SEPTEMBER READING: MAX GATE by Damien Wilkins

SEPTEMBER READING: MAX GATE by Damien Wilkins

Review Copy kindly supplied by Victoria University Press, via Booksellers New Zealand.

I can't think of a single author writing today who could garner the intense media speculation surrounding their imminent demise that Thomas Hardy attracted in January 1928. So famous and popular and revered was this man that there was a very bitter dispute between the locals and the literarti over where he should be buried - at Poet's Corner in Westminster Abbey or beside his first wife in parish of Stinsford where he was born in his beloved Dorchester.

The death of Thomas Hardy and the furore surrounding it are the subjects of this latest novel by highly regarded, award winning New Zealand writer Damien Wilkins. Thomas Hardy, who died at the very grand age of 88, was probably England's greatest living author at that time. Author of such classics as Far From the Maddening Crowd, The Mayor of of Casterbridge, Tess of the Dubervilles and Jude the Obscure, he had in the previous twenty years or so returned to writing poetry. Much of his poetry deals with his first wife Emma, who he seemed to have a tortured love-hate relationship with, as well his love of nature, his preoccupation with man's suffering and life's disappointments. And these are the major themes that permeate through this carefully crafted and beautifully written novel.

The story is not so much about Thomas Hardy himself, who is lying in his bed, death imminent, but more about the people directly affected by his passing - those living at Max Gate, his much loved house that he designed and lived in for over 40 years.  And let us not forget Wessex, Hardy's devoted terrier.  The story is narrated primarily by a maid of the house, Nellie Titterington, but also moves gracefully to and fro between Nellie, second wife Florence Hardy, his executor Mr Cockerell, his elderly brother and sister, the author James Barrie and several other characters who may or may not have been real people.

So what does one do when waiting for a loved one to die? One reflects on life with the loved one, and this is what the main characters do. Particularly Florence who was initially a secretary to Mr Hardy and then married him on the death of his first wife Emma. Florence, considerably younger than Thomas is a fairly tortured soul. Never feeling fully accepted as Thomas' wife due to her youth and what would appear to be Thomas' shortcomings in the sensitive husband department, she is doing her best to walk the fine line between keeping her husband's final wishes - burial locally, and keeping the public happy - privacy vs celebrity. Nellie is her maid, and so is privy to Florence's emotion and distress. She, in turn, has to maintain the fine line between maid and confidante, in view of the uncertainty of her own fate once Mr Hardy dies.

There are a number of other 'fine line' relationships and situations in this novel - Nellie's relationship with a young reporter Alex Peters; Alex himself desperate to be the one to have the first scoop on Hardy's death and yet, as a local, wanting to protect him from the likes of Cockerell and Barrie; Florence's own relationship with Barrie;  a conversation between Barrie and the doctor over what is more important, the brain or the heart; being a celebrity vs the need for privacy. Interspersed through the novel are many of Hardy's own writings, in particular his poetry, that Wilkins has referred to in his note at the end of the book.

I don't really know anything at all about Thomas Hardy or his writings, and have only seen a 2008 BBC TV adaptation of Tess of the Dubervilles, which was about as gloomy and awful and sad as you can get. It doesn't compel me to read any of his novels, but his life was certainly interesting and one of deep introspection. There is some very beautiful writing in this book, and I certainly think his poetry is worth a look. There is a lot going on in this novel of just over 200 pages, and really, I have barely scratched the surface. Much like Thomas Hardy really - full of hidden depths.

AUGUST READING: THE MAN WHO FORGOT HIS WIFE by John O'Farrell

AUGUST READING: THE MAN WHO FORGOT HIS WIFE by John O'Farrell

Well, I bet there are plenty of women out there currently thinking they get forgotten about all the time by their beloveds, so what is the big deal about some bloke writing a book about it? I bet you haven't been forgotten about quite like Jack Vaughan forgets about his wife Maddy! You will either appreciate that much more your beloved and his minor memory relapses, or you may well wish that he follows the same path as the said man in this funny, charming, slightly ridiculous and very satisfying story.

Jack Vaughan, or Vaughan as he known by is 39 years old, lives in London, is a high school history teacher, married to Maddy, father to two children. One day, while riding the Underground, he suddenly realises that he has no idea who he is, where he is,  what he is doing or where he is going. His whole life has been erased, everything, including his family, how to ride a bike, how to swim, his job. The lot. So begins what could loosely be termed a comedy of errors as Vaughan begins the long process of two steps forward, one step backward, regaining himself and his life.

Ever so very slowly Vaughan's memory begins to return. The fragments are tiny and quite random in how they turn up. His first step in finding out who he is occurs while lying in his hospital bed next to the irrepressible Bernard. Bernard has the very bright idea of buying a Name Your Baby book and reading out every single name in the hope it will jog something in Vaughan's memory. Which the name Gary does. Just think how many names Bernard had already read out to get to G...This immediately prompts Vaughan to start reciting a phone number belongs to Vaughan's best friend.

Vaughan finds out quite quickly that he is in the middle of an acrimonious divorce from his wife Maddy. He simply can't figure out why he has found himself in this situation, as the first time he sees her once he knows who he is, he falls madly in love with her. The focus of the book is his mission to win her back.

Like the lives of most of us, Vaughan's  life is very ordinary, which is what makes this book so very appealing to read and to enjoy.  Could something like this possibly happen to any one of us? And how would we handle it? During the course of the story Vaughan's memories slowly return which enables him, and the reader, to go back to the his and Maddy's first meeting, their courtship, and exactly where things went wrong in the marriage. It is wonderfully romantic and poignant, and probably a reminder to us all that it can be easy to forget how things once were, and hard to dig deep to find those memories again.

The author is a very prolific English writer, who has worked on television and radio political satire and comedy programmes including Spitting Image, broadcasting, an aspiring politician as well as successful novelist and non-fiction writer. His skills as a writer with a wry wit are on full display in this book, as in turn we feel sorry for him, then frustration, then what a lovable buffoon he is. He tries so very very hard, it is so endearing. Yes, it is a light and trite story, but also very satisfying, and you will close it with a contented sigh, and think, gee, that was such a pleasant piece of escapism.

JULY READING: BLOOD AND BEAUTY by Sarah Dunant

JULY READING: BLOOD AND BEAUTY by Sarah Dunant

Renaissance Italy gifted history with the works of Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, Galileo, Botticelli, Machiavelli and many, many others. But it would not be complete without the inclusion of the wealthy city states and families who were the patrons of many of these celebrated artists and writers. And especially the families who controlled the Papacy. No family was more notorious or infamous than the Borgias with their time at the Vatican. Of Spanish origin, under the control of firstly Pope Calixtus III, and then his nephew Pope Alexander VI, the Borgia family was not going to let anything stand in its way of controlling the whole of Italy, creating alliances and subsequently destroying them as it suited.  Rodrigo Borgia became Pope Alexander VI when he was 61 having served under a number of popes for years prior to his 'election'. He fathered at least four illegitimate children who were instrumental in his grand plans for domination. These four - Giovanni, Cesare, Lucrezia, and Jofre - were born to the same mother, and are the subject of this novel. History has not been kind to the Borgia family, portraying them as murderers, poisoners, incestuous, torturers, thieves, adulterers, bribers - the list goes on. Their ambition was without parallel.

It would seem there are enough diaries and letters from this period to believe that much of the history is true. The author, who has published a number of other stunning novels set in the Renaissance period, has researched her subject extensively if her bibliography and historical epilogue are anything to go by. The result is a truly fabulously rich and detailed historical novel of real people based on real events. At 500+ pages  it is a lot of reading, but what a read it is. The novel begins in 1492 when Rodrigo, surprise surprise finds himself pope,  his four children range in age from 17 to 10, his mistress is the very beautiful Guilia, his enemies are many and various and he immediately begins the task of immortalising the Borgia name forever. 

Primarily this involves building alliances with the other powerful Italian families - the Sforza, the Medici, the d'Este, the d'Aragon, as well as the noble Spanish families, and keeping on the good side of the French. And how does he do this? By betrothing and marrying off his children, repetitively, either as a result of death, annulment, or changed mind. His 'accomplice' in all this becomes his second son, the ruthless, cruel and syphilitic mad Cesare. His main 'pawn'  is the very beautiful, intelligent and accomplished Lucrezia. And the story, as narrated in this novel, is essentially her story. The author appears to have taken a much more compassionate view of Lucrezia than her portrayal by historians, casting her as a means to an end by her father, and with very little, if any control of her own destiny. Hardly unusual for a young lady of her standing at this time. 

The author is apparently working on a sequel to this novel, which continues the saga and fates of the Borgia, again with considerable emphasis on Lucrezia Borgia who becomes more determined to be in charge of her own destiny. I can't wait. This is marvellous reading, never boring, sumptuous in its detail, strangely narrated entirely in the present tense making it more real and life like. The conversations and dialogue are like real conversations, the passions are intense, the power, ambition and violence fair drips off the page. It is stunning reading.

JUNE READING: LUNCH WITH A SOLDIER by Derek Hansen

JUNE READING: LUNCH WITH A SOLDIER by Derek Hansen

This novel is the fourth in the 'Lunch With' series, although is a stand alone story and does not need to be read in conjunction with the others. Each of the four books is a tale narrated by one of four friends who gather regularly to eat and drink  in a small local Italian restaurant in Sydney, Australia. The four friends are getting on in years and hail from different countries - Hungary, Italy, Argentina and Australia. This book is the story narrated by Neil, who grew up in the farming/opal mining areas of north west New South Wales and beginning, I estimate, after WWII. The story he tells is primarily that of his brother Billy - their childhood,  Billy's tour of duty in Vietnam in the 1960s, and Billy's life after Vietnam. While living as a bit of a recluse running the family farm, a woman one day appears wanting to rent a cottage on the property.  It becomes obvious early on that she is on the run from someone or something, and Billy finds himself drawn to her and whatever has befallen her.

However this story is not only that of Billy, but also of Neil and Billy. One of the rules the four friends has laid down about the story telling is that the story cannot be true. Although without having read any of the other three books, I get the impression that there are elements of a true story in each of the other tales told respectively by Ramon, Milos and Lucio. Neil states from the outset that his story is true, throwing a bit of a spanner into the works as a result, to the extent that I felt the longstanding and close friendship between the four men was seriously under threat by this not sticking to the rules. This tension is a distinct undercurrent throughout the whole book, with it becoming an absolute page turner as he reader really has no idea where it is going - how true is it really? All we know is Neil's statement at the beginning -  that he was responsible for taking his brother's life. How's that for a conversation opener.

There are a number of twists and turns in this book, and it makes for a jolly good story. The author is a truly gifted story teller as seen in his novel 'Remember Me', published 2007, which I reviewed in January 2012. This review book was published 2004 and the quality of his writing improved markedly since then. The writing in the book under review feels a bit contrived and forced. For me there isn't enough subtlety or realness in the characters and relationships of the four friends - I can't really imagine four older gents who have known each other for years having a drink and a yarn in a Sydney bar/restaurant actually talking like this to each other.

This however has not stopped me from wanting to read the other three 'Lunch With' books, and I do have 'Lunch with the Stationmaster' sitting in my enormous pile of unreads. All four books have been favourably reviewed on Amazon/Good Reads etc, but no one book stands out as the 'best' or the 'favourite'. Which I guess is the way it should be - something to suit all tastes. 

JUNE READING: THE UNIVERSE VERSUS ALEX WOODS by Gavin Extence

JUNE READING: THE UNIVERSE VERSUS ALEX WOODS by Gavin Extence

Initially I had this book pegged at 3 out of 5. It seemed a bit far fetched that a freak accident with a meteor could put an 11 year old boy onto the path of becoming a media sensation, geek freak, epileptic and all round weirdly over intelligent teenager. Oh, what's more with a mum who ran a business as a fortune teller. No wonder he was bottom of the pops at his local school. In addition, for about half of the book we are in plot development mode, with not a great deal happening, and unusually for me, I really did consider giving up and moving onto one of the many other books beckoning me to pick up.

But not long after half way, the book took a decidedly surprising and most interesting turn. The subject of assisted suicide is a political hot potato in our Western society with increasing numbers of people living with terminal illness. The burden, stress, and suffering this places onto the person with the illness and onto those who care for and love that person are impossible to quantify. Tie into this religious beliefs, the sanctity of life, the sanity of the ill person, the culpability of those doing the assisting, and we have a major ethical and moral dilemma on our hands. After all we don't let our animals suffer unnecessarily, so why should we let our loved ones.

The person in this novel who wishes to die is not our young protagonist Alex Woods, 17 at the time of his narration of the story, but an older man, Mr Issac Peterson. Mr Peterson is probably in his 60s, American, an ex-Vietnam vet with a damaged leg, who lives alone since his wife died a few years before from cancer. A most unlikely and special friendship develops between these two when Alex, in his early teens, meets up with Mr Peterson while trying to escape from a group of school bullies. Under Mr Peterson's guidance and friendship, Alex quickly finds his teenage world rapidly improving, he learns to deal with the bullies from school, and develops ways to keep his epilepsy under control. Things are on the up.

Then Mr Peterson is diagnosed with a debilitating illness with no prospect of a cure. After considerable research and soul searching, Mr Peterson decides assisted suicide is the only option, and the only place this is legal is in Switzerland. There is no doubt in Alex's mind, and in the mind of Mr Peterson that they are doing the right thing. And so the wheels are put in motion to enable Mr Peterson to die with dignity and self worth.

The second half of this book dives right into this fraught subject in a very open minded way. The author is obviously in favour of assisted suicide, but he sends his message without being inflammatory or judgmental of those not in favour. By using a teenage boy - idealistic, highly intelligent, having had his own share of pain - as his vehicle he has probably found the easiest path to convey his feelings on the matter.

I greatly enjoyed reading the last third of this book. This is not a subject people feel very comfortable talking about, but I found it handled in a very touching and meaningful way. And it has certainly got me thinking more about how we care for and treat people close to us who are terminally ill.  Upgraded to 4 out of 5!

JUNE READING: COLLATERAL by Ellen Hopkins

COLLATERAL by Ellen Hopkins

I have never read a novel in the form of poetry before. It was a bit of a surprise to open this to begin reading to find it all in verse form, and initially was a little weird to read. But once I forced myself to get over the different format, reading became a strangely captivating experience. There is nothing like poetry as a vehicle to tell a love story. The sparseness and pin point accuracy of language is achingly beautiful, passionate, sad, violent, loving, and memorable, at the same time telling a story. 

Here, at the bottom of the world, we aren't a society very familiar with being at war. So it is probably difficult for most of the population to fully relate to the impact that being a Marine at the coal face in Afghanistan can have on the family and partner left behind, and on the self. Cole is such a Marine, Ashley is his long term girl friend. For five years and four deployments Ashley and Cole work very hard at keeping their love alive, and at the same time trying to retain their own individual sanity. There is nothing like war to heighten the emotions and make one live with a little more feeling.

Narrated primarily by Ashley, with odd bits of poetry in Cole's voice, the story moves between the past from the time the two of them met to the present day. Different fonts indicate who is speaking, and what time period we are in. Ashley is a college student, studying poetry. She and Cole meet one night in a bar, connect instantly, and it is full on from day one. Their passion is very intense and beautifully rendered into free form verse, but as we all know passion is not enough to keep a love alive. And slowly over time the relationship begins to falter - the distance, the long periods apart, his daily dice with death vs her daily college routine, similar relationships around them crumbling - all contribute toward an inevitable conclusion.

Since the beginning of time, the lives of those without the power have been torn apart by war. As much an indictment of war on the average person, the way this novel is written also shows how a small story can leave such a big impact on the reader. After all in the scheme of things Ashley and Cole are really just the cogs in the wheel of the war machine, yet their story rings with hope, poignancy and loss. I don't know how this book has been received by the families of those serving in Afghanistan; how true this particular scenario is. But I don't think it actually matters. Love and overcoming obstacles are part of what we do as humans, and so this setting really only serves to highlight the intensity of what we all feel. Outstanding. 

JUNE READING: MUD, SWEAT AND TEARS by Bear Grylls

JUNE READING: MUD, SWEAT AND TEARS by Bear Grylls

This man has so many lessons that he can teach the rest of us about living a life to the best that we can. His autobiography is chock full of worthy mantras to live your it by. On a random page opening, "Life is all about getting up again, dusting yourself down again, learning from the lessons, and then pushing on". Or "It was time to get out there with all of my enthusiasm and commit to fail...until I succeeded". And on his dream to one day climb Everest - "But I had a dream, and that always makes people dangerous...To a man, they thought I was mad". I think a lot of people still do!  And these are just a very few of the thoughts scrambling around in this man's head. But other than his courage, his curiousity and his fearlessness, perhaps the most remarkable thing about him is his  humanity and humility, his bloke-next-doorishness, how Jo-average he seems to be. And the encouragement, that anyone can take on the sort of challenges he has and succeed. Aside from the respect he engenders in people, perhaps his greatest gift is the model he provides for children and young people. He is the youngest ever head of the Scout Association, (he was a Cub Scout as a boy), and is in a most unique position to pass on his passions, his knowledge, his moral and ethical code, and his very ordinariness to the world's youth. 

Any search engine will toss up all sorts of biographical detail about this extraordinary man, and you would have to have lived in a deep cave not to have heard, at the very least,  about Man vs Wild, even if, like me, you have never actually seen it. But a bit like the late Crocodile Hunter, Steve Irwin, he is as much part of popular culture and entertainment, and as British as One Direction or Kate and Wills. In this book Bear Grylls delves deeper than the story of his life and shares the influences and elements that have shaped him into the man he shares publicly.

He comes from a privileged background, but not outstandingly so. His family is very important to him, and he has some very interesting forbears who have made their own mark on the world.  He had a passion for adventure, the outdoors and climbing - be it hills or buildings - from a young age. He went to Eton College where a culture of freedom and pursuit of individual interests further developed his adventurous streak. His decision to try out for the SAS selection almost did him in, the fracturing of three vertebrae in his back almost killed him, as did a fall during his climb of Everest. These combined with his wife and children and his strong Christian faith have all made him the man he is today.



There is no doubt that he is one of the luckiest men to be alive. He has had more lucky escapes than I imagine he cares to count. The two main ones he writes about in this book - the broken back in a parachute accident and the fall into a crevasse on Everest - are, at a guess, barely the tip of the iceberg.  I can't think of anyone who has done more for the saying "Feel the fear and do it anyway" than Bear Grylls. I do wonder though how long he can continue living his life, quite literally, on the edge.

This is such an easy book to read, very short chapters, lots of action, fair amount of self-reflection but in a good and straight forward way, finishing with an epilogue that sets the scene for volume two. Yes, you will want to read more, and you can only wonder what the next forty years of this life will produce.