Books to Talk About

'Boy A' by Jonathan Trigell has been voted the 2008 Book to Talk About. In the build up to World Book Day (Thursday 6 March) people were encouraged to read any of 100 books, later voted down to a top ten, and then vote for their favourite conversation starter.

Boy A is a controversial account of the release of a young man who has spent most of his life in institutions after committing a hideous childhood crime. It is the first winner of the Book to Talk About prize which is intended to bring to light hidden gems amongst the many thousands of books which are published.

The final top ten is as follows, with the vote percentage in brackets:

1. Boy A by Jonathan Trigell (21%)
2. Ishq and Mushq by Priya Basil (14%)
3. Salt & Honey by Candi Miller (12%)
4. Gods in Alabama by Joshilyn Jackson (10%) 
5. Speaking of Love by Angela Young (9%)
6. Death of a Murderer by Rupert Thomson (8%) 
7. In Cold Daylight by Pauline Rowson (8%)
8. Playing with the Moon by Eliza Graham (7%)
9. Lint by Steve Aylett (6%)
10. Before I Die by Jenny Downham (5%)

Staff at MLA East Midlands have read some of the top ten. Their reviews are below.

For more information about Books to Talk About and World Book Day, visit the Spread the Word website. 

Ishq and Mushq - Priya Basil

Review by Dolly Raval, finance administrator

This book is about Karam and Sarna Singh. The novel spans historical events from the Partitioning of India in 1947 to present day Britain and takes you on a journey across three continents. Karam, who felt cheated by events catching him unawares, wants to be part of history, while Sarna is trying to escape from her past.

My first impressions were that it is a good attempt for a first novel. It started well, kept me hooked and is definitely a page turner as I wanted to know what happened next to the family. It's a good style of writing and funny in places with hints of 'Goodness Gracious Me'. It's not too descriptive, although I did find that the earlier chapters more detailed than the latter ones. As for the ending, I was a bit disappointed as it felt like there was something missing which I couldn't quite put my finger on. Overall though, I would say it should make the top five.

Salt and Honey - Candi Miller

Review by Katherine Wilson, director of marketing and communications

Salt and Honey is a book of contradictions. It is a coming of age novel where four people are murdered in the first 50 pages. It is a story of racial tension where black and white communities are united in their disdain for the Ju/'hoansi' (African hunter-gatherers). It is a love story where boy and girl are parted but you still sense a happy ending.

Mannie and Koba are brought together when their fathers kill each other, they have no elements of their lives in common apart from a chance geographical promixity and yet they find common ground, supporting each other as outsiders and developing love which the law prohibits.

Gods in Alabama - Joshilyn Jackson

Review by Davey Ivens, learning project manager

According to other reviews, this first novel is part of a southern, dysfunctional family genre - I can only guess what the other titles must be like, but this one managed to engage me from the opening line. I like the first person narrative and the economic way that Jackson helps the reader get a grip on the characters without too much waffle. The dialogue is well-paced and believable. The flashback structure of the plot is used well to describe the fateful events in Arlene's Alabama childhood and to build the tension as she and her black lover, Burr, travel south to confront her demons and her racist family.

There are gods in Alabama, but the God that Arlene has done a deal with seems ready to renege on the bargain. As well as the satisfying plot (including lots of teenage sex, some lovemaking and good swearing), Jackson has produced a very readable, witty first novel, which is refreshingly morally ambivalent and raises interesting questions about lying, memory and loving your family.

Speaking of Love - Angela Young

Review by Cathy Winward, director of finance and support services

This book is well summed up by the title 'Speak of Love'. It is narrated by Iris, Vivie and Matthew (a mother, daughter and the boy next door) and it tells of love, trust, family and mental illness. It explores problems encountered by not speaking of their love. Words are important and prevent doubt and misunderstandings. Iris suffered a mental breakdown, Vivie married the wrong man and Matthew almost missed his chance of true love.

The book deals very empathetically with the issue of mental illness and the impact this can have on families.

The story takes place over the course of three days as they travel to a storytelling festival in Wales, but flashbacks form a major part of the journey. There are some delightful fairy tales that weave the themes together.

The book was interesting and different. It is her first novel and would be a fair choice for a book club discussion.

Death of a Murderer - Rupert Thomson

Review by Priscilla Baily, regional reading group project coordinator

An ordinary man, policeman Billy Tyler, is asked to do a special duty - to guard the body of notorious child-killer, Myra Hindley in the hospital mortuary to ensure that 'nothing happens'. With TV and newspaper reporters baying at the gate and the hospital eerily quiet during the small hours, Billy has time to reflect on his own life, relationships, childhood and marriage.

Beautifully written, I was drawn into Billy's story from the start. He is an utterly believable narrator, a decent, flawed, very human man who has had his own brushes with violence, both in the course of his police career and outside it.

The novel challenges the reader to consider the moral complexities of crime, our media obsession with violence and murder and the impact this has on society.

I would not naturally be drawn to a novel on this theme, however, despite its title and subject matter, this is a story about life, rather than death, by a brilliant author.

In Cold Daylight - Pauline Rowson

Review by Ruth Stockdale, Renaissance East Midlands communications officer

The book is described as a gripping marine mystery and it certainly has a fair few twists and turns (and some coastal connections) as the main protagonist tries to find out why his firefighter friend Jack was killed.

After a slowish start the narrative speeds up and carries the reader along to find out how all the characters, quite a few of them dead or about to be, are connected and who is behind the intrigue. It's definitely a page turner and and could generate discussions about knowing who to trust when everyone could be against you.

I don't think it would be be my number one book to talk about as while there's quite a lot of action, there isn't enough analysis and depth which the story could have supported. It seems like it's trying to be a kind of Ms Smilla's Feeling for Snow by Peter Hoeg, but it doesn't get there.

Before I Die - Jenny Downham

Review by Serena Lindsay, museum 2 business adviser

A sudden start - mind you there is not much time to muck about as the main character is dying and soon. You are straight into the main character's life and you know there is life-threatening illness but nothing is specifically mentioned at first. You realise quite soon it is some form of cancer but you are not told directly.

It is interesting to see how life's priorities change. The book explores priorities, changes and influences - maybe priorities change with experience? The book explores the need to do a lot of things in the little time left in life and the changes in priorities due to unexpected experiences.

Some reviewers have said that the writer gets into the 16 year old's head but I'm not so sure. The author's approach and style of writing would be interesting to discuss in a book club, as would the theme of changing priorities.

The excellent part of the book comes in the approach to the death, an inevitable part of the story. Some reviewers have talked about weeping in the last chapters. I found myself gaining strength after an initial shock of the process of the illness and, after sobbing part way through, found peace and acceptance to cope with the end of the book, which was well presented.