A remarkable lady

To read any story about the holocaust is always painful. How can a country under the leadership of a dictator perpetuate such horrendous crimes against fellow human beings in the name of a misconceived ideology; the creation of a master Aryan race.

Edith Eger lived with her mother, father and two sisters Magda and Klara in Kosice Slovakia. One morning in May 1944 she and her family (minus Klara who successfully managed to hide from the jack booted thugs) together with a great number of fellow Slovak residents were arrested and bundled into animal transporters then taken to Auschwitz birkenau extermination camp. What followed was one of the greatest acts of mass genocide ever committed. On arrival at Auschwitz the new residents would be greeted by the quietly spoken Dr. Mengele...."I recognize the uniformed officer from the selection line. I know it's him, the way he smiles with his lips parted, the gap between his front teeth. Dr. Mengele, we learn. He is a refined killer and a lover of the arts".......The good doctor gives directions either to the left or right. Those who went left, children and those over 40 received an immediate death sentence under the guise of a communal shower. This was the last time that Edith ever saw her parents again. Edith and Magda survived, Edith being discovered discarded and naked barely alive hidden beneath a pile of bodies.

The Choice is a story of survival. It is the account of a woman badly traumatized  by inhuman treatment yet able to use this terror and in a positive way help others address their own issues and grief...."Just remember, no one can take away from you, what you've put in your mind. We can't choose to vanish the dark, but we can choose to kindle the light.".......In life there is always a choice and by sharing openly our greatest fear, and with the help and guidance of professional psychologists living can be worthwhile and meaningful again. Many thanks to the good people of netgalley for a gratis copy in exchange for an honest review and that is what I have written.

Beautifully written heartbreaking to read

Martin Waring is the curator of the Ulster Museum in Belfast. He is married to Alison and they have two children Rachel and Tom. Rachel is the apple of her father's eye and he is overjoyed when he learns that his daughter has acquired 10 top grades, ten stars, and is destined to be accepted into one of the great institutions of learning....Oxford or Cambridge beckons. One night both Martin and his daughter make wrong decisions the outcome of which alters their lives in a way that I as a reader did not see and what follows is both harrowing and heart-wrenching in equal measures. It is difficult to actually discuss Swallowing the Sun without disclosing the plot and indeed the final outcome. We learn of a tough and abusive childhood with a vicious and drunken father and a mother too weak to protect the innocence of her sons; Martin and his brother Rob. In Belfast Martin has associations with loyalist gangs and sympathizers from the early hard days of his youth. As the story progresses he finds himself drawn back to his connections in an attempt to find answers as his life begins to unravel, spiraling out of control. The ending is a stroke of pure genius as the curator of the museum struggles to make sense of what has happened, creating a space that will forever act as a reminder of his loss and pain.

The characters in this story like all of us are flawed and the repercussions of decisions taken will always have a ripple effect on members of the family. Martin Waring openly displays his frailties yet as the novel progresses I  began to develop an admiration for him as both he and his wife Alison learn to cope with a heartache  that will forever remain. David Park has written a sublime novel, the open wounds of pain and regret on every page and every word and expression he uses adding to the feeling of hopelessness and sadness..."where the past is cared for and preserved, where nothing is allowed to decay or be destroyed"...."So why doesn't he come in now, sit on her bed and give her some advice? Tell her the things he knows. About how you find someone to love"....."He feels only the stirring of his doubt now, a loss of confidence, wonders if she will be able to read in his body the drive of his desperation, the depth of his need"....."where the past is cared for and preserved, where nothing is allowed to decay or be destroyed"....

If I were to choose one book that is both lyrical and thought provoking my choice would be this brilliant novel by David Park. Highly Recommended

An elegant wordsmith

John Cameron has returned to the school of his youth in his new role as headmaster. He is a man with a troubled past, increasingly disturbed by the frequency and darkness of his dreams, desperately needing the love of his wife Emma, both badly shocked by their own personal tragedy..."a new house would be good for her, help her to heel more quickly".....

 His colleagues at school are somewhat adversarial to the new Principal and reluctant to adopt to change that Cameron is keen to introduce. His attention is drawn to the fragile Jacqueline McQuarrie and he is saddened that his predecessor Reynolds did little to promote or help the interests of a child with acute special needs. Cameron recalls a time in his youth when with his father's help he rescued a boy who faced abuse on a daily basis....."Completely naked the raised ridges of his ribs pushing through his skin. He was crouched in a nest of straw like a small bird and then he stood up, his skinny sticks of legs were brown and misshapen and covered in pussed scabs like scene on the surface of stagnant water".....His interest in the welfare of Jacqueline continues and when he discovers bruises on her arm he decides to visit the McQuarrie household to uncover the truth. Meanwhile his relationship with Emma deteriorates as darkness from the past drowns them further in sorrow.

This is beautifully written dark fiction that reminds me in part of the American author Greg f Gifune. The writing and descriptions are simply sublime and add greatly to the uneasy feeling of sadness and fear that pervades throughout the pages from first to last....."the way the dark rolled in across the fields to beach soundlessly against the lines of the house, the feeling it brought of being isolated from the rest of the world but secure and solid in the sanctuary of the shadows".....I am a great admirer of the writing of David Park. His novels are often based around the violent and bloody conflict that was an everyday event in the towns and rural settlements of Northern Ireland. He never allows "the troubles"  to encroach or play centre stage in his writings but simply acknowledges their existence, preferring to concentrate on the story at hand yet deeply aware that the mindset and parochial attitude of "Ulstermen" forms a rocky platform as the events in his story unfold.

 This is wonderful, heartfelt writing of the highest order from one outstanding author.

The sacrifice and the slaughter

One of the most tragic events of the 20th century was the senseless slaughter and sacrifice of many young men on the battlefields of the Somme,Verdun and Passchendaele. The iconic 1914 recruitment poster of Lord Kitchener, wearing a cap of a British Field Marshall, stares and points at the viewer pleading to their sense of allegiance and responsibility by declaring..."Your country needs you" The specially constituted "pals battalions" resulted in friends, neighbours and colleagues enlisting together at local recruiting drives with the promise that they could serve alongside each other. However many of these battalions sustained heavy causalities and this had a significant impact on their communities at home.

In the small Devon town of Hatherleigh lives young Tommo Peaceful with his brother Charlie and the girl they both adore, Molly. This is family life, village life, captured in the idyllic Devon countryside before the encroachment and black clouds of world war 1 destroys the dreams and aspirations of so many in pointless sacrifice ensuring that life would never be the same again....."We'd lie amongst the grass and buttercups of the water meadows and look up at the clouds scudding across the sky, at the wind-whipped crows chasing a mewing buzzard"....Tommo and Charlie are gripped in the romantic notion of helping to eradicate the threat of the Hun who were attempting to grow their military might and realize their imperialistic ambitions. So the two brothers and close friends from the village march blindly off to war where the initial patriotic enthusiasm dies tragically amidst pointless butchering when the reality of war is revealed...."I could no longer pretend to myself that I believed in a merciful god nor in a heaven, not anymore, not after I had seen what men could do to one another. I could believe only in the hell I was living in, a hell on earth and it was man-made, not God-made"......."the terror that is engulfing me and invading me, destroying any last glimmer of courage and composure I may have left. All I have left now is my fear"....

Michael Morpurgo expertly portrays the senseless  slaughter and sacrifice of world war 1 to a young impressionable adult audience. This is achieved by comparing the beauty and peacefulness of the English countryside with the shell ravaged mud filled trenches of France....this was the raw reality of war. Private Peaceful is a sombre novel to be read by young and old. It's simplistic language is very effective in creating an image of a time when the romantic notion of war quickly became a vision of hell and where the loss of millions was seen as an acceptable price for the march of imperialism and the misguided ambitions  of WW1 military leaders. Highly Recommended.

A little uneven and disappointing

Bosch and Ballard together solving crimes in downtown LA, sounds a recipe for success, unfortunately my original enthusiasm was not realized. Ballard is the new kid on the block, first introduced last year in the excellent "The Late Show". She has a lot to prove, riding the night shift, surfing in the morning accompanied by her faithful dog Lola. It's tough working as a female detective always open to criticism and ridicule and constantly under the watchful eye of her male colleagues just waiting for disaster to strike.

Bosch of course is the grizzled vet, working out of the San Fernando police dept on "cold cases" that still remain unsolved after a number of years. Daisy Clayton was murdered nine years ago, her body found naked and bleached clean to hide all trace of DNA. Ballard discovers Bosch working on this unsolved murder and she decides to help him in her downtime. So up to a point this story is full of potential and hope. However this is not the only case the detectives are involved in and that's where the narrative comes undone. When I read a detective story I want the author to concentrate and build the storyline one theme or murder (or numerous murders as in the case of a serial killer) This gives the reader time to become acquainted with the various issues raised and characters introduced. By running a number of sub plots/storylines the main theme, which in this case is the killing of Daisy Clayton, becomes diluted and loses its impact and effectiveness. Harry at the same time is involved in a crime case with gangland connections that goes terribly wrong. Ballard has her own heavy work load including a potential rape case that becomes something different entirely.

Having said that a Michael Connelly novel always contains some great moments with Harry Bosch at the centre. He is a maverick investigator refusing to admit that he could ever be a target, but on this occasion he is wrong. In addition he is harbouring an unexpected house guest and the fallout from this has a tragic outcome. So "Dark Sacred Night" is not a bad novel it is simply that I expect such high standards from the author. The partnership of Ballard and Bosch works to an extent but the Daisy Clayton killing seems to lose its impact as it becomes lost amongst the ever increasing workload that forms the agenda of our two hard working detectives. The conclusion of the story indicates the possibility of future adventures/assignments and I hope that will not happen. Bosch is a loner, a detective who shirks instructions, and this is the very quality that makes him so attractive to his many adoring readers. Yes lets develop the career of Renee Ballard.....but not on Harry's watch!

Simple, observational, evocative

An elderly judge Eamon Redmond lives with his wife Carmel and travels to the fair city of Dublin everyday to fulfill his high court role. A quiet, thoughtful, deeply intellectual man Eamon often reflects on his life in the present and moments of his childhood that helped shape and create the person he is today. His childhood was a time of order, daily chores, and routine but always under the auspices of the only binding force in the community; the catholic church. A church that demanded allegiance and in return for such devotion and faith man could be saved from the evils of the world, but "without God’s help, we will all die in our sinful condition and remain separated from God forever". The truth of the situation was that the church offered few answers for a young man exploring his sexuality, trying to make sense of the often painful passage from boyhood to manhood. However politics and the allegiance to a particular party played a much more prominent role in the life of the citizens with its constant reminder of past struggles and romantic leaders most prominent of which was Eamon de Valera and the famous Easter rising of 1916 against British rule. As Eamon Redmond becomes immersed in the politics of the age he meets and falls in love with a young party worker Carmel who is equally smitten by her admirer's  oratory skills and his ambitions within the political arena.

The story is told in two parts a reflection, often romantic, view of childhood with its warmth and sadness at the passing of close relatives, and in contrast adulthood, responsibilities and complex decisions that constitutes the daily routine of a high court judge. To me The Heather Blazing celebrates the importance of family and how the youthful formative years impress and influence our decisions and mindset into adulthood. Colm Toibin is a great observe of daily routines and the Ireland he describes reminds me, as an Irishman, of my own childhood with simple family routines embedded forever in my mind....."They all settled around the fire, the women with glasses of sherry, the men with beer, the three boys with glasses of lemonade. Eamon watched as his father tipped his glass to the side and poured the beer in slowly, letting it slide softly down the edge of the glass"....The harsh beautiful untamed Irish landscape with wild unpredictable seas somehow compliments the simplistic yet deeply moving narrative of one of Ireland's finest authors.

Strike 1

This is the first of the Cormoran Strike  novels written by JK Rowling under the pseudonym Robert Galbraith. The story revolves around a beautiful troubled model Lula Landry who one cold snowy winters night falls from the balcony of her penthouse London flat. Was it suicide or was she pushed? Her brother John Bristow is convinced she was murdered and employs the services of Private Investigator Cormoran Strike to uncover the perpetrator.In Cormoran Strike we have a wonderful fictional detective, even his offices with a steel spiral staircase and unfashionable London location has a touch of Philip Marlowe, Chandler's finest creation. Strike is a man who is deeply scared both mentally and physically by his experiences in war torn Afghanistan. His right leg below the knee is missing the result of an improvised explosive device (IED) when he also saved the life of one of his comrades. The pain from his missing limb is a constant reminder of the hell of Helmand province. His childhood was no less traumatic, living in squats with his drug addicted mother Leda and rarely seeing his rock star father Jonny Rokeby

Strike has acquired a new secretary Robin and it soon becomes clear that this highly intelligent woman is a golden asset in the disorganized lifestyle that our PI leads. Although Robin is engaged to the controlling Mathew there is certainly an attraction between this ambitious lady and her older damaged employer. Strike is aware of this danger but he cannot help himself admiring the beauty and intelligence displayed before him..."but having normal sight and an unimpaired libido, he was also reminded every day she bent over the computer monitor that she was a very sexy girl."..

A good crime author will always attempt to shield the identity of the killer until the final chapters and Robert Galbraith is a master of illusion and deception. The reader is taken on a descriptive journey through the beating heart of London where..."its colourful windows displayed a multitudinous mess of life's unnecessities"....and on that journey an eclectic  mix of characters is on show including the extravagant camp designer Guy Some...."nearly a foot shorter than Strike and had perhaps a hundredth of his body hair. The front of the designers tight black T-shirt was decorated with hundreds of tiny silver studs which formed an apparently three-dimensional image of Elvis's face"...and Lula's birth mother Marlene Higson..."she was wearing a pink Lycra vest top under a zip-up grey hoodie, and leggings that ended inches above her grey-white ankles. There were grubby flip-flops on her feet and many gold rings on her fingers; her yellow hair, with its inches of greying brown  root, was pulled back into a dirty towelling scrunchie".....

I must confess that I have managed to read the 3 books in the series out of order but that has certainly not ruined my enjoyment. The writing is of the highest quality and it has been a great adventure discovering the complicated background of Cormoran Strike and his beautiful assistant Robin. The dynamics of this relationship is something that Galbraith explores in more detail in the later books and it all adds to the excitement of this highly accomplished beautifully written novel.

The futility and the sacrifice

A modern movie of Journey's End has just been released in the UK and I was recently privileged to view, quite frankly I was astounded by what I saw, so moved by this sober and thoughtful interpretation that I decided to acquire and read the original dramatic play published in 1928 by R C Sherriff who based his novel on his own experiences of life (if we can call it that) in the trenches of Northern France during the spring of 1918.

At the start of world war 1 there appeared to be no shortage of young men following the advice from Lord Kitchener..."Your country needs you" These young romantic conscripts happily boarded troop trains heading for the trenches of St Quentin in northern France in order to fight for king and country. What they encountered was an entrenched position as two opposing sides faced each other across a muddy desolate no man's land. Life in the trenches was abominable. As well as the constant fear of mortars  with the resulting shrapnel, soldiers cut to ribbons, muddy conditions giving rise to trench foot and a large expanding rodent problem. If we add to this the overzealous use of mustard gas then a picture reminiscent of a living hell is an apt description.

Given these facts there seemed to be no shortage of volunteers eager to travel through this dystopian landscape where the average life expectancy of a soldier or officer was a mere six weeks. There was a total lack of reality in the minds of commanding officers quite happy to send millions of men to an untimely death cut down by machine gun fire, entangled in barbed wire, or simply blown to pieces by a direct shell hit. If we are to believe numerous accounts the stiff upper lip prevailed and the language of the time; rugger, chap, topping, jolly introduced a surreal quality to this living hell....."A dugout got blown up and came down in the men's tea. They were frightfully annoyed"...."He was the skipper of rugger at Barford, and kept wicket for the eleven. A jolly good bat, too"...

I have been very moved by reading Journey's End and the final images instills a very sombre note. The book explores issues of friendship and comradeship, the desolation of the human mind under extreme conditions, the utter futility of war, and the senseless sacrifice of millions of lives by an inept leadership who was utterly blind to the realities of battle in the blood drenched battlefields of Northern France