What's Milne is...

Back in the dim and distant past, I offered up a couple of A.A. Milne titles - well, I've finally done the draw! Congratulations to... Gypsy Rose Creations and Meg!


Gypsy Rose Creations will be getting AAM's wonderful autobiography, all the way off to Australia. And I'll be handing Not That It Matters over to Meg personally, as she lives in Oxford.

Thanks for all the entrants - I hope some of the not-so-lucky folks will also be inspired to track down something by AAM now. I'll keep an eye out for anything else to give away...

Is there no balm in...

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Has there ever been a more convincing review than Rachel's post on Gilead by Marilynne Robinson? Seriously, schoolchildren should analyse it as a piece of persuasive writing. Even so, my reading demands and tbr piles meant it took a month or two before the copy I already owned (bought at a church fair in Middle Chinnock, Somerset) worked its way to the top of my pile. And thank goodness it did. Gilead has probably got the most perfectly rendered 'voice' of any novel I've ever read. Actually, before I go any further, I'm simply going to give you the opening paragraph:

I told you last night that I might be gone sometime, and you said, Where, and I said, To be with the Good Lord, and you said, Why, and I said, Because I'm old, and you said, I don't think you're old. And you put your hand in my hand and you said, You aren't very old, as if that settled it. I told you you might have a very different life from mine, and from the life you've had with me, and that would be a wonderful thing, there are many ways to live a good life. And you said, Mama already told me that. And then you said, Don't laugh! because you thought I was laughing at you. You reached up and put your fingers on my lips and gave me that look I never in my life saw on any other face beside your mother's. It's a kind of furious pride, very passionate and stern. I'm always a little surprised to find my eyebrows unsinged after I've suffered one of those looks. I will miss them.

And so it begins. Gilead is in the form of one long letter, written in Iowa in 1956, from Reverend John Ames to his young son, for his son to read when he is an adult and Ames is dead. For Ames is a very old father, and one with a weak, dying heart. This letter is his attempt to put down all he would ever want to tell his son - stories; history; wisdom; love.

In the hands of a lesser writer, that would be a ruthlessly maudlin concept, but from that first paragraph onwards the reader is swept along by the gentle, lilting, genuine voice of Ames. His story starts with the histories of his father and grandfather - both, like him, clergymen, but with clashing ideals and tempestuous disagreements. He tells of his youthful memories of travelling with his father, to find the place his grandfather died. He tells of the pain his brother caused to the family, and of forgiveness. Throughout the letter he skips about with chronology - as we all do when thinking - and often returns to the events of present day. His son's voice is rarely heard, but his actions are mentioned - with the deep affection of a father who waited long to become one:

I'd never have believed I'd see a wife of mine doting on a child of mine. It still amazes me every time I think of it. I'm writing this in part to tell you that if you ever wonder what you've done in your life, and everyone does wonder sooner or later, you have been God's grace to me, a miracle, something more than a miracle. You may not remember me very well at all, and it may seem to you to be no great thing to have been the good child of an old man in a shabby little town you will no doubt leave behind. If only I had the words to tell you.

For a long time, Gilead doesn't seem to have much plot. It is a mark of a great author that they can captivate you solely with characters and words, rather than events - Robinson certainly does that. But when the reader has settled into assuming that little will unsettle the memories and emotions of an old man, he turns to his oldest friend Robert Broughton - and, more particularly, John (Jack) Ames Broughton. Ames' namesake is Broughton's prodigal son, who returns to Gilead after bringing disgrace on the family. The nature of his wrongdoing is held a mystery from the reader, as Ames debates whether or not it is right to disclose it to his son - and so Robinson artfully adds yet another reason to read on.

But that is not the main reason. What makes Gilead so compelling is Ames himself. His voice is gentle, wise, kind, and sad. He is desperate at the idea of losing the opportunity to watch his son grow up, but he is equally amazed that God has granted him a son at all. Wonder fills him so often. Ames writes lovingly of his wife, and deprecatingly of his own failings. He is unfailingly honest and thoughtful - an utterly, utterly good man, and an incredibly lovable one. If Robinson were not a 60 year old woman (when this was written), I'd have assumed it was autobiographical - so convincing and enveloping is the voice of the narration.

Gilead is also an inspiring book to read as a Christian. I am surprised that it has been so successful, since it is such a deeply faith-filled book. I wasn't sure whether it would appeal to a non-Christian - for, to me, so much of the novel's richness lies in its incredible depiction of the beauty and depth of a life lived for God - but it seems I was wrong. A reader I met who was affirmedly atheist said she loved Gilead nonetheless. Robinson certainly doesn't preach, except by example, and I suspect the honesty and accuracy of Ames' letter would appeal to anybody - although perhaps some of the Biblical allusions would be lost. I especially liked his reference to himself as 'one of the righteous for whom the rejoicing in heaven will be comparatively restrained' - a reference to Luke 15:7: 'I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.' If you're not a Christian, please, please don't let that put you off reading this beautiful novel - any lover of great writing will still love Gilead, I am sure.

I shan't spoil the end of the novel, except to say that there is no real twist or change; just something simple, beautiful, and sad. I cried a tiny little bit, in the library, as I turned the final page. Gilead is truly one of the best pieces of writing I've ever encountered. Perhaps I shan't remember all the details of the story, or the characters, but I doubt I'll ever forget Ames, or the feeling of being submerged in his life and his words. It's certainly a novel to which I will return - and it seems only fitting to leave you with his voice rather than my own, with another excerpt which touched me.

When you are an old man like I am, you might think of writing some sort of account of yourself, as I am doing. In my experience of it, age has a tendency to make one's sense of oneself harder to maintain, less robust in some ways.

Why do I love the thought of you old? That first twinge of arthritis in your knee is a thing I imagine with all the tenderness I felt when you showed me your loose tooth. Be diligent in your prayers, old man. I hope you will have seen more of the world than I ever got around to seeing - only myself to blame. And I hope you will have read some of my books. And God bless your eyes, and your hearing also, and of course your heart. I wish I could help you carry the weight of many years. But the Lord will have that fatherly satisfaction.

Song for a Sunday

We've missed a few weekends, and of course next weekend will be filled with Persephone excitement, so it seemed time for another Sunday Song. This isn't a particularly un-well-known band, but perhaps you won't have come across this lovely little song: 'Communication' by The Cardigans.



For all previous Sunday Songs, click here.

Review: Suite Dreams by Rachel Hawthorne

Title: Suite Dreams

Author: Rachel Hawthorne

Release Date: January 1st, 2009

Publisher: HarperTeen

Pages: 272

Age: Young Adult

Hello, mate!

(Practicing my Australian.* How am I doing?) 

I'm so glad the timing worked out for this couch exchange. I'll be crashing on yours by the time you get to mine.** If you run into any problems, just find Alyssa. She'll help you out with whatever you need.***

Your couch-swapping mate,

Rick

*That's cute. Go have fun in Australia and leave ME—your girlfriend for an entire semester—to waste away on campus, alone.

**Um, think again. Your couch is already taken. 

***Great. Now I've got to find a place for the (unbelievably hot, it turns out) Aussie to crash. But there's only one couch available: the one in my dorm room. . .

Alyssa met Rick at her first semester and they became a couple right away. Their relation ship was comfortable, but then he left her and went on vacation to Australia while she's going to spend her winter break alone.

Although Alyssa recognize she wasn't totally in love with Rick, she still feels bad. She wanted to be like her parents, who found each other at school.

While she's dealing with that, Jude, the sexy Australian guy, comes looking for her. He exchanged couches with Rick, but his couch is already taken, so he will have to stay with her.

From the beginning Jude is sweet and protective with her. He likes to be with her and do things together, and it's obvious he likes her. He's very funny and Alyssa feels good with him. Oh, and Jude is hot. Very hot.

Little by little they become closer, and even when they have everything against them, they can help but fall in love.

Suite Dreams is a very short and cute book. It's lovely and has an open happy ending. I recommend it for those days when you just want to read something light, happy and romantic.

More about this book at www.rachelhawthorne.net, Goodreads, Amazon, The Book Depository.

Stuck in a Book's Weekend Miscellany

Happy weekend one and all! Hope you have a fun couple of days, and what better way to kick off the party than with some links and suchlike...

1.) The blog post - is courtesy of everyone's favourite literary foxes, those good folks at Vulpes Libris. They've done a great interview with Theresa Breslin, one of the brains behind the Save Our Libraries protest in Edinburgh. Click here to read it - and feel a little inspired for the cause. If you do feel inspired, here's the protest statement you can sign.

2.) The link - is to Short Fire Press. They publish short stories for e-readers at 99p a pop - having looked at Penguin's Mini Modern Classics yesterday, this seems an appropriate time to bring to light another publisher behind the short story cause. Their catalogue is very much hand-picked, with exciting debut authors as well as better known ones. Something to investigate for those of you with electronic devices.

3.) The book - is The Novel in the Viola by Natasha Solomons. This is something of an advance warning, since it isn't published til April - but I'm excited about it. I don't think I've yet mentioned the Sceptre Books lunch event which I attended last Thursday - a few bloggers, authors, and publishing folk hob-nobbed, and it was a pleasure to meet lots of lovely people. Especially great to meet were Jenn Ashworth and Natasha Solomons, two authors for whom I have great admiration. I have even more admiration for Natasha now that I know she wrote her delightful first novel Mr. Rosenblum's List (review here) whilst studying for a PhD (how?!) and am looking forward to reading The Novel in the Viola. This is what the publisher has to say:

When they started coming for people like us, I was forced to swap my life of champagne and glittering parties in bohemian Vienna for the cap and apron of a parlour maid in a country house on the Dorset coast.

I knew nothing about England, except that I wouldn't like it. But then, clutching a copy of Mrs Beeton`s Household management that I could barely read, I saw Tyneford for the first time. That great house on the bay, where servants polished the silver and served drinks on the lawn, where Kit caused an outrage by dancing with me, where Mr Rivers read the letter on the beach that changed everything.

And now the house and that world is gone. All that remains is my story of the sea, of love lost and found, and of a novel hidden inside a viola.

Facebook...

Just thought I'd mention that I've set up a Facebook page for Stuck in a Book - here. Not sure exactly what I'll use it for at the mo, but perhaps something will come to me...

I've also moved things around a bit on the sidebars, mostly because I wanted my links to other blogs to be higher up. Hope you can find the things you need! Also, I've added 'Followers' down on the right-hand side - didn't realise I had so many; thanks guys!

60$ CSN Stores gift card Winner!

I'm so sorry for not being at my blog lately. I have been super busy at the hospital and when I get home I don't have energy to post. But anyway, here is the winner of the 60$ gift card from the CSN Stores.

101 entries....and the lucky winner is......

Number 86.- Debbie

Congratulations! I will email you with your prize asap!

Thanks to all the participants and welcome to all the new followers :D