March 2019: Winter by Ali Smith

Our March meeting took place in Brighton, to discuss Winter by Ali Smith - following on from Autumn last year that was popularly received.

Winter feels very contemporaneous whilst evoking Shakespeare, Dickens - and even far more ancient and  mythological stories; it celebrates a second female artist (Barbara Hepworth); it cleverly connects with Autumn in a subtle feat of intertwining characters; and manages to explore the complexity of sisterhood through differing sister narratives; all whilst manipulating multiple fictional time periods against the backdrop of recognisable, real ones: this is a sophisticated and 'knowing' piece of meta-fiction. 

I missed the meeting this month, but gather that opinion was somewhat divided. It's certainly not an easy, or a comfortable read as it evolves new ways of telling. I for one am looking forward to Spring.

February 2019: Normal People by Sally Rooney

A forensic look at relationships and identity, with echoes of One Day by David Nicholls.

January 2019: The Mere Wife by Maria Dahvana Headley

A violent choice to start our reading year: a dynamic, lyrical, feminist reimagining of Beowulf for contemporary times. Headley's novel provoked rich discussion - about the narrative style and structure in particular; with a chorus of women agreeing about the power of the 'siren' voices in particular. We were also interested in the construction and deconstruction of the hero figure and the notion of what we perceive to be 'monstrous'. Thanks to Hazel for hosting in Horsham.

Next month's book is Sally Rooney's Normal People, and Dawn will host in Crawley.

December 2018: This Is Going To Hurt by Adam Kay

Laugh out loud funny until the penultimate page, this was universally enjoyed.

November 2018: Master Georgie by Beryl Bainbridge

October 2018: Snap by Belinda Bauer

September 2018: A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles

September's meeting takes place in Billingshurst. Questions are adapted from LitLovers.

1. Is the count a sympathetic character?

2. In what way does his gilded cage, his "prison" for decades, transform Count Rostov? How do you see him changing during the course of the novel? What incidents have the most profound effect on him? Consider the incident with the beehive and the honey.

3. The Metropol serves literally and symbolically as a window on the world. What picture does Amor Towles paint of the Soviet Union—the brutality, its Kafka-esque bureaucracy, and the fear it inspires among its citizens? What are the pressures, for instance, faced by those who both live in and visit the Metropol? Does Towles's dark portrait overwhelm the story's narrative?

4. Nina helps the Count unlock the hotel (again, literally and symbolically), revealing a much richer place than the it first seemed. What do we, along with the Count, discover?

5. Why might Casablanca be the Count's favorite film? What does it suggest about his situation?

6. Which other characters play an important part in this novel? 

7. The Count was imprisoned for writing the poem, "where is it now?", which questioned the purpose of the new Soviet Union. What comparisons can be made now with Russia under Putin, seventy years later?