MARY POPPINS by P.L. Travers

Welcome to the magical world of Mary Poppins. When I saw "Saving Mr. Banks" at the cinema last year I knew I had to read Mary Poppins. Until then I had no idea the book existed. My children grew up with the Mary Poppins movie and to this day all three of us can quote her verbatim. Early this year I visited my favourite book store and there on the shelf sat The Complete Mary Poppins, six books in one volume. I knew it had to be mine. It still took me a few months to actually start reading it. I discovered two things completing the first installment of this magical no nonsense nanny. Firstly, Mary Poppins was somewhat of a grouch speaking and treating the children in a constant cross manner. The children seemed to respond to this treatment very well though as their disciplined behaviour shows. The movie's portrayal of her seemed to be a softer version. Secondly, Mary Poppins brings with her a stream of magical characters. Perhaps it is this and her curious existence that offsets her cross manner and endears her to the children in her care. It certainly makes Jane and Michael's life incredibly interesting. There is so much more to this story than the movie was able to portray. Your inner child will find perfect escapism from the cares of the world in the pages of Mary Poppins. The imagination of children is infectious and all children possess this unique quality that unfortunately somehow gets lost as they grow older. I admire people who can retain this quality, however, and carry it with them throughout their adulthood. If "Saving Mr. Banks" gave a correct portrayal of P.L. Travers, one can be convinced that this quality in adults is what we call eccentricity for it was obvious that the author of Mary Poppins leaned that way. The more I think about P.L. Travers and her prickly manner, the more convinced I become that she IS Mary Poppins. If you see "Saving Mr. Banks",which I highly recommend, you will understand her life and you will see why she invented this magical nanny that has the power to save the father of the story, the power she no doubt desperately wished she had in real life. The book it seems was never about saving the children but about saving the father. I am yet to get to that important part of the story as I wade through 5 more installments of the most famous nanny of them all. Couldn't wait any longer though to recommend the talent and magical imagination of P.L. Travers.

WE ARE WATER by Wally Lamb

I was conflicted reading this book. My love of Wally Lamb's style of writing conflicted highly with my aversion for swearing and non-acceptance of homosexuality. This book, however, captured my attention and I could not put it down once I started it because of its' perfect portrayal of the complexities of our society. Wally Lamb is a brilliant writer and a master of introspection which he employs as a medium for his storytelling. It was clear to me as I read this captivating story, that this book exposes the effects of our attempt to emancipate ourselves from God and His laws. As a society we have successfully removed ourselves from good old Christian values we used to live by and in the process we have shot ourselves in the foot. I think, however, that this was not Wally Lamb's intention. He cites on several occasions 'it is what it is', meaning this is the way things are, without judgement and prejudice, because nothing is ever simple, or can be justified or can be explained away. To me as a Christian striving to adhere to God's very wisely given commandments, it IS simple. If we had not removed God from our lives we would not have filled our world with crime, violence, unwanted pregnancies, addictions, alcoholism, drug abuse, pornography, sexual diseases, murder, rape, pedophilia and the list goes on. This book deals with most of these. Annie Oh, the protagonist, is a sexual abuse victim who turns to a lesbian lifestyle after 27 years of marriage; her husband Orion Oh, is a product of an unwanted pregnancy of his teenage mother and married father who would not face his fatherhood responsibility and would have nothing to do with his unwanted child; their oldest daughter, Ariane, is desperate for a child with a string of failed relationships with men who refuse to marry her (and why would they when sex is so freely given) so she resorts to artificial insemination; their son Andrew who is physically abused by his mother during his growing up years and ends us murdering his mother's childhood abuser; their youngest daughter Marissa, is a sexually promiscuous alcoholic; Annie's father is a chronic alcoholic who could never get over his wife's death; Annie's cousin and abuser, Ken, was abandoned by his father in his youth and abused on ongoing basis by the babysitter turning him into a pedophile. As I said, this book is heavy going but so accurately indicative of the world we live in. It is confronting but in my opinion also a call to examine the standards and values we are living by in this 21st century and where they are leading us.

GIRL WITH A PEARL EARRING by Tracy Chevalier

This one does not disappoint. I had seen the movie and loved it some years ago and being invested in Tracy Chevalier's books this year, I resolved that now is the time to read the book. I can easily see why this is Tracy's most popular work. I could feel myself in Holland relating to a life of a maid who is on the bottom rung of the ladder, who has no rights and is in every way denied. The hopelessness, the futility, the self-denial that existed among the lower classes in 17th century Holland was very aptly portrayed through Griet, a servant girl hired to work in the household of the famous Dutch painter, Johannes Vermeer. Very little is known of Vermeer's private life and even less about the subjects he chose to paint. With little to go on, Tracy Chevalier has succeeded in cleverly crafting a story surrounding Vermeer's famous painting of a girl with a pearl earring bringing 17th century Holland to life. In her true style, Tracy uses a few words yet she says so much. If you read this book you will never again look at this painting and not believe that this is Griet, a simple servant girl who yearned and whose heart was carried into a world she would never belong in. One cannot also fail to empathize with Vermeer, a master of his art, who like so many other artists, lived at the mercy of his patron who commissioned his work and bridged the gap between Vermeer's talent and his ability to earn a living and provide a roof over the heads of his family. It would be easy to walk away from a book with such depressing life issues feeling heavy of heart but Tracy Chevalier manages to achieve the opposite by giving our heroine a small moment of victory and justice at the end which makes Griet's reconciliation with the inevitability of her life a good and plausible choice.
One problem though, the book has totally ruined the movie for me. Watched it again after I finished the book and found it rather inadequate.

BURNING BRIGHT by Tracy Chevalier

I am a huge fan of Tracy Chevalier but was somewhat disappointed in this book. When I discovered that she had written a book about one of my favourite poets, William Blake, I immediately set out to obtain a copy so I can read it. Not only did the book hold a promise of further insight into the remarkable and complex character of this poet, but it gave me scope to imagine I would be gaining more understanding of the French Revolution and its' connection with the British continent. Burning Bright is set in London in 1792, on the eve of the French Revolution. The story focuses on the Kellaway family who move from Dorsetshire to London in pursuit of the job offered to the father by John Astley who owns Astley Circus. The narrative of the story is richly endowed with descriptions of 18th century London which makes you highly appreciative of Chevalier's research and ability to transport the reader to any chosen time and place. I found the story, however, slightly weak. The children who are primary characters in the story are supposed to present a strong connection to Blake's two books of poems, namely Songs of Innocence and Songs of Experience. Even though the connection can be seen through Maisie Kellaway who arrives in London as a young, innocent country girl and leaves it as a pregnant, unwed girl of 15, I found that William Blake's complexity as a poet and revolutionary appeared weak in the book and did not bear heavy significance to the story. The intention as such was there but it failed to materialize because of Chevalier's weak portrayal of Blake, as seen through the eyes of others. The successful and perfectly resolved ending of the book also does not resonate with Blake's theory of a wide gap between the ideal and reality created by the uncertainty of humanity.

THE LOST HOURS by Karen White

This is my first book by Karen White. This was a brilliant story but I found its' narration overly sentimental and Karen's lack of self-restraint as a writer leaving very little to the imagination of the reader. I found the overly sentimental prose irritating which made me want to gallop through the book rather than savor it. Phrases such as 'digging deeper to moist earth, exposing its secrets' and 'the fall of years was like pierced lace over old secrets' complicated the narration unnecessarily and sometimes appeared confusing. I still don't understand what 'pierced lace over old secrets' actually means or how it can be possible.... Situated in the deep south this book is about grief, grief, and more grief interlaced with deep seated secrets which I found more frustrating than intriguing.  From Piper the equestrian, whose dreams of Olympian glory were aborted by her horse who fell on top of her, to her grandmother Annabelle who ended up with Alzheimer's because of her ruined life, to beautiful Helen who went blind at 14 and was considered as punishment to her grandmother who raised her, to Helen's brother, Tucker, whose wife committed suicide and who lived with overwhelming guilt, to their grandmother Lilian, who kept a dark secret and would not talk about her past until days before her death at the age of 90.  Even the oak trees on the Savannah plantation that housed these unfortunate souls grieved for their brothers who were cut down and who 'shout out their grief when the breeze off the river at night stirs them'. Karen White's lack of self-restraint made the characters too accessible and the story, therefore, somewhat predictable. I would have enjoyed this book much, much more if I was allowed to imagine the state of characters' emotions as they were experienced. Feeling like someone is holding your hand leading you through the story describing everything to you in detail because you are not capable of understanding it yourself, does not endear the reader to the writer. I prefer authors who treat their readers with respect acknowledging their ability to read between the words but then again you would have to write in such a way that meaning there can be found. It's an art form.

THE TAILOR'S GIRL by Fiona McIntosh

Another wonderful book from Fiona McIntosh. If you like stories set post World War I, you will love this book. Dealing with the phenomenon of shell shock and legacy of warfare, this story is brilliantly crafted to arouse sentiment in the reader and enhance the reader's understanding of such a complex time as this. You will be transported to post war London and through a brilliantly woven story learn about the lucrative trade of tailoring and high fashion, of enduring love and tenacity. When a Jewish tailor's daughter Eden Valentine, meets a war veteran with no memory at the London hospital, she agrees to help him escape. She names the soldier without a name 'Tom' who makes his home with her and her father.  Eden and Tom fall in love and marry against the Jewish tradition and her father's wishes. Tom proves to have a great head for business but doesn't know why. Future looks very bright for the young couple until one day Tom's memory of his past life returns and the memory of his present life leaves. It is then that Tom's real identity is revealed. In reality Tom is Alex Wynter, aristocratic heir to the country manor Larksfell Hall. The story becomes intense with each page as Eden's and Tom's paths diverge but seek to once again come together. This book is a real page turner. I hope you enjoy it, I certainly did.

REMARKABLE CREATURES by Tracy Chevalier

Another beautiful book from the brilliant mind of Tracy Chevalier. The story takes us to Lyme Regis in England and centers on two women whose fossil discoveries challenged the religious and geological thinking of early 1800's. Daring to tread into a man's world where they received small recognition for their accomplishments, they fall into the category of women pioneers who despite their lack of education, are now being recognised for their strength, courage and brilliance. This is a true story of Mary Anning and Elizabeth Philpot who were fossil hunters and whose alliance stands as a monument of the power of friendship. Tracy Chevalier has a remarkable ability to transport the reader to a different time and period through her detailed and careful use of language and evocative image making the reader appreciative of her  thorough research of the subject at hand. I wept when I read the ending of this story but more so when reading the postscript, for I was once again reminded that the characters were real women who once lived and walked upon the shores of Lyme.