July 2017 Reviews

The Handmaid's Tale
Margaret Atwood
4/5
1985 Kindle
Amazon gift voucher

When I was given a gift voucher for my birthday and told I had to spend it on books, there was little problem choosing what I would go for. Unlike most people, I have no issue with TV or Film adaptations of novels. Although I would probably prefer to read the book first, if I see the film and then get around to the book, I don't feel the same outrage or bile about it either way. I had just finished watching all ten of the MGM studio production of The Handmaid's Tale, starring Elizabeth Moss, and was ready to see what the original ideas were on paper.

My kindle copy started with a foreword from Atwood herself after the series had aired, and while I found it really interesting to hear her musings on her own work and the adaptation, and although I had already seen the show, there were a number of spoilers in it! Anyway, I read swiftly on and was quickly immersed in the story.

It is gripping and overwhelming which is why I have put it on a list of books I would read again. I feel like I was washed with horror of the society and I need to steel myself and read it again soon with a closer reading. No wonder it is studied in schools.

The Muse
Jesse Burton
3/5
Picador 2016 Kindle
Amazon gift voucher

A vast improvement on The Miniaturist but gaining less traction than her first book, The Muse explores the history of a mysterious painting. With two timelines running alongside each other, when the painting was made in 30s Spain and the discovery in the present day 60s London the fate of the painting and its artist is slowly revealed. The best thing about The Miniaturist is that it was a well written page turner of a book and The Muse has the same quality.

Where The Miniaturist fell down was two many story lines, too many plot twists, and a hint of magical realism that ended up not being magical at all, which was very disappointing. The Muse felt a little stunted in terms of imagination in this respect, while the Miniaturist felt like an incredible story that in the end got wound up too simply, The Muse was stripped down and in the end too quite a predictable turn although there was one twist in the tale.

Although the marketing doesn't really reflect this, I think The Muse is the more readable text but it lacks the flair and imagination that The Miniaturist had. Burton could explore the wilder side of her story lines but tie them up as neatly as The Muse.

9 Re-readable books

For the writing
Her, Harriet Lane
One of my favourite books that I've read in the past few years. The story completely blew me away and the writing was very clever. Similarly to her first book the flawed protagonist is weirdly likeable and terrible at the same time and I loved reading it.

Blackberry Wine - Joanne Harris
One of her less famous books, I don't know why blackberry wine captivates me. But this is a book that I've read several times and travels with me to every home I move to. If this one isn't on my shelf I feel like it's not my bedroom. I think it's earned a re-read for its loyalty.

Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austin
Obviously. A childhood favourite for the story and a new favourite as I only read it for the first time in the last few years. I will never be able to read it as many times as I've seen the BBC TV series or the film adaptations... but I can give it a damn good try.

For the memories
Outlander - Diana Gabledon 
The book I took on my gap year and which consequently has completely come away from it's bindings and is impossible to read comfortably at the moment. I would love a new copy of the full set of Outlander books, once Diana finishes the series. Then I intend to read them all again.

Max's Millions
Amazingly, I actually couldn't even find the author of this book and it maybe that I have not remembered the title correctly. I've read this book about 9 times at least. It's a short book for young teens about a boy who builds a video game while he's off school and on bed rest. He makes a million and it's all about what he does with it. Brilliant and cosy.

The Little White Horse - Elizabeth Goudge
One of the best proposals in the history of literature. A bit weird as it happens between characters that I perceive as children, but it is gloriously sweet and genuine. This book captures the imagination with love and myth and magic and is beautiful to read and read again.

Eat Pray Love - Elizabeth Gilbert
Although one of the more recent books I've read, I read EPL at a very difficult time in my life and it was incredibly inspiring. Yup, I am one of those people! But it is true and it is definitely a book I would pick up again. I love the film and I loved reading it and I can see it helping me in the future.

For the social commentary
The Handmaids Tale - Margaret Atwood
The more this book is in people's consciousness the better to be honest. It is harrowing and well written and well thought out. I think it's important to read books like this one and see how these things start out and gradually devolve. It's a very human book and that is what is so terrifying, I can see it happening because the drives are based so clearly in the characters.

The Help - Kathryn Stockett
I would love to take another look at this. It's incredibly funny and holds a mirror up to the life styles of rich Americans and the black labouring classes. It highlighted the ingrained racism that most people don't even realise goes on and even with the best of intentions.

Joining the Mainstream

The key danger of jumping head first into the rushing torrent of mainstream reading is accidentally smashing your brains against the spiky rocks of spoilers. Standard procedures apply, if you're looking to avoid spoilers of your new favourite obsession avoid Twitter and Instagram and pretty much unfollow your friends and favourite authors on every platform. However, some of the responsibility lies with the Spoilererer - the one carelessly throwing out spoilers at the water fountain and live tweeting the latest episode. We expect that these people should at least warn us slow pokes by placing in giant capital letters that there is a SPOILER ahead.

The only way to truely avoid the disappointment and pain of reading or seeing a spoiler is to opt out of mainstream culture entirely. Unfortunately, that does mean that you are left on the riverbank quietly reading a book that no one else has ever heard of and watching true crime documentaries on YouTube. While this has a hipsterish appeal of liking what you like and not following the bend of any trend, there is a loneliness to not reading the one book everyone is talking about.

Furthermore, if you resist the pull of the latest big book/book everyone read in school, then before you know it a studio will pick up the TV or Film rights and you end up having to avoid watching it until you've read the book! It's the ultimate spoiler and those pesky Hollywood studios just keep doing it! A classic case of this for me is The Handmaid's Tale.

I never read it at school and all of a sudden everyone was talking about it because of the new MGM series. The title had appealed to me for a number years because so many authors have Atwood as a key influencer, particularly for dystopian or feminist books. It had mildly been on my TBR and suddenly it rocketed to the top of my list, as well as the best seller lists in America in the lead up to Trump's inauguration.

All of a sudden I was faced with the dilema read the book before I start watching the series? Dip a toe into the first episode and see if I'm hooked enough to read the book? Binge the whole series and then read the book after? Or just binge the series and forget about reading the book entirely. In the end I went with option 3. I devoured the whole of The Handmaid's Tale series and then ordered the book once I'd finished. Personally, this did not affect the reading of the book at all, but if you're fussy about adaptations I wouldn't recommend this method. However, it meant that I am now able to stand at tea stations and recommend both to everyone.

My advice is to avoid this whole mess by reading the popular book alongside everyone, because you'll only be behind when the inevitable series or movie comes out (if it is really good). I had mere weeks to read Gone Girl before the film came out. For years I'd turned my nose up at the popular fiction everyone seemed to love but I'd decided I wasn't interested enough in it. Meanwhile, agents were furiously penning contracts behind the scenes.

The thing is, when it comes to big best sellers and pop culture of any kind... most people are right when it's good. That's why recommendations are so important to readers. Trust the hive mind and get behind the latest sensation and get on the good side of the spoilers. Plus the good bit of all of this is talking about books without worrying about spoiling it for others. I think everyone just needs to jump on the band wagon and avoid the danger completely by gently floating along with the mainstream peeps and enjoy the gems. :)