Fiction not Fashion: Faulks, Townsend and Murray

One of my problems as a blogger I suppose is that I haven't quite decided what  I want to write about.  I started off writing about fashion because the blogs I was enjoying reading were about fashion.  But although I like clothes I've got other things I want to write about.  Have found other lifestyle blogs I enjoy which focus on buying less rather than more.  Doesn't really fit with my posts about buying more clothes.  Also aspire to have a beautiful uncluttered home so like interiors, crafting and minimalism blogs too.  And to escape from all of this I tend to bury myself in a book.  So please have patience, dear reader, while I decide who I am and where this blog is going.

Today's post is about books.  I went to my new book group last night and we'd read Sue Townsend's 'The Woman who went to Bed for a Year'.   I quite liked it, mildly amusing with some good characters.  Happy to read it in bed for a week or so, but it wasn't that memorable.  I liked it a lot more than the others in the group most of whom wanted to tell the central character to get over herself and get out of bed!

Most of my reading can be put into three categories: books like the Sue Townsend which I enjoy but can easily put down; those which are hard going but often worth it in the end; and the rare unputdownable book which takes over my mind completely as I am reading it.

Just finished in the last week a category 2 book.  Sebastian Faulks 'A Possible Life' which is actually five short stories about different lives at different times vaguely linked by the appearance of certain objects or places in more than one of the stories.  It was a bit like 'Cloud Atlas' by David Mitchell which has just come out as a film, though Cloud Atlas was better, more ambitious and diverse and the links were more creative. Looking forward to seeing the film.  Liked the Faulks book until the final story 'You Next Time', which was too long and a bit dull but kept going in the hope all would be revealed and I would understand what he was saying.  Didn't really, but still thinking about it.

My turn to host book group and choose the book next time.   Chose a category three book I read a couple of years ago: 'Skippy Dies' by Paul Murray.  I loved this book.  It 's set in a boys' boarding school in Dublin and begins with the death of the central character Daniel 'Skippy' Juster (named after the famous 'bush kangoroo' for those of you old enough to remember). Doesn't sound promising, yet it made me both laugh out loud and cry.  Convincing teenage characters and entertaining portrayal of a school, its ridiculous head teacher 'the Automator' and the eccentric staff including Howard the History teacher who is a failed city trader.  Dark humour but tries to do something more than that too.  Hoping the others will like it, even though, like me, they are parents of teenagers.