The World Beneath

…by Cate Kennedy.

15 year old Sophie lives with her single mother Sandy in Ayersville, Australia. Her mother is a 45 year old ditzy woman still living like a hippie who believes in karma, thinks being a vegetarian is important, smokes an occasional joint and still bravely sells home-made jewellery at the markets as a job. Then there’s her dad Rich. The one who left when Sophie was barely a year old. And since then, then only form of correspondence has been through letters and the phone. He is a freelance photographer with a ponytail and still living in the past. Both her parents still reminisce about their glory days as young adults when with fervour they participated in the Franklin River Blockade in Tasmania.

Things kick into action when Rich decides to take Sophie to Tasmania for bushwalking and more importantly, for an opportunity to bond with his estranged daughter. Despite Sandy’s reluctance, Sophie has made up her mind. She wants to get to know her dad who seems so much cooler than her mum. As Sophie travels to Tasmania with Rich and explores the beautiful wilderness, she comes to realise that her dad isn’t who she thought he was.

This is a beautifully written book about parenting and family dynamics. It is about the clash of generations and the struggles of a family. It is about individuals trying so hard to live in the glory of the past or the vision of the future that they forget to live in the present. It is about love and redemption. It is about the ups and downs of teenage life but also of parenting. And finally, it is about survival. Not just in the true sense of the word but also of one’s spirit.

The characters by Kennedy were extremely well drawn out. Sophie as the sullen ‘emo’ teenager who had to grow up too soon and take charge is brilliant. Your heart goes out to her. Sandy as the kooky mother is hilariously pathetic. And Rich as an arrogant know-it-all is all too real. The picturesque scenery of Tassie makes you want to visit the place. All in all, it was a fast-paced read that keeps the reader engrossed till the very end and does play with your emotions. I would definitely try to read other novels by the same author given her flowing style and narration.

I give it a rating of 4.

Until next time,

Cheers!!!

Note: This has been cross-posted on my personal blog.

The Sense of an Ending

…by Julian Barnes.

The winner of the 2011 Man Booker Prize begins with 60 year old Tony Webster, the narrator, reflecting back on his life. He remembers his school days where he, Alex and Colin, a trio welcomed a fourth person — Adrian Finn. Adrian as Tony remembers, was a gifted and philosophical young man. And the three friends found themselves drawn to him a lot more than they were to even each other. As they grow up and go on to university, Tony gets into a relationship with Veronica and his recollections of her are not very positive. He eventually has a fall out with Adrian who, after the end of Tony and Veronica’s relationship, ends up dating her. Tony remembers his life as being pretty ordinary — he had a stable job, was married once, divorced, has a child and now a grandchild.

However, Tony’s mundane life is shaken when he  receives a letter from a solicitor where he has been left a modest sum of 500 pounds and a diary written by Adrian Finn. These have been left to him in a will by Veronica’s mother, a woman he met once. As Tony tries to track down the missing diary, he gets back in touch with Veronica and realises his memories about himself may not be accurate. He realises how he was responsible for things he never took responsibility for and attempts to seek redemption. It eventually culminates to a final twist that leaves the reader quite shocked and surprised.

It is a book about how as we near the end of our lives, looking back at it, we may not be so accurate. However, the sense of that ending helps us seek redemption and be remorseful for what we may have done. There is always that chance. It doesn’t necessarily mean we will be forgiven. But generally, things aren’t as they seem. This book is a short one (150 pages) and can be read pretty quickly. The first person narrator is easy to identify and empathise with. And the plot is definitely intriguing. There is just the right amount of suspense and subtleties that keep the reader hooked. All in all, I would recommend this book.

I give it a rating of 4.

Until next time,

Cheers!!!

The Boat

…by Nam Le.

‘The Boat’ is a collection of 7 short stories of individuals across the globe. The author is a Vietnamese-born Australian who also spends his time in America. His stories are not just of Vietnamese or Australians but rather of different ethnic groups across different countries. There is the struggling author and his difficult relationship with his Vietnamese father; a hitman in Colombia who is just a teenager and his struggles with having to kill his friend; an aging painter and his relationship with an estranged daughter; the young Aussie teenager at Halfhead Bay; the American woman struggling with her friendship in Iran; and finally, a group of Vietnamese people on The Boat escaping war-torn Vietnam and the trials and tribulations faced by one young girl estranged from her family.

The stories all revolve around characters facing some kind of pressure in their lives and attempting to deal with these whilst trying to attain some form of control. Two stories that stood out for me were ‘Cartagena’ and ‘The Boat’. The former is the one with the teenage hitman in Colombia and the emotions and struggles kept me on edge all the way through. The latter, which is the last story in the book, is about the “boat people” escaping Vietnam and looking for better lives but at the same time, taking extreme measures to get there. In many ways, it was heart-wrenching. Especially in this day when there is a big deal being made about people arriving on Australian shores by boat, it gives us an insight into the difficulties faced to get here.

There were other stories though that didn’t grip me as much…they seemed to have great beginnings but faltered somewhere. I think it was more about the characters than the plots themselves.

All in all, a decent read. I give it a rating of 3.

Until next time,

Cheers!!!