“The Following Story” by Cees Nooteboom (Netherlands) Favourite Quotes ‘when women are out to get something, they are capable of mobilizing forces that men, for all their so-called strength of purpose, cannot match.’ Synopsis One morning Herman Mussert wakes up in a hotel room in Lisbon, where twenty years previously he slept with another man’s wife. Yet he is quite certain that the night before … Continue reading The Following Story
“Brick Lane” by Monica Ali (U.K.) Review Readers enjoyed this multi-layered book a lot finding that it brought the immigrant experience deftly to life. They liked the parallel stories of the two sisters, Nazneen who went abroad and Hasina who remained behind, and the insights into their different personalities. They warmed immediately to the protagonist, who they described as most personable. Her inner growth from … Continue reading Brick Lane
“Loving Sabotage” by Amélie Nothomb (Belgium) Synopsis The daughter of diplomats posted to Peking in the mid-seventies, our unnamed narrator charges about her tightly enclosed world on her ‘horse’ (bicycle) with the dictatorial clarity and loneliness of a warrior-philosopher. ‘From puberty onwards’, she announces at one point, ‘life is just an epilogue’. There, on the asphalt-playground-battlefield, she discovers her first love: six-year-old Elena, her very … Continue reading Loving Sabotage
“The True Deceiver” by Tove Jansson (Finland) Synopsis In the deep winter snows of a Swedish hamlet, a strange young woman fakes a break-in at the house of an elderly artist in order to persuade her that she needs companionship. But what does she hope to gain by doing this? And who ultimately is deceiving whom? In this portrayal of two women grappling with truth … Continue reading The True Deceiver
“Fascination” by William Boyd (U.K.) Review The quality of the writing style in this collection was what appealed most to readers. They loved the richness of the language and the different formats used in each story: from the classical to the contemporary; from the diary form to a series of jump cuts; from a menu to a video recorder! Readers enjoyed the diverse settings and … Continue reading Fascination
“Death and the Penguin” by Andrey Kurkov (Ukraine) Favourite Quote He had, it seemed, divined the secret of longevity. Longevity depended on peace. Peace was the source of self-assurance, and self-assurance allowed one to cleanse one’s life of needless upsets, twists and turns. Self-assurance allowed one to take decisions for the prolonging of one’s life. Self-assurance led to the future. Synopsis Viktor is an aspiring … Continue reading Death and the Penguin
“Too Loud a Solitude” by Bohumil Hrabal (Czech Republic) One of Nicola’s 100 Best Books for Inspiration in the 21st century! Extract and Comment … I pick up a book, and my eyes open panic-stricken on a world other than my own, because when I start reading I’m somewhere completely different, I’m in the text, it’s amazing, I have to admit I’ve been dreaming, dreaming … Continue reading Too Loud a Solitude
“The Siege of Krishnapur” by J.G. Farrell (U.K.) Review Although it took some readers a little while to get into the story as they felt it necessary to adapt to a literary style that required their full attention, overall everyone loved the book. They loved the detailed descriptions of various scenes, such as the social gatherings, the philosophical/religious discussions and the battles, though some readers … Continue reading The Siege of Krishnapur
Nicola's Book Club 