Past Book Club Reviews
The Code of the Woosters
by P G Wodehouse
Another meeting of the WI-Flyers Book Club was held on Wednesday 1st May 2024, again in our old haunt, The Prince of Wales in North Farnborough.
We had decided it was time to read another classic but wanted something light and fun this time round and The Code of the Woosters definitely delivered in that respect.
The Code of the Woosters was amusing and entertaining; it had hilarious and outrageous characters, and a preposterous plot – the perfect recipe for a good old Jeeves and Wooster farce.
P.G. Wodehouse is a genius of comedic writing and a master of English prose.
The book is a ridiculous farce from start to finish. Our hero, Bertie, goes through life without an iota of common sense, he is unable to accomplish the simplest of tasks without messing things up. But luckily, his brilliant valet, Jeeves is his guardian angel and general problem solver. Jeeves extricates Bertie from the most ridiculous of situations – from unwanted marriage engagements to threats to his reputation and even to his life. It’s all in a day’s work for Jeeves.
And amongst all the hilarity Wodehouse makes acute observation on pre-war English upper-class society; he knows this world and all its characters well as it is the one he grew up in. He even throws in a bit of period political satire for good measure.
With Jeeves and Wooster, Wodehouse hit on a winning formula; their adventures have amused readers for generations. The Code of the Woosters itself has enjoyed great success. The book been included in lists such as The 15 best comedy books of all time or The 100 greatest British novels, it has also been adapted into a radio drama, a television series and even a West End play.
So, what is the Code of the Woosters? Well, you’ll have to read the book to find that out.
Old Rage by Sheila Hancock
The WI flyers were, I would say, underwhelmed by Old Rage. One member was so bored by it she could not finish it. The majority thought it was okay but nothing to write home about. I personally enjoyed aspects of it and a Sunday Times bestseller, they wrote that it was "A gloriously irreverent memoir from the front line of old age." The Daily Telegraph wrote that it was "never less than courageous and often desperately moving."
I thought it was a touching exploration of human emotions, aging and resilience against a backdrop of Covid. Personally, I liked the comparisons with how people managed in the second world war to how we as a society managed through Covid times. Her storytelling introduced characters and experiences, drawing readers into the intricacies of life's complexities. It certainly made me consider that at the time of lockdown, we didn't give much thought to how much our single elderly population. Hancock's portrayal of old rage offers a thought provoking reflection on the enduring spirit within us all.
Her political leanings were obvious, and I could almost fell the rage coming through her writing, she is feisty and honest and I found that refreshing. She deals with Brexit, medical diagnoses, and bereavement and it is clear that she is angry even before she gets to the topic of lockdown. The book allows her to reflect on the decades proceedings this period of her life and as uncomfortable as it is for her, she looks to the future too. Despite the age and the rage, there are some humourists moments in the book.
Despite this most viewed it as one for the charity shop.
The Marriage Portrait by Maggie O’Farrell
After a bit of a hiccough - we had to reschedule a couple of times due to some last-minute unavailability and illness - the WI-Flyers Book Club finally met up on Wednesday 4th October 2023. Over a glass of wine at the Prince of Wales in Farnborough, we talked about our latest book: The Marriage Portrait by Maggie O’Farrell.
Admittedly, we had chosen this book as a year previously we had read, and thoroughly enjoyed, her previous novel, Hamnet. The response to The Marriage Portrait was a bit of a mixed bag - some of us really liked it, others … maybe not so much.
As with Hamnet, Maggie O’Farrell has taken an actual - relatively insignificant - occurrence in history. She has allowed her imagination to play with it, expanded it, and delivered to us a whole story about what she feels could have happened. In this case, the action revolves around Lucrezia de’ Medici, a very young woman from an Italian noble family. In 1558, at the age of 15, Lucrezia is married off to a neighbouring Duke. However, within a year of her marriage - at the age of only 16 - Lucrezia is dead.
Why? How? What actually happened? These are questions that have persisted through history. Was she ill? Did she have an accident? Was she murdered? No one really knows.
Nevertheless, Maggie O’Farrell has given us her version of what could have happened. Could it be the truth? We will never know. But the story she gives us is a very good read.
It deals with issues such as the place of women in history, the restrictions imposed on them, their powerlessness, their vulnerability, their role as scapegoats. It also examines the dynamics of life within noble a family and the ensuing difficulties - for everyone, including those in power. It deals with abusive relationships, how they develop and play out.
If you are a lover of historical fiction, then this is a book you will enjoy.
Bookworm
The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency
Alexander McCall Smith
If ever there was a book to restore your faith in humanity, to lift your spirits and make you smile – this is it.
The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency is the first in a long series of stories about Mma Precious Ramotswe and her detective agency, and I challenge you not to be utterly charmed by her and her beautiful view of the world.
This is a woman whose glass is, without doubt, permanently half full. Despite the hardships she has faced, Mma Ramotswe is full of compassion, understanding, and love.
She is fiercely proud – of herself, her family, her community and her country. She knows her own mind, and is nobody’s fool; she is astute, steadfast and irrepressible. But above all, she has a wonderful understanding of the human soul, recognises the frailties and fears in us all, but is still able to convince herself of the goodness in her fellow man and to show compassion in the face their weaknesses.
McCall Smith draws you in to the beauty of Africa, Botswana, is clearly a place he knows very well and loves very much. His great affection for the country is evident in his descriptions of the landscapes and the people. He understands the people and displays great empathy with them; he does not judge, he does not criticise or ridicule. He admires their pride in their culture and their traditions, and shares their desire to live their lives in their own country on their own terms.
Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell
After a long, hot summer the WI-Flyers (Farnborough) Book Club members met up again at their usual haunt, The Prince of Wales on Wednesday 7th September 2022 to talk about their latest book: Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell.
This is a book for lovers of historical fiction. It brings to life the atmosphere of Elizabethan family life, life in the country, in a small town and in London.
On the surface, it is a fictionalised story of Anne Hathaway and William Shakespeare, and the death of their young son at the age of 11, but it is also a moving and uncomplicated tale about a marriage, a family, and the loss of a child.
With the death of the son, everything changes. The parents have to acknowledge each other’s grief and understand that they have dealt with it in different ways … whether that is by shutting down, or by blocking it out. The child’s death affects everyone in the family and the story shows how the resulting anguish can be all-consuming, how it changes people and how it affects their relationships.
This is a moving story, powerfully told; it is a beautifully written exploration of marriage and grief, full of compassion and gentleness.
Still Alice by Lisa Genova
A review of our thoughts and discussions after reading Still Alice by Lisa Genova
The majority of us found this book interesting and well written, but felt the subject matter was depressing. It tells the story of Alice Howland, aged 50, a celebrated Harvard professor’s descent into early onset Alzheimer’s disease.
The book is written from Alice’s perspective which we all found different from other books we had seen on this subject. We had good discussions about how different members of her family dealt with this news and how Alice’s relationship with them changed as the disease progressed.
Her children could also be tested for this genetic mutation and two of them decided to be tested and one preferred not to know. We discussed our own feelings about this and the positives and negatives of having this information.
Alice wanted one last sabbatical year with her husband, but her husband decides to keep working and also wanted her to move from the Cape to New York. Her husband’s reactions and decisions throughout the book give us a rich source of material to discuss.
Carole Pidgeon
Girl, Woman, Other
Last night The WI-Flyers book club discussed the 2019 Booker Prize Winner, Girl, Woman Other, by Bernardine Evaristo. the book follows the lives and struggles of twelve very different characters, mostly women, black and British. Each Character is given their own chapter, covering many decades, and as the book evolves you see how their lives are connected.
We all really enjoyed this book, and it created the opportunity to discuss so many topics from racism, misogyny, gender identification, and betrayal, to how the lack of punctuation effected how we read the book. Don't be put off by the heavy topics, the book was full of humour, and so well written It will need to be read again.
The Thursday Murder Club
It was murder mystery time! And so, on Wednesday 21st July 2021 the WI-Flyers Book Club met up in Penny’s Garden (adhering to social distancing guidelines) to talk about The Thursday Murder Club written by Pointless and House of Games TV presenter, Richard Osman.
As we downed glasses of Pimm’s (and secretly - or not so secretly - admired Penny’s beautiful summer house) there was much discussion about how, or even whether, we had enjoyed this read.
The Thursday Murder Club is a decent enough book; it’s light-hearted, easy to digest, fun. But we all agreed that it wasn’t worth all the excitement that has surrounded it; this book is not the great literary masterpiece is has been made out to be. Richard Osman obviously has a top promotion team that knew how to milk every opportunity and ensured his book received maximum publicity. Call us sceptical, but we all wondered whether it would have been such a massive success if it had been written by someone else.
Having said that, it is an enjoyable, inoffensive, untaxing book to read. The story is set in an old people’s home. No! - a ‘luxury retirement village’. Coopers Chase is a place we all decided we want to retire to, when the time comes. The residents all enjoy luxury flats, fabulous communal facilities, busy, active social lives, and a steady supply of good wine. What bliss - a retirement full of affluence and comfort … admittedly, with the odd murder. Or two.
As the title suggests, this is a murder story. Contrary to tradition, the crime solvers are a group of octogenarians - people normally written off by the rest of society. This wily troupe manage to get to the bottom of things and effortlessly outsmart the police. Along the way there are lots of red herrings … and a plethora of deaths. One of the recurring themes is the grey area between the law and each character’s moral code. The book questions whether it is wrong to do something that is against the law, even if it is the right thing to do?
It is gratifying to read about old people who are still capable of doing things and thinking things through, and out-foxing younger, professionals at crime solving. As the crime writer Val McDermid warned, “Never underestimate the elderly!”
The Salt Path by Raynor Winn
On Wednesday 20th January the WI-Flyers Book Club met up for its first meeting of 2021. In a lively meeting held over Zoom we talked about The Salt Path by Raynor Winn, which tells the true story of a couple who lost everything and embarked on a journey of salvation across the windswept South West coastline.
Raynor and Moth owned a farm, which was their family home and provided them with an income. But all of this was lost following a bad business decision and some bad luck. A few days later, they learned that Moth was suffering from a rare degenerative brain disease and had only a short time left to live. With nothing left and little time, they impulsively decided to walk the South West Coast Path, a 630-mile-long sea-swept route from Minehead in Somerset, via Devon and Cornwall to Poole in Dorset.
They were a couple in their 50s, broke and broken. With almost no money for food or shelter, they had to carry the essentials for survival on their backs as they lived wild in the ancient, weathered landscape of cliffs, sea and sky. They survived on very little food and every night they wild-camped in a different place; and they kept on walking. The walk gave Moth and Raynor some sense of purpose; as Raynor says, “We really didn’t have anything better to do.”
Homelessness was not something Raynor had previously ever thought much about, and she certainly never dreamed it would happen to them. But because of their homeless state the couple found themselves confronted with the preconceptions and prejudices of local inhabitants and other walkers, they were accused of being drunken tramps, they were feared and sneered at. They learned very quickly to tell people a sanitised version of the truth – that they had sold their house and were having a midlife experience, just going where the wind blows.
Yet through every step, every encounter, and every test along the way, their walk becomes a remarkable journey. The Salt Path is an honest and life-affirming story of coming to terms with grief and the healing power of the natural world.
The Marrying of Chani Kaufman
by Eve Harris
“Sometimes God challenges us by making life difficult. We are given a choice to get angry and resentful with Him or we can learn and grow from the problem He has given us. Maybe, Mrs Levy, God is trying to tell you something?”
On Wednesday 7th April 2021 the WI-Flyers Book Club dialled into Zoom, put their heads together and got their tongues wagging to talk about The Marrying of Chani Kaufman by Eve Harris.
The story is set in an ultra-orthodox Jewish community in north London. This is a world where life is governed by religion and tradition, strict values and limited expectations.
It tells the tale of 19-year-old Chani and how she becomes to be married. We learn how Chani and her peers meet and choose the partner they will spend the rest of their lives with. But we also see her decide what is right for her, and fight for the boy she has decided upon. Despite the conventions and the limitations of the society they live in, Chani and Baruch want to do things their way – and we ask ourselves, do they represent the future of their community?
There are many other characters – some funny, some sad, many of them overly stereotypical. Chani’s husband-to-be, is a studious yeshiva boy whose aim is to become a rabbi himself. His mother, Chani’s future mother-in-law, is a crashing snob who disapproves of her son’s choice and does her utmost to sabotage the young couple’s plans to marry. Chani’s long-suffering parents lead a traditional orthodox marriage, that they accept without question or complaint. Rivka’s husband is so consumed by his religion that he has cut himself off, not only from the outside world, but from himself … and from his wife and his son. Rivka’s son is the rebel who steps outside his social boundaries, but then finds that the strength he gets from his faith is more powerful than the freedom and excitement of the outside world.
Together, they make up the world Chani and Rivka live in. And the question is – will they continue to do so