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| Beth Goobie |
| Faber Children's Books |
| 1904442714 |
| Oct 2005 |
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The Lottery is a daring but difficult novel. In it the protagonist Sal somersaults fully-formed and exuberant into the mind of readers. It is her lively disposition that makes Sal’s selection for the school lottery so cruel and unwarranted. For Saskatoon Collegiate’s infamous lottery is just that, a lottery upon whose luck the fate of one student falls each year as they are subsequently isolated, ignored and degraded…
On opening her clarinet case Sal finds – to her disbelief – that she is the next one chosen by the lottery. Sal responds in phases, first denying the results, then feeling angered and despondent. These feelings, depicted against the backdrop of Sal’s history, the personal struggles she has contended with, isolate and bring into rapid relief the injustice she faces. As always with discrimination, this is both arbitrary and organised, coldly callous and manipulative. Beth Goobie’s writing is incendiary. It flares and flames leaving a deep and indelible impact. It is impossible to come away unmarked…
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Drama: January 2006 Archives
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| Jan Mark |
| Definitions: Random House |
| 1904442714 |
| Oct 2005 |
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Set in 2255 Useful Idiots establishes a future world of desolation, a world where much of Europe has been flooded and where the separate member States have, on the whole, united. Against the bleakest of backdrops comes the storm of the opening and with it the very fabric of the present is torn away exposing in gashed revelation a skull, a spectre of a sordid history whose passing has seen legend and fact becoming intertwined.
As with several facets of the book, characters are divided into two main groupings. These are the aborigines or, to use the novel’s slang, the ‘oysters’. The second set of characters are from the new united state of Europe. Political assimilation and corruption run rife and key players in the novel whilst believing they are acting for the best are pawns in a far greater game… they are the eponymous ‘Useful Idiots’. This book fair crackles with mystery and intrigue! Jan Mark’s narrative is amazingly confident and self assured. The story is thought-provoking and explores a large number of issues, including federalism, nationalism, various philosophies of history and of reading the texts of the present in such a way as to glean information regarding potential pasts. The academic and scientific is juxtaposed with the social and with tradition in a manner that is sensitive and which shows sense! Useful Idiots is a microcosm of life, a myriad of world views. Jan Mark displays her usual fairly maverick (though highly adept) approach towards making young people think and towards exposing them to large, often uncertain ideas. Syntax and diction alike are fairly complex in this work and at times are highly specialised. This combined with the relative size of the novel will doubtless prohibit it from ever becoming the ‘most popular’ novel in the world. That said it is a highly engaging read and deserves to find a loyal readership.
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| Rodman Philbrick |
| Usborne |
| 1904442714 |
| Oct 2005 |
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Rodman Philbrick has a talent for painting a panoramic view of life without excess. His descriptions have a raw, organic feel that belie their crafting. Fire Pony sees Roy and his tempestuous brother Joe Dilly arrive at the Bar None on the run from a secret they share. This secret is central to the novel. Issues of trust and of the need to contend with one’s past are constantly the ground-base for the races Roy runs with pony Lady Luck, the battles against fierce cougars and the fiery drama of the novel’s eventual climax.
Trademark short, well-paced chapters and the trusting narratorial voice of its protagonist Roy make this an ideal novel for boys who have perhaps not yet been introduced to the type of book that might wholly capture their minds and imaginations. Usborne should be applauded for bringing into print within the UK a stable of quality American novels for young people under their Fabulous Fiction range. Here’s hoping another Philbrick book, “The Last Book in the Universe” will find itself featured shortly…
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| Geraldine McCaughrean |
| Oxford University Press |
| 019272603X |
| January 2006 |
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| Cyrano de Bergerac and his cousin Roxane are a couple of literature’s most frustrated lovers. Fifteen years after the death of Roxane’s late husband, Christian de Neuvillette, their relationship remains constrained by his memory.
Cyrano explains how the pair ended up in this situation. It’s the story of how Roxane was seduced by Christian’s words both written and spoken and how de Bergerac wrote those enticing entreaties to win the heart of the woman he loved for another. Add in Cyrano’s embarrassment about his rather prominent protuberance, dashing heroism and a sneaky rival in the shape of the Comte de Guiche and all the elements are in place for a classic historical romance. This is not a tale that has hidden its light under a bushel. Movies in the shape of Cyrano, staring Gérard Depardieu, and Roxanne, Steve Martin, have brought this story to life in traditional and updated environments. Geraldine McCaughrean’s version is based on the original play by Edmond Rostand and opts for the traditional setting of seventeenth France. It has all the lyrical richness that the tale demands, Cyrano’s swagger is admirably conveyed, Christian is suitably eager and dumb. The machinations of the Comte provide a darker background for some of the more pantomime moments and everything floats along effortlessly. It is also book that opens up the debate about the merits of retelling a classic tale: is such a work more valuable than the more “full-on” challenge of inventing your own characters, setting and plot? Is it merely a buswoman’s holiday for McCaughrean? The marketing team at Oxford University Press won’t care about such writerly concerns, however. They will simply be delighted with the January publication date. After all, any young beau who wants to convince the object of his affections that he is in touch with his sensitive side on Valentine’s day will find this volume far more effective than a box of chocolates. |
