Book Review: Human Croquet by Kate Atkinson
From the back of the book:
Once it had been the great forest of Lythe - a vast and impentetrable thicket of gree with a mystery in the very heart of the trees. And here, in the beginning, lived the Fairfaxes, grandly at Fairfax Manor, visited ince by the great Gloriana (Elizabeth I) herself.
But over the centuries the forest had been destroyed, replaced by Streets if Trees. The Fairfaxes had dwindled too; now they lived in 'Arden' at the end of Hawthorne Close and were hardly a family at all.
There was Vinny (the Aunt from Hell) - with her cats and her crab-apple face. And Gordon, who had forgotten them for seven years andm when he remembered, came back with fat Debbie, who shared her one brain cell with a poodle. And then there were Charles and Isobel, the children. Charles, the acne-scarred Lost Boy, passed his life awaiting visits from aliens and the return of his mother. But it is Isobel to whom the story belongs - Isobel, born on the Streets of Trees, who drops into pockets time and out again. Isobel is sixteen and she too is waiting for the return of her mother - the thin, dangerous Eliza with her scent of nicotine, Arpege and sex, whose disappearance is part of the mystery that still remains at the heart of the forest.
Review:
Another good read from Kate Atkinson (KA). I've read one other (Behind The Scenes At The Museum) and listened to another (Case Histories), so when I began to read the book it seemed similar themes/plots were developing. I asked the question should I continue reading (although I try to persevere with all books). This also had me thinking if this happens with all authors, and I've only been able to discern it with KA as the they are distinctive, I answered positively and felt a whole lot better.
There is something that keeps the pages turning, I find her work a really easy quick and entertaining read. You almost want to go back and start again just to see how developments later on are dealt with at the time. KA has to be one of my favourite authors (Top 20 at least), and yet twelve months ago would have dismissed her books as being written for women (they maybe and the back cover may hint at that), perhaps I should be a little more open.
Once it had been the great forest of Lythe - a vast and impentetrable thicket of gree with a mystery in the very heart of the trees. And here, in the beginning, lived the Fairfaxes, grandly at Fairfax Manor, visited ince by the great Gloriana (Elizabeth I) herself.
But over the centuries the forest had been destroyed, replaced by Streets if Trees. The Fairfaxes had dwindled too; now they lived in 'Arden' at the end of Hawthorne Close and were hardly a family at all.
There was Vinny (the Aunt from Hell) - with her cats and her crab-apple face. And Gordon, who had forgotten them for seven years andm when he remembered, came back with fat Debbie, who shared her one brain cell with a poodle. And then there were Charles and Isobel, the children. Charles, the acne-scarred Lost Boy, passed his life awaiting visits from aliens and the return of his mother. But it is Isobel to whom the story belongs - Isobel, born on the Streets of Trees, who drops into pockets time and out again. Isobel is sixteen and she too is waiting for the return of her mother - the thin, dangerous Eliza with her scent of nicotine, Arpege and sex, whose disappearance is part of the mystery that still remains at the heart of the forest.
Review:
Another good read from Kate Atkinson (KA). I've read one other (Behind The Scenes At The Museum) and listened to another (Case Histories), so when I began to read the book it seemed similar themes/plots were developing. I asked the question should I continue reading (although I try to persevere with all books). This also had me thinking if this happens with all authors, and I've only been able to discern it with KA as the they are distinctive, I answered positively and felt a whole lot better.
There is something that keeps the pages turning, I find her work a really easy quick and entertaining read. You almost want to go back and start again just to see how developments later on are dealt with at the time. KA has to be one of my favourite authors (Top 20 at least), and yet twelve months ago would have dismissed her books as being written for women (they maybe and the back cover may hint at that), perhaps I should be a little more open.