What a day it was - Wednesday 3 March 2021. We arrived at Cherilyn's place on the day a choking Federal Attorney General attempted to justify himself as being a victim of the media (and others) on the recently publicised rape allegation - so from the getgo the conversation at our meeting was alive with outrage, comment and disbelief. After we had all had our say, (some more than others - including on reflection your correspondent!), Cherilyn called us in to line, noting the apologies from Kathy who was having a medically induced sleepover, and Cherrie who has been recalled to volunteering temporarily (are these famous last words from Cherrie?).
After the events of Today, we started with Cherilyn's selection which was the book about Tomorrow - The Last Migration. (Before we go any further, apologies to Cherilyn - I've forgotten the 3 reasons you gave on why you chose your book and would like to include the reasons - please post a comment or let me know).
Cherilyn must have done hours of research and presented us with some fascinating insights into the writing of the book, and the thoughts of its author, Charlotte McConaghy - including
- about writing Franny: her drive came from instinct; she was wild yet wanted connection; brave yet uncertain
- why follow the arctic terns; they fly to the moon and back 3 times in their lifespan -WOW!
- extinction and leaving: how much of the worlds wildlife has gone?? there is more about leaving and the 'why Franny had to leave' than there was about the where she going to
- bleakness yet hope: bleakness yes, but some of us weren't so convinced about the hope bit
We all charged into the storyline of the book, reconstructing it along the way as most of us read it some months ago. Set at a time in the (not so distant) future when animals in the wild were all but gone we were gripped by the narrative, and were in awe of the life of the little arctic terns. We also wondered about the life of Franny not so much from awe as from shock at the choices she was making - from her trauma, to her constant leaving, and to her relationships. PTSD seemed a guilty party here. Niall was one of the positive cornerstones of her life, and there appeared to be an attempt by Charlotte to make Ennis another, but this didn't quite work (for a few of us at least).
Possible flaws of the book were talked about, including unbelievable sections - including when Franny dove in to the ocean toward the last stage of the voyage to drag water back to the boat, and surviving the immersion in cold water (to rescue Ennis earlier). The ending was problematic for some too - where after epic adventures to get to Antarctica for another kind of extinction, we were asked to suspend our investment in the book and believe in a fairytale ending. Not everyone took this view about the ending though, its fair to say, as the hopeful ending was a preference too. The structure of the book was also raised, with the constant changing timeline of Franny's life frustrating the narrative line - perhaps it was a device to unsettle the reader, just as Franny was unsettled - who knows? - perhaps it time to go to creative writing classes!
But the strengths of the book outweighed these problems, particularly its 'raison d'etre', and everyone really enjoyed the book. It took us on a journey into speculative fiction, the potential future if nothing changes, the effects of PTSD, and the lifecycle of an amazing little bird. Excellent choice Cherilyn!
Then it was on to Yesterday - The Tolstoy Estate - Barb's choice for the group read. It was chosen after being read for another book club and Barb thought it a worthy contender for the FandB Club. And it was! 13 years since he wrote his award winning first novel,' The Zookeeper's War', Steven Conte came out with this his second novel. It unapologeticly reverberated from cover to cover with Tolstoy's classic, War and Peace. Barb talked about the way the author deliberately slowed the book down
in the second half by using letters between Paul and Katerina that were
tediously slow to reach the other. And how Conte was keen to do this
because 'War and Peace' was deliberately written in this way by Tolsoy -
but then as Barb said, his book is over 1300 pages long! (And Barb knows because it was a prize awarded to her in her youth.).
Barb also gave us the goss on why it took Conte so long to write his second book (failed novel; broken marriage; caring for an autistic son), and went on to talk about the setting in Yasnaya Polyana (not quite Pollyanna), Tolsoy's estate in Russia, during the second world war (recent image below).
We all felt that the bitter cold graphically seeped through the book during the war years. And the interplay between Napoleon (1812) and Hitler's (1941) failed attempts to win a Russian campaign was always present in the book, reinforced at every opportunity by the fabulous character of Katerina. Barb overviewed the German characters (pronouncing their names heroically) and we all scowled at the mentally unstable Metz, felt for the softie, Seb, disliked Drexel and the very unlikeable Molineaux. Paul and Katerina were the standouts - for their intellect, their strength, and their humanity. The unrequited romance between them created some discussion; one view was that it was essential to the novel, and another was it was a device to get the reader in - hmm where is that creative writing class??
There was a lot to like in this book - from lyrical passages that through Katerina's eyes sought to explain Tolsoy's written word about the human condition, to the precise detail about surgical operations in war conditions before the time of penicillin, and the final chapters when mortality finally met fate.
Another excellent choice. Well done Barb and Cherilyn.
Banana cake (with unsweetened pineapple) baked by Cherilyn's own hand was delicious eating for our post book review chat, when we avoided all further conversation about our cold Attorney General, and decided that
- the next meeting is on Wednesday 12 May (not 5 May as scheduled); Mog and Cherrie to decide venue
- Cherrie's book is 'The Bass Rock', by Evie Wyld
- Mog's book is 'In search of the woman who sailed the world', by Danielle Clode
- the last meeting is on Friday 5 November, for lunch at Sue's place in Hindmarsh Valley
Mog opened an interesting discussion by offering to lend Lowitja O'Donoghue's biography (by Stuart Rintoul) saying it shed light on the history of aboriginal communities in South Australia - and Margie P talked about the recently released book 'Elizabeth and Elizabeth' (Sue Williams) set in early colonial NSW which covered some similar ground. (And as I sit here writing while looking out the window at the fabulous countryside and view I have, I'm still puzzled that John Howard can say one generation isn't responsible for the actions of earlier generations - when I'm clearly enjoying the benefit of those earlier actions, as, I assume, is he. Hmmm! Sorry to start this blog and finish it on a righteous note.) Oh no - and then this came in and I'm freezing cold again ...https://www.themonthly.com.au/today/rachel-withers/2021/04/2021/1614833230/if-he-did-it?utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=The%20Monthly%20Today%20-%20Thursday%204%20March%202021&utm_content=The%20Monthly%20Today%20-%20Thursday%204%20March%202021+CID_c9c3dc4a7204dc795318b6dce13d2958&utm_source=EDM&utm_term=Read%20on
That's definitely a wrap from me until 12 May - enjoy your books and very happy to post any comments, including contrary ones.
