She had to take a leap of
faith to believe an octopus could read. She loved the setting and would love to
visit Puget Sound in the Pacific North West.
It explores dislocation and searching for that elusive thing.
PRUE looked at it and
wondered whether she would enjoy it. It
was a bit quirky, but she did read it and although a bit slow to begin with,
she found it easy to read. It was a
beautiful little story, and she knew it was going to have a happy ending.
BEV was very sceptical about a talking octopus, but she really enjoyed the book. It was a bit slow to begin with but as it went on, she came to love the character Marcellus, the giant Pacific octopus. The other main character was Tova. She was very lonely and wondered whether she should sell her house to be able to look on the brighter side. Bev really enjoyed the read.
THE INHERITANCE OF LOSS by KAREN DESAI
JOAN loved it. She read all the mountaineering books as a
teenager. The story is set in the 1980’s
in Kalimpong in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is in the lush foothills of
the Himalayas. A dilapidated, but once
comfortable mansion is home to three people, the misfit judge, and his
granddaughter Sai, and elderly cook who has served the household and judge for
most of his life. The cook’s son Biju is
another character who now lives in New York as an illegal immigrant. Sai, at 17
falls in love with Gyan, her tutor. A
violent upheaval comes to the town by the ethnic Nepalese. Their peaceful life is destroyed. This is a wonderfully written book from an
exciting Indian author. The book was published in 2006 and was the Booker prize
winner of that year.
JUDY A really enjoyed this
book. Karen Desai is the daughter of
Anita Desai who has been shortlisted three times for the Booker Prize. The Inheritance of Loss won the Booker in
2006 and now this year, her latest book. The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny, her
first book in nearly 20 years is on the Booker longlist.
In the Inheritance of Loss, the setting shifts between the foothills of
the Himalayas and New York City in 1986.
Judy thought this book was sharp, funny, moving and sad all at the same
time and she looks forward to reading her latest.
ED found it rather
depressing and only got to page 64.
MARGARET said the themes
were amazing – Colonialism and the confusion when everyone left – people not
being able to cope. The New York setting
was depressing. The young Indian men were working without permits. Margaret felt she could not go on reading it
as it was too depressing.
ROSEMARY W said the Judge
tried to adopt English ways, trying to become anglicised but on the other hand,
he rejected white people. When he came
back to India, he attached himself to English customs.
PAT read only 60 pages
as she said it wasn’t easy to read and did not appeal to her.
LYN got about half way
through but struggled with it.
DREAM BUILDERS by OINDRILA MUKHERJEE
ROSEMARY S said it was set in
the fictional city of Hrishipur in India that’s growing quickly and promises
wealth, opportunity and an escape from the past. Maneka Roy has returned from
the United States following the death of her mother. Through her we meet a wide range of
characters – wealthy developers, middle class families, migrant workers all
connected to Hrishipur and it’s boom, and all with a story to tell. They are all searching in some way for a
better life, but often being met with disappointments when their dreams don’t
match reality.
The city itself feels like a
character and Rosemary loved this one line in the book “It was what Hrishipur
aspired to be, the adolescent city, clambering for attention, building high and
higher until all that was left was a cluster of unfinished buildings at various
stages of construction, standing like scarecrows with empty arms and vacant
gazes”. It’s not a cheerful book. She
felt there was sadness in every character, but it is thought provoking. It’s a story about ambition, disappointment
and resilience. Cities can look glamorous from the outside but on the inside,
they often hold loneliness, inequality and broken promises.
LYN said it was a
moving read, although not her style. She
felt depressed and annoyed by the corruption as well as the haves and have
nots.
HELEN loved it and the
look into contemporary India. It’s very autobiographical – the author had not
seen her parents for six years. There
are many points of view, family, friends and working class people. The city was
a character itself. It captured the lives
of Indian people who were trying to make their lives better. Aspiring Indians wanted the best of
everything. There was
discrimination. The electrician was
disabled so people treated him badly. He
was ostracised and discriminated against. The tower gets burnt down. Maneka’s
father was going to return to Bengal after the death of his wife, but he had bought
into this new city instead. The theme is
grieving.
Kris
In September we will be reading Autobiographies and Biographies
