Disgrace by J. M. Coetzee

JM Coetzee's 1999 Booker Prize winner Disgrace is a simply told story with a powerful message, and worthy of the accolades it has received.

I expected something special from Disgrace, which is an exploration of racial politics in post-apartheid South Africa, but I find that I have a lot less to say about this book than I expected.

David Lurie is a middle aged divorced bachelor who finds himself unceremoniously out of his university teaching job following an affair with a student. He is a wretched character, someone whom I found difficult to respect. Finding himself in disgrace, he goes to stay with his daughter Lucy on her country farm, where she grows vegetables and cares for abandoned animals.

Here, he finds himself and his daughter victim of atrocities committed against them in a home invasion and they both struggle to deal with the consequences in their different ways.

David cannot come to terms with the events that have had such an impact on their lives, particularly Lucy's. Lucy quietly accepts what has been done to her as the price that she has to pay for staying on the land that he white ancestors once so barbarically took from the original inhabitants of the land. This doesn't mean that she isn't a changed person by what has happened to her, but she is unwilling to move from her home in the wake of the horrible events. David cannot comprehend her attitude, urging her to move away for fear of further attacks.

Disgrace is about misery and reconciliation on a personal as well as a political level. Coetzee creates a depressing picture of a land full of hate and misery attempting to cope with political change and racial politics.

There is a lot more to say about JM Coetzee's Disgrace that I am not able to adequately discuss in this review.

For the first time ever, I am not going to give this book a rating out of 8 according to my usual practice because I feel so ambivalent towards this book and I really can't explain why.

Is this feeling of ambivalence unique to me? I would love to know what other people think of this well-known book.

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon is an original, character driven book that was riveting, honest and above all, moving.

Haddon's narrator is 15 year old, Christopher Boone, a young man with Asperger's Disorder (an autism spectrum disorder), who lives with his single father following the death of his mother some years before (or is this true?). When Christopher discovers the murdered body of the dog from across the street, Wellington, he decides to investigate the murder. He tries to emulate the system employed by Sherlock Holmes, and upon his teacher Siobhan’s suggestion, he keep a written journal of his investigation.

Haddon used Christopher’s journey to explore the reality of living with a mental disorder. Christopher’s perception of the world is very different to that of a person without this condition. He perceives the world very literally – this means that he sometimes has difficulty understanding the world around him. He is not able to tell lies, for example, and is unable to understand metaphors.

"And when I try and make a picture of the phrase in my head it just confuses me because imagining an apple in someone’s eye doesn’t have anything to do with liking someone a lot and it makes you forget what the person was talking about."

His literal perception of the world affects his behaviour. He is unable to process complex emotion, and as result he doesn’t like new people or being touched.

"I rolled back onto the lawn and pressed my forehead to the ground again and made the noise that Father calls groaning. I make this noise when there is too much information coming into my head from the outside world."

Christopher processes the world around him by developing order and systems in order to assist him to function. Colours are associated with particular feelings; for example, anything brown is bad and four red cars in a row on the way to school means that he will have a good day. He likes lists because they suggest order, and he enjoys mathematical problems because, his teacher suggests, they always have logical answers. This is Christopher’s biggest problem – he cannot perceive the world as a logical place because he cannot be anything other than literal.

As he investigates Wellington’s death, Christopher makes a significant discovery about his own family that leads him away from that puzzle and onto a bigger journey of self-discovery.

On a more personal note, as someone who works a lot with people with a mental illnesses and disorders, I really appreciated the honest way in which Haddon dealt with this issue. Christopher was not portrayed as 'disabled' as such. He was not painted as some sort of 'idiot' or 'criminal' or 'social misfit' as such. Instead, he seemed an ordinary boy struggling with additional challenges that he faced. Similarly, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time also provided insight into the struggles of the families of people with mental disorders. Their difficulties and challenges were sensitively dealt with to reinforce the idea that assisting people with such problems is not an easy task, but it is one that you do your best at out of love.

By employing a unique writing style Haddon avoids stereotypes and sentimentality and provides the reader with an original and honest insight into mental disorder. This in turn compels the reader to contemplate our own perceptions of the social and physical world in which we exist. This book is compassionate, it is real and it is moving.

Summary

What kind of read is this?
It is an easy read, but with a unique writing style, unique content and a unique character.

Do I recommend this book?
Yes, to everyone. I wish I had read it sooner than I did.

Do I recommend that you buy this book?
I do recommend that you buy it if you are someone that likes to own books that they read and enjoy. Having said that, it is such a unique book that it isn't one that I would imagine you would re-read very frequently for fear of removing some of its impact. So the library is also a good option.

Star Rating

7 / 8 

Brilliant, couldn't put it down. Everyone should read it.

I would love to know what you thought of this book if you have read it. I am particularly curious to hear the perspective of someone who has read this book and who has personal experience with/knowledge of Asperger's Disorder?

What is your view on how mental illnesses or disorders are usually portrayed in fiction and why do you think this might be?

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

This absolutely unique piece of historical fiction moved me more than any book has done for a very long time, perhaps even since I read The Time Travellers Wife. This is a book for book lovers. The Book Thief is written by an Australian author, and it is is debut adult novel, after a career of writing children's fiction.

The protagonist of the novel is Liesel Meminger, a young girl growing up in Nazi Germany. It begins with the death of her brother, and her mother then leaving her in the care of the Huberman's, who become her new family. There is Mama, a fierce disciplinarian, and Papa a caring and warm man who dedicates hours to teaching Liesel to read. With the help of her Papa, she begins to read The Gravediggers Handbook, a book she finds following the burial of her brother.

What is particularly unique about this story of Nazi Germany, is that it is narrated by Death. Death doesn't introduce himself in those terms, but it becomes clear who is telling us the story of The Book Thief.

The style is expressive in a lyrical way, and is still very modern. Not only do we see the story unfold from Liesel's perspective, but we also have asides from Death, sometimes written as if they were on a gravestone. In effect, it is Death re-telling the story of Liesel, The Book Thief, and so we are provided many glimpses of the future of the story. This in no way deters the reader from reading on, it is one of those books where it is the journey to the conclusion that is the real joy of the book.  Death himself acknowledges:

"Of course, I'm being rude. I'm spoiling the ending, not only of the entire book, but of this particular piece of it. I have given you two events in advance, because I don't have much interest in building mystery. Mystery bores me. It chores me. I know what happens and so do you. It's the machination that wheel us there that aggravate, perplex, interest and astound me".

Zusak skilfully creates Liesel's experience through Death's storytelling with the use of imagery. This is because Death gives a very sensory account of the world, describing events, places and people with phrases such as"the smell of friendship", "scent of Hitler's gaze" and "For me, the sky was the colour of Jews". We are left with strong and clear images burned into our minds as we watch Liesel's story unfold.

As we give in to the sensory reality of Death's narrative, we see Liesel experience the normal angst of childhood; struggling through school, going on adventures with her best friend Rudy Steiner and helping her Mama raise funds by collecting laundry from neighbours. It is in this last role that she is truly able to give in to her love of books, and she eventually begins stealing them from the mayors house, after she makes friends with the mayor's wife. It is this act, and the further acts of book thievery that lead Death to give her the name of  'The Book Thief''.

There is a darker side to her life though. She lives in a town a short distance from Dachau, and witnesses Jews being marched through her city. We witness her and Rudy's involvement in the Hitler Youth Movement, and cringe at the insidious way in which Nazism infects their daily lives. Nazism has a more significant impact upon her life when her family begins to shelter a Jew, Max Vandenberg.

This book is undoubtedly about the experience of human misery in WWII, and Zusak does a brilliant job of describing the realities and intricacies of the lives of German people during Hitler's reign. We see acts of cruelty and acts of kindness and love.

And yet, The Book Thief is also about the power of language. It is books that allow Liesel to recover after her brothers death and her mothers abandonment. Books and language bring her closer to her Papa and become integral to her relationship with Max Vandenberg and to a lesser degree the Mayor's wife. It is though books and storytelling that she brings comfort to those that she shares the bomb shelters with, and it is books that play an important role in those transgressions against the Nazi state that she and others are willing to commit. Significantly, it is because of books that Death is able to tell us Liesel's story at all.

This is a book that had tears rolling down my face on three different occasions. It is a powerful but sad story about human suffering and the importance of language in the modern world. If you are a book lover, and a lover of language, then I not only recommend this book to you, I ask you to read it.

Summary

What kind of read is this?
It is an easy read, but it is emotionally challenging. It is very different to anything I have read before, largely in terms of the style in which it is written.

Do I recommend this book?
Yes, I couldn't recommend another book more strongly. You absolutely must read this.

Do I recommend that you buy this book?
Again, yes, absolutely, without hesitation. My book collection is all the more stronger for having this book.

Star Rating

8 / 8

One of the best books I have ever read. Everyone should read it - it is totally amazing. I am in love.

Book Details: Paperback, 584 pages, published by Pan MacMillan Australia, published in 2008, English

Interview with Commonwealth Writers Prize 2010 Nominee Dr Marie Heese

I was sent Dr Marie Heese's book The Double Crown free of charge for an honest review.

You can see my review of The Double Crown here.

The Double Crown was nominated for the Commonwealth Writers Prze 2010. In fact it went on to win the best book of Africa. Unfortunately, Dr Heese did not win the overall prize. You can read about the winners here.

I feel very fortunate that Dr Heese agreed to be interviewed about her latest book and what it felt like to be nominated for such a prestigious award:

Interview

Q: What made you decide to write this story? Was it an interest in Egyptian history or Hatshepsut specifically, or something else entirely?

A: I have been interested in Egyptian history for years. Then I happened to find an outline of the Hatshepsut story in the middle of a book about Nefertiti and it grabbed my attention.

Q: What made you decide to tell the story from the perspectives of both Hatshepsut and her scribe Mahu? What were you hoping to achieve and do you think that you did achieve it?

A: I needed a second voice, partly for a bit of a change and contrast, but also so that there would be an outside point of view to support or contradict what Hatsh herself tells you. For example, Mahu confirms that her people loved her. He tells one what she looked like. Furthermore, he could go where she could not, eg to taverns, and he could gain info from sources other than those she depended on. And he could report her death and what happened afterwards. I think the twin perspectives work well.

Q: I really liked the title 'The Double Crown'. I think it made reference to many different aspects of Hatshepsut's existence. What did you mean by the title.

A: Ancient Egypt was a unification of two lands, the north and south. Each had a crown, which could be worn separately, or at times together, since the one fitted into the other. This was known as the "double crown". Then, she herself was first a queen as Thutmose II's consort, then a king. She also had two roles, pharaoh and wife/lover/mother.

Q: You have told me that it took you 5 years to research and write this book? Do you miss the characters and the writing process now?

A: No, because I'm deep into another one, also historical but set in a different country and period.

Q: The back of The Double Crown states that you are well known for having written an adult novel. Was writing a historical novel very different?  

A: Adult novel is a term used in the publishing industry to differentiate from books for children, which I have also written. My first adult novel was written in Afrikaans, and was also historical fiction, set in SA in the early 20th century.

Q: The Double Crown was shortlisted for the Commonwealth Writers Prize 2010 and won the Best Book of Africa. How did it feel when you found out that your book was going so well in the Commonwealth Writers Prize?

A: I was absolutely astounded, since I had struggled to find a publisher for it. Also, naturally, delighted.

Q: Were you nervous pending the final outcome of the Prize?

A: I wasn't, because I was so glad to have made it in the first round. I actually expected Albert Wendt to win with his outstanding verse epic. However, I believe all the books in the final round were good, each in its own way. Each one was a prizewinner, after all.

Q: On a more personal level, what inspired you to be a writer? Did you have to work hard at developing your skill or does it come naturally?

A: I have always wanted to write (my Mother was well known as a writer in Afrikaans). I don't think writing ever "comes naturally" in the sense of being easy. No doubt one needs some talent, but it's a skill and a craft that has to be honed and it's hard work. Federer wasn't ever going to win Wimbledon because tennis came naturally.

Q: Where do you do your writing?

A: Wherever I can balance my laptop. Often in front of the TV while my husband is watching cricket. I look up when Sachin Tendulkar makes a century.

Q: What are you currently reading?

A: Michael Crummey's Galore, which was also a finalist but I hadn't been able to get hold of it before. It's excellent.

Q: What are some of your favourite books?

A: Mark Twain's Huckleberry Finn. The Sound and the Fury (William Faulkner is the writing gold standard, in my opinion.) Wild Swans, Three daughters of China, Jung Chang. John D Macdonald's books in the Travis McGee series.

Summary

Thank you very much for aswering these questions. I have had Wild Swans on my shelf for a very long waiting to be read, and you have reminded me to pick it up some time soon.

I very much recommend that people take the opportunity to read The Double Crown. It can be ordered at kalahari.net and will be posted from South Africa.

The Double Crown by Marie Heese

I received this book free of charge in return for an honest review.

The book was nominated for the Commonwealth Writers Prize 2010, and in fact has won the Best Book of Africa.

I am very lucky to have had the opportunity to do an author interview with Marie Heese about her book, which you can read here.

Book Details

Paperback
Pages: 376
Publisher: Human & Rousseau
Published: 2009
Language: English
ISBN: 978 0 7981 5036 1

Book Review

I was a little bit worried when I first discovered what this book was about - ancient history has never been something that I have ever had a particular interest in, but I was very happily surprised once I got stuck into this book.

The back cover states succinctly what this book is about: "Set in ancient Egypt, this is the fascinating story of Hatshepsut, the female pharaoh who ruled over Upper and Lower Egypt for two decades around 1500 BC".

The story was cleverly written from the perspective of Hatshepsut through a collection of secret scrolls she has decided to write when her reign as Pharaoh of Egypt begins to be threatened by unknown forces. These scrolls record the current events in her reign as Pharaoh, as well as those that have occurred in the past, those that have bought her to where she is. I thought this was a very effective way of telling her story. It made it very personal and provided a direct insight into her experiences.

Hatshepsut entrusts these secret scrolls into the hands of her scribe Mahu, who is given the task of keeping them secure. Mahu, however, cannot overcome his own curiosity and breaks the King's seal to read her secret writings. The reader is then provided with a more objective perspective of the thoughts and experiences of Hateshepsut provided by Mahu's own commentary on her scrolls.

I was a bit nervous that reading the book would become a little like a history lesson, where the author did everything they could to make sure the reader knew all the little details of the research they did before writing the novel. Fortunately, The Double Crown didn't feel like that at all. Instead, the characters, the lifestyle, the rituals, the past times, to foods and the general realities of this time in history were bought to life.

The story went very smoothly between the past and the present whilst searching for answers to a true historical story. How did a woman come to be the Pharaoh? Why was reference to her reign as King deleted? Why were her monuments destroyed? The Double Crown provided fictional answers to these questions that were convincing and realistic. Not just because it considered the social and political realities that Hatshepsut would have experienced, but also because it looked at her from a personal perspective, depicting her rise to power and then slowly the loss of her children, close friends and true love.

The Double Crown is a wonderful title. At first glance it refers to the Double Crown that she wears as Pharaoh, declaring her the King of The Upper Lands and The Lower Lands. But I think that it is also a clever way of referring to the dual nature of many aspects of her life. Pharaoh vs individual. Man vs woman. Power vs loneliness. All these tensions are explored in this book.

The sex scenes were pretty cheesy I thought, and the end came very suddenly, but all in all this was a really wonderful and clever book.

Summary

What kind of read is this?
It is an easy read, and a quick one, but very interesting.

Do I recommend this book?
Yes, absolutely. It was really good and I would recommend it to people.

Do I recommend that you buy it?
Unless you have a very real interest in Egyptian history or ancient history in general, I think this is the kind of book that it would be sufficient enough to borrow from the library.

Star Rating

6 / 8

Really enjoyable and well written. I would recommend it.

The Secret River by Kate Grenville

I had long wanted to read a book by Kate Grenville. I had heard her speak at the Sydney Book Fair and also on various pod casts that I had downloaded and had always thought that she sounded so articulate and intelligent.

The book itself has won many awards and been shortlisted for others; Commonwealth Writers Prize 2006, NSW Premier's Literary Awards, Christina Stead Prize and Community Relations Award, Fellowship of Australian Writers' Christina Stead Award, Literary Fiction Book of the Year and Book of the Year, Australian Book Industry Awards 2006, shortlisted for the Miles Franklin Award 2006 and shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize 2006.

My friends had also recommended her books to me so when I finally had the opportunity to purchase The Secret River, I jumped at the chance.

From the back cover: "William Thornhill is sentenced in 1806 to be transported to New South Wales, for the term of his natural life. With his wife Sal and children in tow, he arrives in a harsh land that feels, at first, like a death sentence. But among the convicts there is a whisper, that freedom can be bought - an opportunity to start afresh." For William Thornhill, starting afresh means the purchasing of land along the Hawkesbury and fighting for it when the true owners of the land, the Aboriginals, assert their own ownership.

The feelings I had about this book encapsulate how I have been feeling about a few books recently. The story caught my attention and drew me into it to the point where I needed to keep reading, but somehow it still didn't quite meet up to my expectations. I have heard of The Secret River as becoming part of the Australian tradition of historical fiction; comparing it to books like The True History of the Kelly Gang and books by Thomas Keneally. With such high recommendations, great comparisons and so many awards, I was expecting something a little more dense, with a little more analysis of the social circumstances at the time of the 'colonisation' of Sydney, and in turn greater analysis of the colonisation as it affected the Aboriginal population. I know this is a novel, not a non-fiction book, but having heard Kate Grenville speak in such an intelligent and analytical way on so many interesting issues, I think I just expected something with greater depth.

The story had such potential to be an epic novel, but it fell just short of short of that. When I think about it, this book would have been better as even a short tighter story or else a longer more epic story (but then again, who am I to give advice!).

This all sounds very negative, but please don't get me wrong, I really enjoyed this book.

Aboriginals This book did tackle issues surrounding the 'colonisation' of Sydney from a different perspective from what I am used to. It explores the practical reality of the appropriation of Aboriginal land at the hands of the whites. This is really what the book is about, so I won't go into it too much because I don't want to spoil the story. I am glad that the book made me think about this from a more practical perspective than I have before, but I still think that it is in this aspect of the story that the book particularly fell down for me in some ways. It wasn't quite emotive or detailed enough to make me really feel what the characters would have been. I wanted to feel like I was there with them, but I couldn't.

Love and Family One of the things I did love was the relationship between William and Sal, and the growth of their family. It was so simple, not sappy like it could have been. They fell in love as children, married, were sent to Australia, raised a large and happy family and stayed true to each other through enormous hardship. Their love was real. Although the final events of the book had an impact upon their relationship it was done in such a realistic, true to life way I appreciated.

Sal and the longing for home I liked that no matter how hard their life had been, and no matter how difficult the challenges they faced making a life in Australia, Sal still pined for home, which was particularly palpable in the final scenes. Sal dealt with her circumstances with a determination and self possession that I only wish I had, and I think that her story is an important lesson in doing the best that you can with what you have.

William William is another issue altogether. I didn't feel for him in the way that I did for Sal, but I liked that despite everything he did, particularly in relation to the final events of the book, he was a good man trying to make the most of his situation for his family. His craving for land was undoubtedly selfish and some without regard for his wife's feelings, but I still believe that he thought he was doing the right thing for them. He reminded me of my legal clients in some ways. When forced into a situation from circumstances largely out of their control, people are often left with no choice but to turn to crime. It is an important message - good people can do bad things, but we all have to do the best we can and live with the consequences of our actions.

Summary

What kind of read is it?
It is an easy read, it's enjoyable and well written. Don't expect an epic tale though.

Do I recommend the book?
Despite some misgivings I still recommend reading it. It is by a wonderful Australian author and covers Aboriginal issues from a different perspective to what you would normally read.

Do I recommend that you buy it?
No. Borrow it from the library or a friend.

Star Rating

5 / 8

Good and worth reading if you have the opportunity, but there's no need to prioritise it.