Review: An Imperfect Blessing

 

With this delicate and well-written debut novel, playwright Nadia Davids shows that she’s a good storyteller in both forms. I first reviewed this for Women24 – and was given a chance to meet Nadia when she came into our offices for a video interview.

An Imperfect Blessing by Nadia Davids (Umuzi)
Nadia Davids has made a name for herself as a playwright (At Her Feet, Cissie) of great intelligence and sensitivity, with a real understanding and affection for South Africa and its people.

It is these qualities, and a deftness of characterisation, that she brings to her debut novel, An Imperfect Blessing.

Against a setting of the turbulent late 80s and early 90s era as apartheid thrashed in its death throes, Davids chooses to focus her story on a young teenager, Alia Dawood, who is torn between the ordinary concerns about outfits and boys on one hand – and on the other the strong imperative to care about social issues and take a political stand.

Davids creates a loving and convincing picture of the community living in Walmer Estate at that time, with many of the older generation starkly aware of the personal loss sometimes required in the pursuit of political equality.

For the teen protagonist though, life in a rapidly changing society seems complicated and at times unfair.

This is a memorable debut from a literary but still warm and accessible writer, whose words gleam with meticulous craft and polishing.

Review: The One plus One

The One plus One by Jojo Moyes (Penguin Michael Joseph)

I’m not familiar with Jojo Moyes’s previous books, although a quick Google search reveals that she has a passionate following. I enjoyed the light but not silly story of The One plus One. This review first appeared on Women24.

Jess Thomas is a single mom with a singular mission – to make it through the day.

But with a teen stepson who comes home cowed by bullies every day, and a mathematically gifted daughter who seems doomed never to be given a chance to shine, Jo feels that the line between coping and drowning gets thinner every day.

When Ed, a bad-tempered but helpful stranger, comes into their lives, the family grasps at the opportunity to rise up above it all, just this once.

They set off on an uncomfortable car journey to a maths competition where 10-year-old Tanzie may find an opportunity to change her life – and by extension those of her fellow travellers.

As Ed finds himself ever more embroiled in the needs of Jo and her children, his own legal and personal troubles fade into the background.

Jojo Moyes writes funny, likeable prose that is deceptively easy to read, but still touches on deep themes that make you, as the reader, really care about the fate of this carful of misfits.

Yes, the love story is to be predicted, yet dark twists in the plot turn a budding romance into the last chance to make life matter.

Jojo Moyes is an author who has become much loved, and reading this – my first of her novels – gave me a sweet taste of why.

Books by their covers

When I was little, the best books were Ladybirds, with pictures on the covers but very few within.

Then, when I grew a little older, they were mostly Penguins, with orange covers and this little guy on them:

By the time I swept my children off to the library, children’s books had exploded into colours, shapes and a myriad of enticing tricks such as built-in magnifying glasses, sound effects and squeakers. The glory of children’s books with colourful, textured, layered covers has spread to books for adults, an expression of lovingly tactile creativity from an industry that may live in future entirely inside a tablet or a Kindle.

If you love lovely book skins, take a look at some of these creative covers, blogged by Lincoln Michel on Buzzfeed.

Review: I am Malala

As a girl, reading and learning were central to my life, and it’s painful to imagine that there are still people in the world who think that it’s inappropriate for girls to attend school. This moving memoir by Malala Yousafzai recounts her experiences up to and beyond the moment when a gunman entered her school bus and shot her in the head. I first reviewed it for Women24.

I Am Malala by Malala Yousafzai with Christina Lamb (Weidenfeld & Nicolson)

In a classroom in a small school in Pakistan stands an empty chair. It is reserved for Malala Yousafzai, a teenager who has become a symbol of bravery around the world.

It is her true story, told with intelligence and clarity, which makes this autobiography one of the must-read books this year.

Following in the footsteps of her father, an education activist, Malala, now aged 16, started standing up for the right of girls to be educated.

Writing a blog under an assumed name, she spoke of her strong desire to be educated and to create a society where no woman would be illiterate, like her own beloved mother.

In time, as education for girls became a hotly debated issue in her homeland, she began to raise her voice in the local and international media.

But opposition from the Taliban was fierce, as a tussle developed in Pakistan between various political forces.

Malala’s was only one small story in the political upheaval that had gripped the country with bombings and gunfights becoming all too commonplace.

Caught in the middle was Malala, and millions of other ordinary people, many of whom were displaced from their homes as pitched battles broke out between various political factions and the authorities. In the chaos, Malala and her family moved out of their home temporarily, making their way to her mother’s home village deep in the countryside.

Finally, they returned, convinced that a fragile peace would allow Malala and her friends to return to school. But one afternoon the school bus was stopped in an ambush, and with the words “Who is Malala?” a gunman opened fire, injuring not only his intended target, but two of her classmates as well.

Shot in the face and neck, Malala was rushed to hospital, and eventually flown to Birmingham for treatment.

Here she awoke, surrounded by strangers, a badly injured young teenager missing her family and her old life. But outside the hospital, and around the world, her name had become a rallying cry for freedom of education.

When her family subsequently joined her, it was decided that they would stay in England until it was deemed safe for them to return. She remains an active voice striving for the freedom of education so many of us take for granted.

Malala’s story avoids grandstanding, and speaks to the heart of the issue – a clever girl, hungry for knowledge and to do well in class, placed in peril by the convictions she and her family hold dear.

Through her bravery and pain, this young woman has drawn the world’s attention to those other girls who sit beside the empty chair and still pursue their education against all odds.

Review: The White Princess

One of my earliest author crushes was on Jean Plaidy, who wrote novels based on characters and stories from British history. Her natural successor is Philippa Gregory, who makes these characters come alive for a modern audience.
In this review, which I first wrote for Women24, the reigning queen of historical fiction once again brings us a convincing and compelling snapshot of history through the eyes of a woman caught in its ebb and flow.

The White Princess by Philippa Gregory (Simon & Schuster)

Philippa Gregory has perfected the art of sifting through historical events to find the human stories, in this case a woman not often focused on – the mother of Henry VII and, according to some sources, the one-time lover of her uncle Richard III.

Torn between her York ancestry and the Tudor family into which she has married, Princess Elizabeth must navigate a minefield of intrigue and suspicion.

Her husband the king clearly doesn’t trust her, and her mother fuels the fire with endless intrigues. By supporting the pretender to the throne – who claims to be her long-lost brother – she would be denying her own son’s right to rule.

As a mother and a wife she walks a thin line, watched with a suspicious eye by her mother-in-law, and always trying to prove her loyalty. But as the York loyalists march across the English countryside, she can’t help a flicker of joy at the thought of her brother’s birthright becoming his.

Once more Gregory brings us a convincing and compelling snapshot of history through the eyes of a woman caught in its ebb and flow, but at the same time showing remarkable strength in the face of hostile inlaws and a country divided.

The reading tribe

Like many readers, I’m usually perfectly happy alone, with just a book to keep me company. But I’m never really alone when I’m reading. A book connects me not only to the characters within the pages, but also to the author as I enter her or his imagined world.

Reading also connects me to that greater group of like-minded people, the reading tribe. One such is a carpenter who works for one of my neighbours. Every morning I see him waiting on the steps outside his employer’s house, engrossed in a book. As I drive past on my way to work, we nod and smile, and his eyes drop back to the page in front of him. We might not have much else in common – you wouldn’t trust me with an electric saw – but I can recognise a member of my reading tribe anywhere.

Here’s how to spot us:

* There’s always a book at hand – either in paper form or on an electronic device.

* We never mind waiting around somewhere. As I said to my dentist when she apologised for a delay earlier this week: “A chance to sit and read my book for ten minutes during my working day, no problem!’

* We often have another book lined up, because the thought of finishing a book and not having another to start is a bit scary.

* We get very excited when we get the chance to get our hands on a book we’ve been interested in. Best of all is a new book by a favourite author, like reconnecting with an old friend.

* We love to share favourites with our friends.

* Stormy day = reading day!

Are you a member of the reading tribe? And how do you recognise a fellow member?

 

Book du jour

This post first appeared on Women24’s Book Club.

“You MUST read Shantaram,” said my friend Jess, her eyes shining with excitement.

“Ja,” I replied. “I know.”

In fact, Jess was the fifth person to recommend it to me in the space of a month. What I couldn’t tell her was that her very enthusiasm and the passion of her description was a turn-off for me.

I get like this sometimes with books everyone loves. It took me three years to read Spud after everyone else had (fun, wasn’t it!), and The Kite Runner is still sitting there glaring at me from the bookshelf.

From time to time I give in and read the damn thing, and it’s not often as thrilling an experience as the general buzz would make one hope. Life of Pi was great after I got past the first boring bits, but I really didn’t think The Shadow of the Wind was THAT brilliant, although it was an enjoyable read.

I draw the line at The Secret, so perhaps it really would change my life… I will never know.

Sometimes I suspect people haven’t really read the thing when they’re waxing so lyrical about how brilliant it is (not you, Jess). I would much rather someone calmly gives me a less hyped book to read, because they honestly liked it and hope I might too.

Books are such a personal thing, I suppose that’s what my resistance is all about. I don’t want to feel pressure to read a book NOW just because everyone else is. Yes, it is an odd characteristic in someone who spends their time telling other people what I think of books and expecting them to listen. I see the irony.

Update: Since this post first appeared I have read and enjoyed The Kite Runner, but I think Shantaram will have to wait a while longer. And I have not opened 50 Shades of Grey, and probably never will.

 

Books and books and books

How gorgeous is this? I found it on my new best hangout, bookshelfporn.com a photo blog featuring endless pictures of books and books and books.

I have no idea where this is – anyone know? The pic came from Flickr