Bookworm Time with Bebb...Part Five...'Atonement' by Ian McEwan

It's been a little bit quiet here at Bebb and the Bubs over the last few weeks, and for that I apologise. Being on holiday, combined with the hot weather, has made me come down with a massive case of the can't-be-bothereds and I've struggled to motivate myself to do much besides sleeping in and lying around reading. The last few days have been busy and I think it has kick-started me back out of my 'slump' somewhat. I do feel better, having had time to quite literally do nothing, and am ready to leap into some exciting upcoming holiday plans. More on that later...for now, it's Saturday and time for my weekly book review.

Atonement

by Ian McEwan

On the hottest day of the summer of 1934, thirteen year old Briony watches from afar as her twenty-three year old sister Cecilia strips off her clothes and plunges in the fountain set in the garden of their country house. Standing by is Robbie, Cecilia's childhood friend and son of the housekeeper. Briony does not know why Cecilia is doing so, and as she is a dreamy, story-writing child much taken by flights of fancy, she invents a reason for herself. By the end of that day, Robbie and Cecilia's life will be shattered. They will have become victims of the younger girl's imagination, and Briony herself will have committed a crime, one that once she realises the enormity of what she has done, she will spend the rest of her life trying to atone.

If you asked me to name my favourite book of all time, Atonement would be a definite contender. I first read it in 2002 when my English Literacy teacher gave it to me to read as he thought I could use it for my Year 12 major essay. I read it in two sittings and when I told him how much I had loved it and tried to return it, he urged me to keep it. I'm glad he did as it is a book I can read again and again and discover a little more each time.

Ian McEwan is a master story-teller. He has the ability to weave such a spell with his words that the reader is carried along on a wave of imagery so vivid that one can almost smell the scent of sun-warmed grass or see the stately country home through a haze of heat. We are caught up in a slow, smouldering build up of suspense and tension and are powerless to look away, even as we know that terrible events surely lie ahead. The plot is intricate and presented from the viewpoints of several characters; segues into each character are flawless and the writing so assured, the voices so authentic that it is almost like having a window into the private minds of others.

The story is told in three parts- the dreamy hot day of 1934 in England, the depths of war some years later, and finally, into the far reaches of the future as we confront the lifelong attempt for atonement. This book is heartbreaking, a genuinely sad story that nonetheless does not leave one feeling depressed, but rather saddened by the tale and at the same time uplifted by the sheer beauty of the book itself. Having loved this book for years, I was very much looking forwards to the movie, starring Keira Knightley and James McAvoy, while at the same time nervous that the movie would not do justice to the book as is so often the case. However, this is one movie version that definitely lives up to the book, and is also up there on my favourite movie list.

I can't recommend this book highly enough for novel-lovers who enjoy an intricate, finely crafted plot and genuinely brilliant and masterful writing.

My rating: 5 out of 5 stars. Powerful, devastating, beautiful.

Bookworm Time with Bebb...Part Four

Happy Christmas Eve, everyone!I don't quite feel like I'm on holidays yet as I've had so much to do in the lead up to hosting Christmas lunch for the first time. I'm looking forwards to spending the day with family, but also having time to just do nothing in particular once it's all over. Saturday is Book Review day here at Bebb and the Bubs so I'm taking a break from cleaning/making Christmas crackers/making cauliflower cheese/making sorbet and ice cream cake/marinating salmon to bring you another of my favourite books. (One day I'll review some crappy books to keep it fair...but right now I'm enjoying sharing books that I love.)

We So Seldom Look on Love

by Barbara Gowdy

This collection of short stories from Canadian novelist Barbara Gowdy is populated by an assortment of highly unusual characters. Siamese twins, necrophiles, transsexuals, exhibitionists...they all find their way onto the pages. We meet Sylvie, who shares a body with her twin sister Sue, who is nothing but a pair of legs, and works as a circus freak. There is blind Terry and mentally handicapped Julie and their foster carer Aunt Bea. We peek inside the life of Ali, married to a wealthy doctor, dissatisfied with life and an exhibitionist. We see inside the mind of a young, beautiful, female necrophile in the titular story. All that is strange, out of the ordinary, disturbing and shocking are presented in this book, and it is easy to fall into.

Written skillfully and powerfully, this is a highly original collection of short stories that exerts a strong grip on the reader. Even while describing things that may sicken or disturb, the prose is elegant and beautiful and it is hard to stop reading. It is not for the faint of heart, for taboo topics are laid bare in devastating, yet straightforward fashion.

The stories are more than eye-opening, bizarre and disturbing, however- they are full of moments of poignant humour and often quite moving. Who would have thought that a tender love story concerning a necrophile could exist? Some stories are uplifting, others heartbreaking, and all are unexpected. While surreal, her stories are grounded in realism as we are shown the many different people that make up humankind, and the secret desires and character quirks that may only exist behind closed doors are brought into the light.

This is not a book to be read once, put aside and forgotten. Rather, it is a book to be returned to again and again, to be captivated by, thought over and not forgotten. Powerful, unsettling, and ultimately remarkable,

My rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

I hope you enjoyed another book review. Let me know if you read any of my recommendations. Off to keep getting organised for Christmas now. We're all feeling the pressure of the Christmas preparations here in the house of Bebb and the Bubs...

Some of us more than others, it would seem. Merry Christmas, everyone.

Bookworm Time with Bebb...Part Three..."He Died with a Felafel in his Hand" by John Birmingham

Saturday is Book Review day here at Bebb and the Bubs. Today I thought I'd share an old favourite with you that is great for anyone in need of a laugh.

He Died with a Felafel in his Hand

by John Birmingham

"A rat died in the living room at King Street and we didn't know. There was at least six inches of compacted rubbish between our feet and the floor. Old Ratty must have crawled in there and died of pleasure. A visitor uncovered him while groping about for a beer."

The most disturbing, and yet hilarious, thing about this book is that it's all true. Australian author John Birmingham lived in many, many different sharehouses in the 80's and early 90's before his career as a successful writer took off, and had a variety of housemates- eighty-nine, in fact. He kept notes on all of them and the colourful stories of sharehouse hell make up this very funny book. He has lived with albino moontanners, fridge pissers, nitrous suckers, mushroom farmers, hardcore separatist lesbians and obscurely tiger-suited Japanese girls, to name a few. The stories do not run in any particular order and tend to jump around a bit, with one anecdote giving rise to another, making for fast-paced, fun reading. The titular housemate is a junkie who shuffled off the mortal coil on JB's favourite bean bag while clutching a felafel. This anecdote begins and ends the book and in between we are treated to tales of a host of very strange, or very unclean, or very messed up individuals.

Reading this book makes me very grateful that I escaped the true perils of flatmate hell. The worst I had was a housemate who consistently left the kitchen in a filthy mess and then smugly informed me that "There's no such thing as the washing up fairy," if I dared to leave a single plate in the sink to wash later. That kind of petty nonsense really pales in comparison to JB's housemates engaging in a competition to see who can last the longest without changing out of their jeans, or the scream-the-house down arguments over whether the pineapple chunks go on the third or fourth pantry shelf. This is a truly hilarious book that never fails to have me bursting out into laughter while reading it. JB's writing style is quick, concise, wry and with a razor-sharp wit running through even the most nightmarish scenarios. He has also called in various former housemates with whom he is still friends to provide anecdotes of their own. 

The sequel, The Tasmanian Babes Fiasco, is a much more linear book and covers the events of a single week rather than spanning years, but is equally as funny. Felafel has been made into a movie and I love that also. This is a great book to dip into for a laugh or consume at several sittings, though if you happen to be a landlord it may terrify you. JB is a standout on the Australian writing scene and does not disappoint. (Incidentally, I recently started following Mr John Birmingham on Twitter. To my great surprise, he started following me back. This discovery led to me emitting a most undignified squeal. Maybe it's because I'm a Tasmanian and he does like us Tasmanian Babes after all.) 

I always enjoy a bit of Felafel and I think if you have a sense of humour, you will, too.

My rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars 



Bookworm Time with Bebb...Part Two...'The Virgin Suicides' by Jeffrey Eugenides

Well, it's Saturday, which is book review day here at Bebb and the Bubs. Last week I reviewed a recent Australian psychological thriller. This week I am reviewing a haunting yet tender tale set in middle-class 1970's America.

The Virgin Suicides

by Jeffrey Eugenides

From the very first sentence of this novel, we know that the five Lisbon sisters, all beautiful teenagers, committed suicide, four within the space of a week. What we do not know is why, and by the end of the book we are still not sure. From the very first paragraph we know the basic plot, and we have caught the book's tone- wry yet seductive, melancholy yet blackly humourous. And we also know that we want to keep reading.

The story is seen through the eyes of the neighbourhood boys who worshipped the Lisbon girls from afar. They are now middle-aged men and still cannot forget that last summer when the girls chose to slip away, one after the other. They return again and again to their 'exhibits'- letters and diary entries and notes from the girls, photographs, wilted prom corsages- as they struggle to make sense of the events that occured all those years ago, proving that the Lisbon sisters still hold the same hypnotic spell over them as they did when alive.

We never really know the girls- from introverted Cecilia, 13, the first to go, to promiscuous Lux, shy Bonnie, bookish Mary and the eldest, Therese- as we only see them through the eyes of the boys, and never inside their heads. After Cecilia's first suicide attempt, Mr and Mrs Lisbon attempt to bring cheer to the pious household by allowing the girls to hold a chaperoned party, but after Ceclia succeeds in her second attempt, the family closes in on itself and the boys watch from afar as the girls' spirits begin to dwindle. They try to help, to somehow reach the girls and pull them back from the edge, but things move towards what we know to be the inevitable conclusion as the reader is both haunted and compelled by the prose. 

Rarely does one find a novel so beautifully, hypnotically written, so that each sentence flows seamlessly into the next and seem to float from the page with the lilt of poetry. The melancholy subject matter is nontheless shot through with moments of black humour which glitter among the seductive, elegant writing style. This is a book to be savoured, a thought-provoking read that fills one's mind with clear, resonating imagery as the nameless narrators return again and again to the events of that last summer and the luminous, fragile girls they could not save.

 It is a book that requires multiple readings and exerts a powerful spell over the reader, transporting us straight to that middle-class, middle-American neighbourhood of yesterday. The movie adaption was good, and retains the dreamy, sun-drenched yet melancholy feel of the book, but nothing can capture the hypnotically entrancing voice of the novel and its lilting prose as we are allowed inside the minds of the boys and wish we had the same insight to the girls. A superb book.

My rating: 5 out of 5 stars. Brilliant, haunting, unforgettable. 

Bookworm Time with Bebb...Part One...'Beautiful Malice' by Rebecca James

Welcome to the first in what will be a regular series of posts. I plan to post a book review every Saturday. As well as being a movie nut, I am a complete bookworm and would feel lost without a book to read. I plan to review new books I've recently read as well as old favourites from my collection. To get us started...

'Beautiful Malice'

by Rebecca James

Rebecca James is an Australian author who is still relatively new on the scene. 'Beautiful Malice' is her debut novel. I discovered this book last year while I was teaching at a high school. It was a new addition to the library and recommended to me by the school librarian. (I tend to get on very well with school librarians once they discover how much I love talking about books!) I took it home that afternoon and read it in two sittings, unable to stop. I was hooked and intrigued from the first few sentences.

Katherine, the narrator, is seventeen years old and has recently moved to new city and a new school to escape her shattered family, who have been torn apart by her younger sister Rachel's death the previous year. She is determined to keep her head down and continue with her studies, and leave the old, fun-loving Katherine behind her as she tries to forget the terrible truth of her sister's death. That is, until she is befriended by Alice. Charismatic, beautiful, and with a seductive quality to her, Alice explodes into Katherine's life and the friendship quickly becomes intense. But Alice has her own dark secrets and motives and things take a sinister turn as the truth of Rachel's death, and who Alice really is, are revealed in a climax that leaves the reader stunned.  

This is a beautifully written book. It is rare to come across a book filled with such realistically depicted characters, with dialogue that seems to flow straight off the page so that the reader can almost hear the character's voices. The hints and mysteries surrounding the death of Rachel and Alice's true motives make it difficult to put down, and it is very easy to lose yourself in the plot and develop real feeling for the characters. The story jumps between present day and the past, but it does so smoothly and seamlessly and without any confusion. I have read this book several times now and each time I find myself drawn in at the same relentless pace. It is marketed towards young adults/teens but is definitely a book that adults can enjoy. It is very sad and heartbreaking in places, which we are aware of from the very first page, but it is not without a sense of hope and redemption. I highly recommend this book if you enjoy a good psychological thriller that is extremely well-written with believable characters and a gripping plot.

My rating:

5 out of 5 stars (yes, it's that good.)