Top Ten Novels
In no particular order
Before I go –– Urgency, moving, sadness at a life cut short, uplifting
The Prime of Miss Jean Brody - , - recaptured youth, uplifting, pride in being a woman
The Girl who played with Fire – second in the Stig Larsson millennium trilogy.. – drawn to finish it, carried along with the suspense, sad when I reached the final page, curiously stilted ending
One hundred Girls Tales – (This was the book which really started me reading seriously. I was eight years old and it was one of a number of book prizes that my mother had won at school – in 1928 - 1930 when she was 13-15 years old.) one story – Davey, a story of a girl who desperately wanted to work alongside her brother and father in the mines – and a fateful day when there is an accident in the mine……..
Feelings – wanting to read it over and over again, great excitement, realisation that girls can and do things that were thought of only as ‘mens tasks’ – this stayed with me my whole life – maybe that’s why I am an Equality officer?
Snow Falling on Cedars – moved, excited, finally a feeling of extreme optimism for life
The Other Hand – fear, disgust at the immorality and hypocrisy of governments here and abroad, reflection.
Birdsong – very moved, utter compassion for the characters, drawn into their storylines
City of Joy
The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet - initially confused, eventually embraced by it. Exciting and stimulating, thoughtful
The only one of these I've read is The Pride of Miss Jean Brodie - I felt quite conflicted at the end of it since Miss Brodie is a closet fascist - and that's precisely the conflict Muriel Spark intended to produce (I should think). It makes one think about how far the unsympathetic heroine may still be a heroine.
ReplyDeleteI may well try some of the others. Thanks Hilary!