Seeds of/and Time

Two lucky dogs had finished their bones and were well into mischief* by the time the last FnB'er arrived at Megan's place on Wednesday 16 July, to discuss her selection, 'Wild Dark Shore' by Charlotte McConaghy, and Kathy's choice, 'On the calculation of volume' by Solvej Balle.  We all wished absentee Cherilyn well in overcoming her flu and chest infection, marvelled at how quiet and well behaved Eddie was, came up to date with Mog's building project (occasionally thinking perhaps we may not have seen the last of Sheffield Street at our previous meeting? - yes don't worry, I'm sure we did Mog!), before Megan dove headfirst into the cold seas deep in the Southern Ocean.

After introducing us to Charlotte and her vast library of authorship, and explaining how Andrew brought home a collection of books from Dymocks sometime ago which included this one, Megan enumerated many words the book brought to her mind:  

Isolation, remoteness, unpredictable, tormented, vivid, family love, devastation, love/lust, romance, informative, mysterious, passionate, dedication, harrowing, eerie, grief, loss, climate change, choices.

You can find Megan's thoroughly researched report about the author and book here https://docs.google.com/document/d/1mMCNSvUJCrNS4_uF-DM9EyJ-xeTv_Doiz3xSOUg9G6A/edit?usp=sharing

(Quick warning note:  if you hit the link on this and the two other google document links you should get to Megan and Kathy's documents (?) but may not get straight back to the blog).

One non-reader reported still being on the long list waiting for the book from the library; while other readers agreed with Megan that it was a well told, well written lively page turner.   However, for some the writing was patchy, with the sea scenes vividly captured while parts of the storyline were left hanging on the precipice of verbosity (ed: maybe an overstatement there!).  The odd character of young seed counter Orly created some discussion, as did the unlikely lifestyle of Fen, while some wondered about the extent of Rowan's injuries and attention given to the ongoing stitching repairs and bandaging.   All agreed there was a lot going on in this fast paced entertaining book with its dramatic ending - raising the possibility that as it was written by a script writer will there be a film or mini-series?  But as the rescue boat appeared on the horizon, we discovered it was the author's privilege to not tell about how the one adult left standing (Dominic) was going to explain the island's five deaths, one imprisonment, one underage sexual predation/encounter, one boat wreck and the extensive property damage on the island to legal authorities on his return.  The general consensus was that it was very readable entrant to the Eco-lit genre, although some considered it was perhaps over-embellished with mystery. 

Here is a link to an interview with the author about the book - (make a cup of tea or coffee because its around 25 minutes).

  

Wild Dark Shore may not have been the most creative book title ever, but it was certainly behind Kathy's selection, 'On the calculation of volume' by Danish author Solvej Balle. What a title!!  According to the answer to my AI query on how to calculate volume, 'Volume measures the amount of three-dimensional space an object occupies', and the calculation made depends on the nature of the space being measured (cube, rectangle, cuboid, cylinder, sphere, odd shapes etc).  Simples!

But then, as Kathy reported, Einstein's theories put Time as the fourth dimension of space alongside the three generally accepted dimensions of height; width; depth.  (Clearly AI hasn't come to terms with Einstein yet - one for the humans)!   Balle makes the concept of time in  'On the calculation of volume' the key variant in her 190 page book on how we go about our lives occupying space in the world.   

As Kathy wrote:

"...in books, the writer alone controls the organizational system, measuring out time through sentences, paragraphs, and chapters, and moving it in service to the plot. It is only in fiction that time travel—or the stopping of time altogether—is really possible; the reader can start a page on one day and end it in a different year. In her seven-part novel On the Calculation of Volume, Balle’s first two books have been translated into English by Barbara J. Haveland.  She pushes the writer’s privilege to its limit. Balle’s protagonist, Tara Selter, is a rare-book dealer in France who has found herself trapped within a time loop, a ruminative version of Groundhog Day that sees her endlessly repeating one day, November 18th, over and over."  

You can find Kathy's complete erudite report here - https://docs.google.com/document/d/1nVjl7s-BPqvPlQFPi1Lq0gq9SQrKqweZ7t1bQ8jf50w/edit?usp=sharing  

and here is a link to the ABC radio program Book Shelf from which Kathy heard about the book https://www.abc.net.au/listen/programs/the-bookshelf/solvej-balle-ocean-vuong-virginia-evans/105194258

General discussion about the book revealed a high degree of puzzlement swirling in the room - what was it about? was it a fantasy? how can living only one day over and over be explained? are there any answers? why do somethings disappear and others don't? can age and mortality be accounted for in the book? does Tara's experience have any connection to dementia, or perhaps transient global amnesia? (the latter of which was recounted in true life experiences).  Curious and intriguing were perhaps the kindest words used to describe the book - while confusing was the most commonly used.  And perhaps this was the intent of the author - question mark, double interrobang.  

Interrobang

With another six volumes to come it led to a suggestion that the exercise could be quite rewarding for the author and translator (a la Harry Potter).    Will there be a resolution, or finality?  The answer is that it's going to be a long wait and see.  One reader offered to report back on volume II (which appears to be more narrative based), and in the meantime we await the decision of the International Booker Prize judges to see if it wins.  If so, perhaps some big literary brains will help us with explanations and answers.  

It was Cake time after this conversation with Kathy's very appropriate danish apple and prune cake the choice de jour  - recipe link here
 https://docs.google.com/document/d/17u3tULzP83MuHyYi_vJhwTSAnA0tJcEtb6puBdPY1Tw/edit?usp=sharing

As Barb prepares to decamp to warmer weather in Noosa, chat over tea and cake turned to keeping warm in winter with the Oodie getting the thumbs up - an over over over large sheepskin lined pull over with hood.  Not a fashion statement or for leaving the house in, but definitely cosy and warm - and it can be yours for only $45 from Bed Bath and Table.

The next meeting was rescheduled to Wednesday 17 September, at Margy's place, and it will be a chatty evening with two authors - book selections are

• Always Home, Always Homesick by Hannah Kent (Margy)
• Memorial Days by Geraldine Brooks (McLassie).  

So that's it till 17/09/25 - when most of us will picture Barb lazing on the warm sands of Noosa after swimming in the bay with 2 caps on. 

* And this time the mischief involved the shredding of only one old sheepskin rug