January meeting - Reviewing our Christmas reads

The January edition of the Low Fell Book Group was slightly different on two fronts. The first was that instead of meeting at one of the fine eating or drinking establishments on the Fell, we all trooped along to a member's house. Jeanette was kind enough to host us all and the table was laden with dishes for a pot luck supper. She also provided a selection of activities, including questionnaires about our love of books and crackers complete with whistles, to keep us all entertained.

Secondly, we weren't all reading the same book. In fact, each one of us read something different, as we'd all thrown a wrapped novel into the centre of the table at the last meeting and taken our pick. Most people seemed to enjoy the books supplied by other members of the group. Reviews were submitted in various forms, including limericks and haikus. Read on to see our creative efforts:

A Place Called Winter by Patrick Gale

There once was a young man named Harry
Who followed tradition to marry
On a venture quite scary
He moved to the prairie
And found there it's with boys he should tarry

By Jeanette











Dissolution by CJ Sansom

Hmm, 'Disolution'
Sadly it was not for me
Better luck next time

By Joanne B













The Miniaturist by Jessie Burton

In olde Amsterdam it wasn't fashionable to go Dutch
And the main male character, just wasn't that butch.
The female voices all shouted louder
Above the ever present smell of gouda.
But don't be put off from this wonderful story
Even though at times it does get gory.
In this instance small isn't always what it seems,
Perfect in every detail, but not the essence of dreams.
A wonderful read, a five star rating,
So read it now; no sense in waiting.

By Annemarie



The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood

Disturbing echoes
Red leaves falling, tears within
Fertilisation

By Joan













Fool Me Once by Harlan Coben

Haiku:
acdc..o
ptsd...omg
dbeyr

Poem:
She's a super woman
Highly trained to kill
Suffering the terrors
Making her ill
Not easily fooled
The guilty she finds
Only by her rules
All mercy declined
Does she succeed?
This I can't say
Just read the book
So get on your way...

                                                        By Sue

December meeting - Christmas book swap

Our December book club meeting was held at Primavera Italian restaurant and was also our Christmas get together. We all ordered food and drinks and then found out that only five out of ten of us had read this month's book - The Stranger in my Home by Adele Parks. There had been some difficulties in buying the paperback copy, as it doesn't come out until February. After eating a delicious meal we decided to split the group and those of us who had read the book began to discuss it.

We talked about the characters in the book. The main character Alison is faced with the trauma of finding out that her 15 year old daughter was switched at birth and she has been raising someone else's child. Pauline felt that Alison was very overprotective of her daughter because of her own unhappy upbringing. We talked about Alison's feelings of guilt due to her having to give up a child when she was 16.

We all agreed that we had suspicions of Tom. Some of us guessed that he had taken Katherine. However we were not convinced that Olivia's 'pregnancy' was a necessary part of the story. Joan felt that the ending was too much of a happy ending and we agreed that it was too perfect.

The book was easy to read and we could picture the characters easily. The baby swap storyline was a bit far fetched, but it was a good story with a twist. We all agreed that we enjoyed the book. Joanne B said that she was not sure if she would read any other books by the same author. Pauline had read Spare Brides by Adele Parks and said it was OK.

We rated this book 3 1/2 stars.

We had decided at our last meeting that we would give a secret Santa gift of a favourite book. We exchanged these gifts and are all looking forward to reading these in preparation for our January meeting. The books we received are as follows:

Lynda - The Hypnotist's Daughter by Liane Moriaty
Joan - The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood
Susan - Fool Me Once by Harlon Coben
Sharon - The Five People You Meet in Heaven by Mitch Albom
Jeanette - A Place Called Winter by Patrick Gale
Emma - Random Acts of Heroic Love by Danny Scheinmann
Anne Marie - The Minaturist by Jessie Burton
Joanne - Dissolution by CJ Sansom
Pauline - The White Princess by Philippa Gregory
Joanne - The Help by Kathryn Stockett. I had previously read the book I had received and so I chose to read The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce.

Our next meeting will be at Jeanette's home where we will choose our next book.

The Christmas tree at Barter Books, Alnwick

November meeting - Big Brother

The November meeting of the Low Fell Book Group marked a year since our merry little band of readers had started congregating regularly. As such, we decided to go somewhere special for our anniversary and met upstairs in The Bank. There was a good turnout and interesting discussions of Big Brother by Lionel Shriver commenced.

It was generally considered that the book was well-written and everyone got into it, although many people were quite perplexed by the ending. Joan admitted to being caught off guard by it and needed to flick back and forwards over the section where the plot twisted in order to get her head around what had happened.

"It would have been better if it had started with the funeral" - Joan

Sue said she felt like the book was more like a memoir and had in fact found out that the author had written it around the time that her own brother died. Writing about the themes of guilt surrounding the issues of obesity and what can be done to help someone in the situation Edison (the big brother of the title) was in could therefore have been something of a catharsis for her.

Joan suggested that leaving your family to live with your brother was somewhat unrealistic, but Jeanette pointed out that the book was about people's relationships with food as opposed to each other. Joanne C said that she though it was offensive to skinny people, who are portrayed as judgmental throughout.

The idea of eating oneself to death is one that is uncomfortable and sparks plenty of debate. Sue was reminded of the film La Grande Bouffe in which a group undertakes a suicide pact to eat themselves to death on fine cuisine. Relatively early on in the book, there is a line that I (Emma) felt summed it up. "Now cratered down the middle like a half-dug grave, the mattress would have to be replaced".

"It was about losing himself and finding himself" - Jeanette

We discussed the various characters and which ones were likable, with Linda pointing out that the daughter was the only one she could get on side with. Once again, the partner of one of our group could be seen in the character of Fletcher (although we'll keep names secret to protect the innocent!). It was generally agreed that the names were also fairly pretentious.

Several members of the group have read We Need to Talk About Kevin, which is also by Shriver and decided that they preferred it to this latest offering.

"I read it; I was enjoying it; but I hated it by the end" - Sharon

The group decided to give Big Brother three stars, with some rating it as little as one and others going as far as 4.5.

Eight of us stayed on an had a meal at The Bank, which despite the long wait for food and a conspicuous absence of Caesar dressing made for a very enjoyable evening.

Next month's book is The Stranger in my Home by Adele Parks. Feel free to read along with us.

Meeting: 6th October 2016 at The Victoria: “The Loney” by Andrew Michael Hurley

“….every year a few people drowned - The Loney had been pushing their bones back inland as if proving a point”

It is Easter weekend and a group of people are on an annual pilgrimage to attend a shrine on the bleak and craggy Lancashire coast. They are a small dedicated cohort of 4 couples, accompanied by their spiritual leader, Father Bernard. The group consists of the narrator (un-named) and his disabled brother, Andrew (“Hanny” to his brother); the pure and devout Miss Bunce and her fiancee, David Hobs, Mr and Mrs Belderboss and the narrator’s parents Mummer and Farther (Mr and Mrs Smith). Father Bernard is considered by most to be a poor substitute for their much loved priest, Father Wilfred, who had recently died in mysterious circumstances.

They reside for the weekend at “Moorings”, a derelict, dark house with its own secrets and portents. The bleakness of their surroundings seems to represent their piety and spiritual suffering in their hope of finding a cure for Hanny’s disability, which will hopefully take place at a local shrine on Easter Sunday. In contrast, another house across the lethal waters of the bay named “Thessaly”, taunts us with its offering of spiritual destitution and pagan practices. And there is always the constant reminder of the ever-present sinister villagers and their killer dog….

We thought it had the makings of a good film with its descriptive imagery and ominous enticements, finding it “scary”, “perplexing”, “frustrating” and unfortunately even “boring” in places. The initial response contrasted sharply between thoroughly disliking the novel to completely loving it, but either way it gave rise to an interesting and absorbing discussion. 

The plot follows the narrator’s story, travelling back and forth through his lifetime, which most of us found both distracting and fascinating at the same time. Hurley seems to suspend the story in a limbo between the strange and the supernatural. The book is full of atmospheric contrasts and we reflected on many examples, such as the description of a sheep giving birth to her lamb in dark and stormy circumstances creating a dramatic conflict between the miraculous and the “gothic sinister”.

It was felt by some that the book neither mocks the believer nor admonishes the non-believer. However, this was countered by the feeling that religion was dealt with in a cynical manner and that blind faith was made ludicrous through its characters’ rituals as, for example, in the ceremonial wetting of Hanny with the fetid well water. The book certainly had an eerie mix of religious fervour and pagan superstition. Although tense and nail-biting at times, the adventures of the brothers sometimes tipped over into the “Famous Five” as time and again they made their way across the lethal waters of The Loney. Again, however, we were drawn back by the descriptions of the Lancashire landscape with its sense of impending danger to powerfully sustain our curiosity and imagination:

“a dead mouth of a bay that filled and emptied twice a day”

or 

“the soggy afterbirth of winter”.

Hurley describes the landscape and the characters in it with intricate detail but taunts us with questions begging for answers. 

Some of us expressed feelings of unease which the claustrophobic atmosphere created in the reader, but we all agreed there were touching moments in the human relationships between the pilgrims, like the narrator and his disabled brother Hanny, or the friendship between the brothers and Father Bernard. Also, the clumsy devices which were planted to help with the development of the plot, like the dead priest’s lost diaries or the letters found in the locked room in “Moorings”, merely contrived to frustrate, leaving us to make our own way to find explanations. It certainly kept our meeting buzzing, if nothing else!

We also agreed that the characters were cleverly defined and realistically portrayed and that Hurley drew our sympathy and dislike for them with equal measure. Nevertheless, the book left a deep impression, if only for the contrasts and the dynamics which drives it. “The Loney” certainly played with our minds and although it was not originally intended as a gothic horror it certainly contained all the elements.

And so on this night, as darkness fell in the shadowy depths of the “The Vic” after thoroughly analysing and demystifying “evil” versus “good” for an hour or more, our dedicated group took comfort and some relief, in food and refreshment, to talk only of lighter, more day-to-day things and laugh a little... As it was Anne Marie's birthday, we celebrated with a cake.

 “The Loney” was awarded 3.5 marks out of 5.

The chosen book for next month’s reading is “Big Brother” by Lionel Shriver.

September meeting - The Marble Collector

The September meeting of Low Fell Book Group discussed The Marble Collector by Cecilia Ahern. It took place at Rosa 12 at my suggestion, who accommodated us beautifully with absolutely no help at all from me. I didn’t book a table, had no idea how many people would be attending, but the staff gamely offered support with the only rider being that we would need to be out by 10pm. Oh how we laughed, three and a half hours for a book group meeting, surely not! (We left at 21:50.)

Just to continue with the chaos of the event I’d not printed out the booklist for next month (supplied by Joanne B) and have now lost all the email comments people had sent to me on the book. (It’s been tough month.) After providing the booklist for the October meeting as promised I think I’ll take a back seat and just enjoy reading the books for while!

Anne Marie started proceedings commenting that the book was ‘nice easy reading’ which she enjoyed although ‘it took a while to get into it’.

Universally the group expressed some surprise at the wealth of material that could be woven around marbles. I must admit having just divided my late father’s estate the book had me dashing to the internet to see if we’d sent something of value to the car boot sale. Well it seems there are some very nice and expensive marbles out there. A bit niche in their appeal perhaps. Not something there is a department for in ‘Collectables’ for example (other glass and china gift shops are available.)

It was delightful to have a door to this world opened for a while, although personally I did find relentless marble facts tedious after a while. No-one in the group had been aware of championship marble competitions, and remained rather underwhelmed by the knowledge.

In a new venture for the group we considered the ‘Reading Group Questions’ at the end of the book. Rather curiously one question seemed to invite disclosure of secrets in the group. ‘Have you ever hidden something about yourself, however small?’ I wonder how other groups fared with that one?

Sabrina was not found to be a likeable character. Dashing around mystery solving with relentless urgency, diving into hospital hydrotherapy pools fully clothed, travelling to some party in a car park in wet clothes with someone you’ve barely met and ‘tashing on’ with a man young enough to be your son. Emotionally unstable personality disorder at least. Or if there is truly a cycle to this ‘the moon made me do it’ possible mania in a bi polar presentation?

Emma wasn’t impressed with Sabrina’s life guard skills, leaving Mr Daly just a little too long underwater, getting angry about missing the action of a near drowning when she took her 5-minute (ok four and a half minute) coffee break. And her response to not being there when the emergency cord needed to be pulled; throwing a cup against the wall!  Anger management issues?

Speaking of the tashing….. it seemed this interlude opened the door to a ‘create your own character’ moment.

I had the young man as a cross between Harry Styles and Russell Brand … I think it was the reference to the skin tight jeans… Anne Marie pictured him with dreadlocks. But with a quick check mid-pasta eating it seems that he had long black hair, but no dreadlocks. Is there something that you have kept hidden from your past that you would like to share with the group Anne Marie?!

In contrast to Sabrina there was a lot of warmth for Fergus. His family history was particularly enjoyed by Joan who noted that ‘coming from a large family of scallywags’ herself, she identified with the relationships, politics and alliances. The moment in Venice when his ‘heart in a marble’ was rejected by Gina was painful reading, and it was no surprise to the group that this marriage ended in divorce.

It almost seemed that the pace of the ‘one-day investigation’ overshadowed the unravelling of Fergus’s storyline. Many members of the group had read the book very quickly. Gripping story? Easy read?  Not much on? I wonder if the urgency of the plot transferred to urgency for the reader?

Joanne B really enjoyed the juxtaposition of the storylines; a whole lifetime contrasted with the events of one day. The group found the ‘and they all lived happily ever after ending’ (Fergus regaining his memory) a little twee and unrealistic.

The biggest fan of the book this month was Susan who found the characters genuinely identifiable and the writing sympathetic and accessible.

Joanne C felt, having read other books by Cecelia Ahern, that this isn’t her finest hour, not one likely to be picked up by Hollywood this time. She is certainly an author that the group would be happy to read again, and this is reflected in the 3.5 stars rating.

Huge apologies for comments I have missed. It was lovely to be joined for the evening by a previously ‘remote’ member of the group. Sharon I’m sorry about the disorganisation of the evening, we shouldn’t be judged by my poor event management!

Next month's book is The Loney by Andrew Michael Hurley and will be held on October 6th.

August meeting - The Shadow of the Wind

The August meeting of Low Fell Book Group took place at The Angel View Inn on a rainy evening on Thursday the 4th. We discussed The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon.

Six members attended the meeting, but three had still not finished reading the novel, so it was quite awkward to fully discuss the book without revealing the plot and ending of this story.

Those who had read, and in some cases re-read, the book loved it and all agreed that it was well written and well translated. A “proper story “was Joan’s comment. Most of the group had also been lucky enough to visit Barcelona where the book is set and felt that helped them to feel part of the atmosphere, knowing some of the landmarks, streets etc. Although Joan did comment that the gothic nature of the book gave the impression that the city was dark and gloomy, this does not really reflect the essence of the city. Emma felt that this was imagery used to compliment the gothic style of the book.

The novel celebrates the idea of books and writing in itself and weaves multi-layered plots and sub plots with eternal themes of love, obsession, revenge and human flaws of passion and cruelty. Yet it has a lot of humour as well as the constant shadow of the Spanish Civil War as a contrast.

Several members commented on the sometimes confusing aspects of having multiple characters with similar names; however, Jeanette was at hand to suggest a remedy for such situations. She finds it helpful to make a separate list to refer to who is who when confronted with a lengthy cast. A suggestion many of the group felt they would use in the future.

The group did agree with Joanne’s comment that some of the confusion with a lot of the characters stemmed from the fact that there were too many names starting with F: Fermin, Fumero, Fortuny to name a few! My way of dealing with that dilemma is to assign a characteristic to the name e.g.  Fermin = Funny, Fumero = nasty…whatever works for you.

It was an added bonus to receive Pauline’s comments via Joan. They were such a good contribution I have relayed them in full: “I enjoyed it, beautifully written, a meaty book [I love that description]. It required more attention than a bedtime read. It was confusing at times and I was glad to be able to look back via my e reader. I had a lot of empathy with the characters which drew me through some of the more complex bits. I also liked the humorous touches.” Pauline give it 3.5.

The meeting also carried over to a lovely social event. With the partaking of food, drink and the retelling of funny personal stories. It’s a real strength of our book club that it’s now also a great social event with new friendships being formed too.

I gave the book a score of 5; Joanne 4.5; and at the time of writing this we had not given it an overall sore as too many members had still not finished reading it, but safe to say it was a hit with those who had.

Next month’s selection is The Marble Collector by Cecelia Aherne. Meeting on Thursday September 1st. Venue to be confirmed.

July meeting - The Tea Planter's Wife

The July meeting of The Low Fell Book Group took place on the 7th at Low Fell Rugby Club. We had the large room to ourselves overlooking the lush greenery of the pitch on a warm sunny evening. The setting complimented the discussions of June’s choice of The Tea Planter’s Wife by Dinah Jefferies.

Most of the group agreed that it was an enjoyable if, an undemanding read. Several commented that they had to return to the book to remind themselves of the names of the central characters, however it was easy to continue with and good bedtime reading were other comments.

Joanne C was the book’s most ardent supporter and she has had the added advantage of having been to Sri Lanka (Ceylon). Joan has also been lucky enough to visit this country and both agreed that the author’s descriptions of the countryside and culture were both accurate and powerful. With one notable exception - Joanne had actually visited a tea plantation and remarked: “They smell of tea not grass”!

Jeanette felt that the novel was a bit too laden with detailed descriptions, such as: “In the sweet-smelling, multiple- mirrored room, she splashed the repeated image of her face, and applied a dab of Apres L’Ondee, which luckily had been safely stowed in her small case.”

Jeanette was less critical of Gwen, who some of us felt came across as a bit wet. Jeanette felt her character did fit with the time and setting and that she did develop throughout the story. Perhaps on reflection that was fair as we may have been looking at her character through modern day eyes.

We also agreed that the narrative was guilty of giving the reader constant reminders of where and when it was set, which tended to become tedious. We were given numerous examples of the times, such as the sinking of Titanic and the Wall Street Crash.

Most of the group also agreed that the plot had echoes of Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier. The young, newly married girl plunged into an unfamiliar life, the older, moody husband who keeps tootling off somewhere and the shadow of the dead former wife. Several members also guessed the secrets in the plot at an early stage, but heroically carried on with Gwen as she slowly and dramatically conceals her own secret.

Overall we gave the book a score of 3.5

It was nice to welcome a new member to the group and to have Joanne back from her fabulous time in Las Vegas with superb photographs of “Elvis” too.

Our next meeting will be on 4th August at 6.30pm, venue TBA.

Next month’s book choice is The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon.