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Greener, by Grainne Murphy ( BPS Bookclub Sept 2024)
Using Covid in the storyline felt to some like it automatically dated the story, however it did add that sense of relatability which the entire world experienced, and it provided a useful structure to explain the absence of the daughter and the closeness of Annie.
March 2024 : The God of Small Things, Arundhati Roy ( BPS review)
There are many deaths. The young. The innocent. The untouchable. The unsupported. At times it seems only the selfish and self-interested are those who are left.
BPS Review of Red Queen, Juan Gomez-Jurado ( December 2023)
The plot had, in one person’s words “ a lot of breadcrumbs” but not necessarily all followed through or even explained, leaving us either frustrated or ready to read the sequel already.
BPS Review of Demon Copperhead, Barbara Kingsolver ( Sept 2023)
As Dickens famously said himself, “Make them laugh, make them cry, make them wait”. Which is precisely what Kingsolver did too.
French Braid, Anne Tyler ( April 2023)
Anne Tyler’s own words – it’s all about character. And that is what many of us enjoyed. A book steeped in the reality of ‘domestic fiction’, about families that perhaps have carried grievances which other family members don’t even realise, about how hard it is to be ‘yourself’ whilst fulfilling a particular role in the family, about ultimately being able to find a life outside of the family, either alone or with another partner, that makes you feel more of a person, or a truer version of yourself.
The Line Becomes a River, Francisco Cantu ( May 2023)
It certainly prompted a range of reactions, and became an interesting book to discuss, if ultimately leaving us feeling somewhat overwhelmed and depressed at the state of affairs described.
Black Butterflies, Priscilla Morris ( June 2023 )
Black Butterflies apparently took around 13 years to complete and this comes across, it is chock full of small but significant incidents and details
BPS Review: The Book of Form and Emptiness, Ruth Ozeki ( October 2022)
A couple of weeks after the book is closed and I’m sure many of you are still thinking about it (well, those of you who haven’t burned it to cut down on your gas bills anyway).
(PS. just in case you’re wondering, 17% gave it a terrible score, 35% okay, and 48% good or great)
