A Needle In A Haystack (A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian)

Marina Lewycka's A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian couldn't have been published at a better time. The announcement that Romania and Bulgaria are set to join the EU as early as next year has brought about a deluge of articles damning Easten European immigrants. Nonetheless, this amazing novel has been on the Guardian Books Bestseller List for weeks and won the Bollinger Everyman Wodehouse Prize at the 2005 Hay literary festival. Obviously the tabloid scaremongering isn't working as well as they'd hoped.

Narrated by Nadezhda, a university sociology lecturer and the daughter of Ukrainian émigré Nikolai, ASHOTIU explores the Mayevska family's struggle after 84-year old Nikolai decides to marry a 36-year old gold-digging Ukrainian divorcee. In particular, it delves into the tumultuous relationship between Nadezhda and her sister Vera, who are thrown together in the common pursuit of saving their father from his new wife's unsavoury clutches.

The plot is so madly entertaining that the reader often forgets the darker undertones that the novel presents: the tragic history of the Ukraine, the plight of immigrants both past and present and the exploitation of the vulnerable. All of these issues were things that I thought about after I’d finished the book, especially in relation to the recent media coverage on immigration from this part of the world.

Often hilarious, sometimes hideously tragic, Marina Lewycka’s characterisation and detail takes the reader through every possible emotion. I would go as far as to say that the fictionalisation and execution of many of her arguments on immigration could be enough to change a lot of people’s mind on the topic. But then the type of person who reads this book is probably quite liberal already, so it is a case of preaching to the converted.

This book is a modern diamond in the rough—a novel that all of us should read in order to build understanding of cultures and the world that we live in. But aside from that, it’s a comedic, addictive story of love, loss and learning.

Sexual Doesn't Necessarily Mean Sexy (The Sexual Life of Catherine M.)

I have never read a more sexual book than Catherine Millet's The Sexual Life of Catherine M. These best-selling memoirs of the well-known Parisian art critic's countless sexual exploits do not disappoint in nature; almost every page is filled with unashamed reminiscences of orgies, fetishes and journeys of lust.

However, I did not feel turned on at any point whilst reading. And nor do I think I was supposed to. I think the Times Literary Supplement review on the back of the book sums it up when it says, "Millet writes extremely well... it is neither pornography nor her coy younger sister, erotica, but a work of libertine philosophy."

I feel The Sexual Life of Catherine M. to be a work of feminist philosophy--a two finger salute at the people who disbelieve a woman can take advantage of a sexual situation in the same way a man can. Although the impact of the book is somewhat lost on me, as I had no knowledge of Millet before reading the book, I can still imagine the shockwaves the book sent through the Paris art world upon its publication in 2001.

Millet testifies that she has had sexual relations with 49 men whose names or identities she knows. The rest (hundreds, possibly thousands) are lost in a blur of orgies and one-night stands. Nonetheless, Millet does not classify herself as a nymphomaniac; a fact that I disagree with considering her need to plan most aspects of her life (from work, to holidays, to mealtimes) around sex.

I did not really enjoy reading this book. Possibly because reading it on public transport was a nightmare as I was always conscious of who was reading over my shoulder. But more likely because I felt a sense of faux arrogance in Millet's writing. I can appreciate the 'manifesto of our times' aspect of the writing, where sex has become wholly separate from love for both sexes, but I still feel as if Millet has deeper issues that have not been resolved (she speaks briefly about her childhood and her obsession with numbers) and that bring about a sense of artificial feminist confidence.

There is no doubt the book was a huge eye-opener for me. I am not a prude, but some scenarios were extremely foreign to me. And although I usually appreciate erotica, I just could not connect with Millet's values on a personal level. The ideal sexual life of one is not necessarily the ideal sexual life of another.

A Veritable Feast (Breakfast at Tiffany's)

After recently seeing the award-winning film Capote, I made a conscious decision that I simply needed to read more of Capote's work. Philip Seymour Hoffman was absolutely brilliant as the tortured writer, and he made me realise that there was a lot more to Capote than In Cold Blood.
I read ICB in high school at a time when I was full of teenage conspiracy theories and thrived on books like Helter Skelter. Needless to say I was absolutely fascinated by Capote's investigation and obsession of a rural multiple murder that rocked America. However, after reading Capote's 'one great book,' I failed to read anything else by him.

Published in 1958, eight years before ICB, Breakfast at Tiffany's: A Short Novel and Three Stories is comprised of the main work as well as the less famous shorts "House of Flowers," "A Diamond Guitar" and "A Christmas Memory." Ashamedly, I have never seen the film version with Audrey Hepburn playing the lead role of Holly Golighty but, due to the sheer infamy of the film, as well as Hepburn's face adorning the front cover of the book, I couldn't have pictured the protagonist as anyone else.

Set in 1940s New York City, the book is narrated by an unnamed male writer (whom Golighty nicknames Fred after her estranged brother) who forges a friendship with society gal Holly Golighty whilst they are living in the same brownstone. As he descibes her antics, the narrator's naïveity is quickly erased by Golighty's bold, brazen lifestyle of men, martinis and money. The social attitudes that Capote expresses in the novel are way ahead of their time. In fact, certain details and ideas that must have been scandalous then still manage to maintain their shock factor 50 years on.

Although the writer's character in the film (played by George Peppard) is named Paul 'Fred' Varjak, the narration has an autobiographical feel to it. I drew many parallels between the narrator of the book and Capote himself (his childlike innocence, his escape to the big city, etc.) which caused me to envision Capote beside Hepburn's Golighty.

Although just over 100 pages, Breakfast at Tiffany's feels like an epic in terms of the strength and vividness of the main character. Holly Golighty literally jumps off the page. Like Scarlett O'Hara, she is a literary heroine of the 20th century and Capote's ability to bring her story full-circle in so few pages is truly amazing.

The shorts are very strong, as well, particularly "House of Flowers," which is set in Haiti and proves that Capote is just as comfortable writing in a relatively foreign setting as he is in his natural habitat.

Gripping Title… Shame About the Book (The Abortionist's Daughter)

Okay, well I didn't exactly do the catching up I expected to do the other night. But it wasn't so much out of laziness, as out of writer's block in regards reviewing Elisabeth Hyde's The Abortionist's Daughter. I initially saw this novel advertised by that literary duo (yeah right) Richard & Judy because it is part of their 'Summer Reads' promotion. Although I have enjoyed a couple of R&J endorsed books (Lovely Bones, The Time Traveller's Wife), they don't particularly strike me as the most trustworthy of critics; plus, the term 'Summer Read' really puts me off because it connotates mindless reading on a beach in Spain.

So you could say the odds were stacked up against this book from the start. So call it the prime product placement (R&J have pull, you know), or call it me needing another book to fulfil my buy-1-get-1-1/2 price deal, but I decided to see what TV's 'favourite' married presenters were reading this summer.

The title is very intriguing, it has to be said. It conjures up Vera Drake-esque visions and alludes to a battle of morals and ethics. The blurb on the back supports these ideas, describing the suspicious death of well-known abortion doctor Diana Duprey and the implications it brings upon her family, particularly her daughter Megan who is high on ecstasy when she receives the news.

This book has very little to do with abortion (and even less to do with drugs). Hyde quite obviously does not want to offend any of her readers so she embraces all points of view on the abortion front--a move that obviously doesn't work based on the extreme beliefs on the issue. The drug thing is barely mentioned again and is just a clever ploy to add controversy to a book which nothing more than a detective thriller masquerading under a glorified, 'deep' title.

That isn't to say I didn't enjoy the book. Thrillers are good in their place and perfect for a loud, busy commute, so I actually enjoyed its entertainment value and finished it quite quickly. But I was disappointed by its blandness, especially because I had such high hopes for it based on the title.

Don't judge a book by its cover. No more R&J 'Summer Reads' for me.