Yesterday we had a good ol' chinwag about one of the few books written
by Hilary Mantel which hasn't won the Booker prize: 'Beyond Black'. In
one of those rare occasions where we all generally agreed, we found the
idea of the book interesting and the character of Alison the medium
original, but felt it went on far too long, repeating itself instead of
developing. A shame, really. My biggest bugbear was when she
referenced the characters driving to Beeston and talks about the M1 and
A52 joining at Junction 23 when surely she meant Junction 25. That's
presumably the sole reason it didn't end up on the Booker longlist.
Next
month we'll be meeting to talk about 'The Conductor' by Sarah Quigley,
set during the Siege of Leningrad and about a conductor's attempts to
record the premiere of a Shostakovich symphony to be used to raise
morals during the Nazi invasion. I'm quite excited about it! Fingers
crossed it delivers.
Also, for December's meeting, we've decided
to embrace the season and do 'A Christmas Carol'. At least it's short.
(And you could get away with just watching the Muppet's version if need
be.)
We'll be in Edin's as usual at 7pm!
November 20th - The Conductor by Sarah Quigley
December 18th - A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens
