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Bookchat New Mills was born on the 18th January 2000, Millenium Year, when the Sun was in the fifth house and in conjunction with Neptune and Mercury. An auspicious beginning for any organisation with literary and poetic associations.
May we welcome you to our website?
Who are we? An informal group, sponsored by the Arts and Development section of Derbyshire County Libraries, who meet in New Mills Library, Hall St., once a month to discuss books we have read.
Gwenda Culkin, librarian at New Mills, is our organiser and hostess. Each month she gives us a book to read for homework, from sets issued by the County. Not always the ones each individual would have chosen, but it does widen our reading experience and we can voice our opinions at the next meeting. No holds barred, new insights gained, sometimes new friends made.
Why not join us? It's nice and warm in the library, it costs nothing. Just come in and sit on a comfortable seat and wait for a cup of tea (or glass of wine, sometimes) at 7.30 on the second Tuesday in every month.
July 10th –
Beyond Black by Hilary Mantel
Alison Hart is a medium by trade: dead people talk to her; and she talks back. With her flat eyed, flint hearted side kick, Collette, she tours the dormitory towns of London’s orbital road, passing on messages from dead ancestors: “Granny says she likes your new kitchen units”.
Alison’s ability to communicate with spirits is a torment rather than a gift. Behind her plump, smiling and bland public persona is a desperate woman. She knows that the next lie holds terrors that she must conceal from her clients. Her days and nights are haunted by the men she knew in her childhood, the thugs and petty criminals who preyed upon hopeless, addled mother, Emmie. They infiltrate her house, her body and her soul; the more she tries to be rid of them, the stronger and nastier they become.
For Alison Hart, being a medium is a business. She tours the suburban satellite towns off London's ring road, Enfield, Harrow-on-the-Hill, giving tarot readings, mind-reading to crowds about the colour of their kitchen cabinets and passing along messages from dead relatives—for a fee. Meanwhile, her brisk, eternally disgusted manager Colette lobbies Inland Revenue to allow Allison to deduct the cost of her voluminous stage frocks from her taxes – size 22 on a good day! It is refreshing to have an overweight heroine!
As for the ghosts, they are revolting. Yet since dead folks used to be live folks, why should deceased layabouts be any more socially palatable than flesh-and-blood corner boys. "You say they give trivial messages," says Al of the spirits, "but that's because they're trivial people. You don't get a personality transplant when you're dead”.
The wraiths that loiter about Alison's house are down and out - crude, sexist, pig-thick, and unhygienic. Al's unkempt spirit guide and one of the novel's most marvellous creations, Morris is a terrible whinger – he is surly, filthy, sneering, peevish - and dangerous.
Most of Book Chat enjoyed the book – discussion was lively and varied but generally opinion was that it was a good read! The reviews had been very encouraging and we were not disappointed:-
Sunday Times
'As ever with Mantel, it is solidly imagined and superbly written, luscious and toxic by turns.'
Independent
'Mantel critiques Blair’s Britain with delightfully hellish results...A clarion call to the living dead.’
There is no Book Chat meeting in August and the September meeting is on 18 September as part of the New Mills Festival. The theme of the event is Water Water Everywhere. All are welcome to come along and just listen or join in with your favourite or interesting reading about Water – refreshments will be provided. Please ring New Mills Library on 01663 743603 for more information.
Catherine Bolton -
New Mills Library
June 2007 - The Birth of Venus by Sarah Dunnat
Alessandra is a young girl, living in Florence. She has a father who is a prosperous merchant. Alessandra is not quite fifteen years old when her father brings a young artist back with him from a trip to Holland. His job is to paint the walls of the new chapel belong to Alessandra's family.
She is fascinated by the talent of the young man and soon her love of all things artistic and her lively independent nature are drawing her into closer involvement with all sorts of things that perhaps a young and well brought up young lady should not involve herself with. She travels abroad in the streets of Florence at night and observes a terrible evil stalking the streets. She witnesses the rise of a fiery young priest, Savanarola, who is determined to rid the streets of the city of vice and the extravagances of the rich.
As she reaches her adult life, Alessandra must choose the way she shapes her life, just as the city of Florence itself must choose between the old ways of the luxury loving families like the Medicis or the abstinence of worldly pleasures preached by Savanorola and through it all there is the young painter.
Most enjoyed the book and found that it made them want to know more about that historical period. One member found that she could not get into it - too much sex!!!!
Bookchat. Meeting, Tuesday 8th May 2007.
We had a valuable choice from a variety of books under the title of “The Banipal Collection”, a publishing group supported by the British Council.
All the books were originally by Arabic writers. Some of the appreciative discussion centred on the skill needed by translators, and how they were true to the skill and style of the authors.
Clearly, there had been a variety of content, reflecting strong family ties, close communities, limitations on choice, restrictions to women, political unrest, and dangers. One writer was still under threat from Fatwas against his life.
It was agreed that we understood so much more of the complexities of Middle East countries, and the differences between them.
Report by Mavis de Mierre. Next meeting- 12th June.
Book to be read - Sarah Dunant, “The Birth of Venus”.
Bookchat Meeting, Tuesday 10th April 2007.
We met to discuss Ted Hughes’ “Birthday Letters”. We had a stimulating discussion, starting with a query as to the form of verse it was written in; was it blank verse or prose? How much of it, if any, had been written whilst Sylvia Plath was still alive and did he show her any of it?
We all seemed to have greatly enjoyed the descriptions of their travels in America. I liked his nature descriptions and pen portrait of the West country and of his home town in Yorkshire. Almost every page contains a memorable line, or powerful image. Some of us had enjoyed Sylvia Plath’s own poems and one member had read and reread her “Letters Home” some years ago and decided to reread them now. Others were less keen on Plath’s poetry and also felt she must have been difficult to live with!
In conclusion we almost all agreed that this book was a most moving testimony to Ted Hughes’ love for his wife, with all the huge difficulties of their relationship, haunted as it seems by her fragile mental state and troubled relationship with her father. Read it!
(If you would like to join us next month on Tuesday,May 8th at 7.30 p.m. at New Mills library, visit the library and ask to borrow a book from the Bookchat collection. Next month you can select from a varied collection of writing from the Middle East)
Bookchat Meeting, Tuesday 13th March 2007.
As the principals were away, this month’s meeting was led by Alison Bower. The book under discussion was “Freakonomics”, subtitled “A renegade economist reveals the hidden side of everything.” Well, not quite everything. Just a few American domestic “received truths.” Like, do Sumo wrestlers cheat? Do American exam markers? How? One might say, And How. Why do drug dealers (American) live with their mothers? (Answer, they can’t afford not to) Or the real reason why the American crime rate dropped. And, if you’re still interested, what were the most popular black American childrens’ names in 1980? Bookchat weren’t, unless it was interestingly written about, which this book wasn’t. Maybe next month’s choice, “Birthday Letters”, by Ted Hughes, will be.
Report on the meeting of Tuesday 13 February 2007 by Mavis deMierre.
The book was "Arthur and George", by Julian Barnes.
The February meeting was one of those occasions (all too rare) when the listed book received unanimous approval by all 11 members present. It's many virtues includes strong narrative (based on real events which were themselves very surprising), wonderful characterisation, total control of detail carried by extensive meticulous detail and masterly writing.
The novel was on the short list for the recent Booker prize. None of us could understand why it had not won. Both George and Arthur were carefully established within their family environments and upbringing in such a way as to emphasise the differences between them.
George was patient, unimaginative, hardworking and singleminded, to become a solicitor. He was accused maliciously of a series of bizarre crimes; unfair and shameful treatment resulted in a period of imprisonment. His case interested Arthur, who by then was Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, grateful to escape his famous Sherlock Holmes creation and get involved in real events to try and clear George's name. He was mostly, though not entirely, successful.
One or two of us thought it was "the best book we had read", discussions had begun prior to the meeting, and resumed the next day, in at least two families. It was agreed to be a very good read.
The next meeting will be on Tuesday,13th March, 7.30pm in the library as usual. The book to be read is"Freakonomics" by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner. Unusually, this is a non-fiction book, with many intriguing insights into the flip side of common situations. It can be borrowed from the library.
Future Meetings:
10th April - Birthday Letters - Ted Hughes.
12th May - Banipal Collection.
12th June - The Birth of Venus - Sarah Dunant.
10th July - Beyond Black - Hilary Mantell.
August - no meeting.
September meeting - to be arranged in conjunction with New Mills Festival.
The past twelve months have been rather chaotic, due to the promotion of Gwenda, our organiser and dynamic energiser. We wish her every success but she has left rather a gap. Also the illness of several senior members made upkeep of the website rather sporadic. However, we are hoping the amalgamation with New Mills website will bring us to the notice of more people, some of whom it is hoped will be attracted and will join in. And regular reports of meetings and activities will appear on the website.
There is a great deal in the archive, which we thought it would be a pity to wipe out.
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