This month was a real mixed bag in terms of star ratings. So, buckle up! I hope you enjoy.
Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier (re-read)
What's it about?
Rebecca tells the story of a 21-year-old woman, who impulsively marries a wealthy, middle-aged man while she's on holiday. But, upon arrival at his enigmatic Cornish estate, finds herself plagued with inadequacy, haunted by the seeming perfection and presence of his late first wife, Rebecca. Our unnamed protagonist, who may I just mention, is never formally introduced to us, is surrounded by Rebecca's possessions, Rebecca's dogs and Rebbeca's staff - Rebbeca seems to be twisting around every inch of the house, and it soon becomes clear that this young woman really has no idea who she has married.
My thoughts:
After a tiny bit of a slow start, I loved this book. It gave me everything I wanted from a classic, gothic thriller and more. What particularly stood out for me was Du Maurier's ingenious knack for tapping into the protagonist's insecurities - and in that sense, you totally relate to how she must feel. Rebecca, the late first wife, exercises such power from beyond the grave - something that hugely fascinated me throughout and added this deliciously ghostly undertone that hummed throughout the novel. Put it this way, when I finished the book, the only character that truly stayed in my mind was Rebecca. Though she was a ghostly entity, her presence is very much alive and kicking off the pages.
For someone who isn't overly keen on classics, Rebecca really ticked a lot of boxes for me and I wouldn't hesitate in recommending for someone else.
4 stars.
Oranges are not the only fruit by Jeanette Winterson
What's it about?
While based somewhat on Winterson's own experiences (even the protagonist is called Jeanette) Oranges are not the only fruit is still a work of fiction - something we are reminded of at the start of the novel. This short coming-of-age tale (I think it's only 220 ish pages long) chronicles Jeanette who is adopted and brought up by her extremely religious mother. Jeanette seemingly has her life as a future missionary mapped out for her, that is, until she falls for one of her converts - who happens to be a woman.
My thoughts:
I think I was expecting something a little different from this book. It was by no means bad, but I don't think I was it's intended audience - and I got that feeling pretty much straight away. There was a lot of reflection and quote-unquote "profound insights" that I personally found jarring and ineffective. It seemed to dwell on the things I didn't want it to dwell on, yet skim over things I wanted delve deeper into. I get why this book is popular, especially in the context of being studied at university, but it simply wasn't my cup of tea.
2.5 stars
Unnatural causes by Dr. Richard Shepherd
What's it about?
Unnatural Causes is a memoir written by one of the UK's leading forensic pathologists, Dr. Richard Shepherd. He has conducted almost 25,000 autopsies and worked on some of the UK's most profound criminal cases - spanning terrorism, disaster and murder. Throughout the novel, Dr. Shepherd backs and forths between his childhood, schooling, his struggling marriage, and of course, his professional work all while musing on the malleable nature of truth and the inevitable beast itself - death.
My thoughts:
You know what, I was extremely apprehensive going into this novel. It's no secret that death is a huge part - I mean, you only have to look at the front cover emblazoned with instruments used in autopsies to know what you're getting yourself into. But I was incredibly surprised - in a good way. Of course, given the nature of Dr. Shepherd's work, there are some grisly details that aren't for the faint-hearted (there's a short segment on body decomposition at one point which I found a little hard to stomach) but Dr. Shepherd has this way of writing about death with such compassion that I found his accounts truly compelling. Throughout the book, it's clear that Dr. Shepherd is well aware of the preconceptions people have about his job and thus, him, on a personal level. In fact, at one point, he refers to how people think of him as some cloaked butcher - but this novel truly dispels that idea entirely. It's very clear from the beginning that his career has taken its toll on him and his life - you get this understanding from the very first page - he is not untouched by the dead and the emotional wears and tears that we see slowing knawing away, are starkly visible so many years on.
I found certain sections harder to read than others - both the 9/11 chapter and his account of working on the Princess Diana case, made me react out loud - which has never happened to me before.
I could go on for years about this book, so I won't bore you any longer. All-in-all, this is a riveting, compelling and insightful read that opens up to a part of the world we often want to look away from.
4.5 stars
Milkman by Anna Burns
What's it about?
Milkman takes place in an unnamed city and follows "Middle-sister" who, while attempting to keep her mum from discovering her relationship with "Maybe-boyfriend", encounters a married man named "Milkman" who is seemingly following her. Middle-sister attempts to fade into the background following her dark encounter with Milkman, but gossip and hearsay quickly ignite, and she becomes "interesting" - which in this city is a very dangerous thing.
My thoughts:
This has been described as a stream-of-consciousness novel which, quite frankly, is something I hate with a burning passion. But, given its popularity, I thought I'd give it a go anyway, hoping maybe it would change the game for me. Sadly, it did not, and I ended up giving up after 100 ish pages. I spoke about this over on my book Instagram, but Milkman requires intense concentration - something I quite clearly couldn't give it at the time. Sentences seemed to meander on for paragraphs, immense detail was used to describe seemingly pointless things and I found myself continually questioning my own reading ability throughout - are the sentences readable for the literary-fluent folk among us? Am I not "smart" enough to "appreciate the art", so to speak? All of this combined made it impossible for me to connect and become invested in the protagonist and, to be honest, know what the fuck was going on at times.
I am determined to not give up on Milkman and I have a feeling there are many layers and complexities to it that I just haven't been able to unpick yet. Especially since reaching out to others who have read and said that it really picks up during the second half. Because of this, I won't be giving it a star rating - I feel it's only fair to finish the book first, but I thought it was worth a mention anyway.
The Power by Naomi Alderman
What's it about?
The Power is a dystopian novel that essentially explores what would happen if we lived in a matriarchal society. All over the world, young girls are realising that they have "the power" and can use electricity to hurt, and even kill people. Not only can they wake this power up in older women, but every other girl from this point is born with it. This is all told through the perspectives of 4 characters - Allie, an abuse survivor turned religious messiah, Margot, a rising politician, Roxy, a member of a prominent British crime family and Tunde, a Nigerian photojournalist and the only male POV character in the novel.
My thoughts:
On the surface, this book has all the things I would usually love in a novel. A compelling concept, fascinating ideas and of course, a dystopian foundation - but sadly, despite how much I desperately wanted to love it, The Power fell flat for me. Some of the ideas felt pretty reductive and I found myself unable to invest in any of the characters (apart from Tunde, who, coincidently, is the only male POV). Another issue I had was that it appeared to try and cram too much into such a small book. The Power is only 330 ish pages long yet the events that take place in this book could easily have been spread over a trilogy. I noticed from the very first pages that it was rushed and things just seemed to jump from 0-100 very quickly, without explanation.
As abuse of power is explored, I heard many people saying they didn't like how women were presented in the book once they became the more "powerful" sex, but in this instance, I have to disagree. I get what Alderman was trying to do here - men aren't the problem, women aren't the problem - human nature is the problem. And I think it's wrong to assume which way it would pan out if the concept in this book became a reality.
Though there were intermittent moments where I felt I was starting to enjoy the book - they were few and far between. The Power was a novel that explored a concept, a "what if we flip this on its head", as opposed to a great story.
3 stars
So, that's it! Thanks so much if you finished this huge post and of course, please feel free to comment what you read in April / any recommendations you have for May.
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