Review: Carnival by Rawi Hage

Rawi Hage's new novel Carnival is the excellently written story of a taxi driver, Fly, as he negotiates relationships with his friends, neighbours and passengers. They are generally representatives of the under-belly of society and Fly is the philosophical leveler when situations get dicey. Set during carnival time in an unspecified city the characters are fairground people, transvestites, criminals, alcoholics, prostitutes, drug addicts and 'spiders', those drivers who sit in their taxis waiting for fares.  
  

Born into a travelling circus, Fly is no ordinary character. Brought up by the bearded woman, he owns a flying carpet in an apartment which is filled floor to ceiling with books, categorised by his own unique system. Fly often gets drawn into sticky situations but always seems to deal with them in his own philosophical way He is an odd but admirable character and his trustworthy qualities are spotted by his passengers who strike up often more than just a driver/customer relationship with him.  

The stories of the various characters we meet are all woven around Fly's taxi journeys and returns to either his flat or the café where all the drivers eat. This premise is surprisingly effective and Hage deals sympathetically with this lower level of society whilst retaining an edge to his writing. I first encountered Hage whilst reading the IMPAC prize shortlisted books, which he consequently won with his first novel De Niro's Game. An instant fan, this is an equally rewarding read but with more depth and development of character plus a wide variety of reader emotion. Rawi Hage can definitely be considered an author to follow with great interest.

Carnival by Rawi Hage is published by Penguin Books www.penguin.co.uk

Review: Black Milk: On Motherhood and Writing by Elif Shafak

Elif Shafak is claimed by Orhan Pamak to be 'the best author to come out of Turkey in the last decade.' Her most recent novel Honour, reviewed on this blog last April, was my introduction to her writing and I must say that I became an instant fan (http://dublinduchess.blogspot.ie/2013/04/honour-by-elif-shafak.html). Black Milk: On Motherhood and Writing was first published in 2007 in Turkish and the English translation version was published in August. It makes compelling reading and is exactly what it says it is- a consideration of how motherhood affects the writer, not just Shafak but other women writers through literary history.
               

The resume reads:
     "Postpartum depression affects millions of new mothers every year, and - like most of its victims -         Elif Shafak never expected to be one of them. But after her first child in 2006, the internationally           bestselling Turkish author remembers how, 'for the first time in my adult life ... words wouldn't             speak to me'.

     As her despair finally eased, she sought to resuscitate her writing life by chronicling her own                experiences.

     In her intimate memoir, she reveals how she struggled to overcome her depression and how                    literature provided the salvation she so desperately needed."

Shafak's recognition that we are all made up of a combination of characters is illustrated by the conversations she has with her four finger-women; Miss Highbrowed Cynic, Little Miss Practical, Milady Ambitious Chekhovian and Dame Dervish. As she comes to terms with her womanhood and her maternal side two new finger-women whom she has kept in check, Mama Rice Pudding and Blue Belle Bovary, surface to challenge her in relation to her own self-identity. Her finger-women struggle in the art of coexistence and it is for Shafak to learn how to manage them.

Although a potentially 'heavy' subject, Shafak's book is not heavy reading, but rather compelling and thoughtful, drawing the reader in with the interesting research on relation to other women authors experiences and her own journey into marriage and motherhood.

Black Milk: On Motherhood and Writing by Elif Shafak is published by Penguin www.penguin.co.uk 

Review: Mutton by India Knight

'Laugh-out-loud funny' is bandied around in book reviews about a lot of not-so-funny books. In India Knight's case it is the absolute truth. Giggling throatily on the train, in bed and on the sofa as I raced through Mutton in two days I have finished the book thinking that she may be one of the people you list as 'celeb you would most like to have dinner with.'
      

India Knight's writing is pacy but full of feeling. Her journalism lends itself to the no-nonsense style of story telling whilst her philosophical asides are real thoughts on subjects that go through everyone's minds as concepts are considered.

There is no getting away from the fact that this book is going to appeal to 'women-of-a-certain-age', that age being mid-40s+teenage kids+clothing crisis+am I really old? At a certain age everything becomes a question; is this dress too young for me? vs is this dress going to make me look old and frumpy?, should I try to maintain a youthful image vs should I accept the inevitability of ageing and just try to age gracefully and the pitfalls surrounding mature dating. The list is endless and the teenagers won't be backward at coming forward if you get any of these decisions wrong. The heroine of India Knight's book is Clara; forty-six, feeling to be in her prime, divorced with three kids with a happy supportive family. That is until her old school friend moves in, returned from ten years in LA with an LA yoga body, LA food philosophy (don't eat basically) and in complete denial that she is nearly fifty. Extolling the virtues of the nip and tuck along with the botox and all that goes with it, Clara starts to question her satisfied existence which is not helped by her son's seventeen year old girlfriend wafting around the house radiating youth and firmness.

With a wilting faded rose attached to the collar of the book jacket cover picture of Clara and the statement "Age before beauty. Maybe." this book brings up every question about ageing gracefully, addressing the whole subject with humour, candour and ultimately a big dollop of warmth that will make this one of those books you'll be telling all those 'women-of -a-certain-age' that they will just have to read.

Mutton by India Knight is published  by Fig Tree/Penguin www.penguin.co.uk

Review: Mount Merrion by Justin Quinn

Mount Merrion is poet  Justin Quinn's first novel.  In his acknowledgements he notes 'A novel that covers forty-plus years and touches on details of social life, business and politics incurs obvious debts to history' and this tells you a lot about Quinn's book. It is one that over seven chapters brings the reader snap-shots of a family's life and development, and often leaves you wanting to know more.

   

The novel opens in 1959 in a new County hospital where Declan Boyle has been admitted. The journey travels through the years, each time skipping six to nine years, following the progress of Declan, his wife and their children. The story brings in the recent history of the country and to a certain extent this means that the reader starts to see where the story is leading. The characters are well drawn and believable if a little clichéd. I found myself sometimes frustrated as the story skipped forward when I wanted to know more of that chapter in their life. Declan Boyle's wife Sinéad is an interesting character and the impact of 1970s Ireland on a young lonely mother was a part of the story I would have liked to see developed.

Mount Merrion is an enjoyable read and Quinn's use of reference such as that of historians Diarmaid Ferriter and R. F. Foster amongst others adds real credibility to the story. It has unexpected twists that bring tragedy to the tale, realistic turns that add depth and the return of characters to bring the story full circle.



Mount Merrion by Justin Quinn is published by Penguin Ireland www.penguin.com

Mad About You by Sinéad Moriarty

Mad About You, published this week, is the new novel by the Irish best selling author Sinéad Moriarty. With a hoard of followers, devoted readers and new ones will enjoy Sinéad's light-hearted, but with a darker twist, story about Emma and James Hamilton's move to London from Dublin where James is to take up the position of Coach to the London Irish rugby team.


Arriving in Putney in south-west London along with their adopted son Yuri and own younger daughter Lara, Emma is nervous about making new friends and finding her feet. Her neighbours are welcoming, recommending childminders and offering advice and her sister who is a television presenter finds her a job almost immediately.

This is a good read that many readers will enjoy. Sinéad's sales testify to her popularity and fans of her writing will not be disappointed. I had a few niggles with Sinead's description about London locations. The recommendation by Emma's sister to move to a "Soho loft" is just not something that exists- very few people live in Soho and lofts are something that exist in SoHo, New York not Soho in London's West End. Also, Putney where they move to would hardly be described as a "village" more a major London suburb. In addition, it is a long time since I read of a character responding with the phrase "yikes", maybe not since I read The Famous Five! All of that aside, Mad About You is a good read and one with likeable and interesting characters.


Mad About You is published by Penguin Books http://www.penguin.ie/