This month we read Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr.

This book was something of a mystery, not the genre but why the Library provided it to us. It wasn’t on the list of books we had requested but apparently a mix up with another book group.

The book is really six novels in one, with a main character in each time and location, ranging from ancient Greece, 15th century Constantinople and Bulgaria, modern day Idaho and outer space in the future. A partial translation from an ancient text links the five characters together in a story of a world in peril, the power of words and libraries and hope against all the odds.    

The Booklovers group did not enjoy this book at all. Only 3 people actually read the entire book, the rest couldn’t get into it and gave up long before the end. The overall feeling was that it ‘felt like hard work’ or ‘seemed like a mission to read it’ not a pleasure. Even people who rarely admit defeat with a book gave up on this one. It’s a very long book (600 pages) which jumps around between times and places constantly resulting in a clever but convoluted story. The overall themes of libraries, books and the connections between past, present and future weren’t enough to keep most of us interested enough to persevere.

Anthony Doerr is an American author who has won numerous prizes for his fiction, including the Pulitzer Prize and the Carnegie Medal. His novel, 'All the Light We Cannot See,' was a #1 New York Times Bestseller and this novel, 'Cloud Cuckoo Land' was a finalist for the National Book Award and novel of the year in the British Book Awards.

Jill Gooding

This month we read Normal rules don’t apply by Kate Atkinson.

The group had previously read Case Histories by Kate Atkinson, which was very popular so we choose another of Kate’s books for this month. This book is a collection of short stories which are each standalone but also loosely connected, with references to other characters and events between stories. The stories are extremely varied including topics such as the end of the world, talking horses, fairy stories, the making of a soap opera, and an actress falling in love with a prince (suspiciously similar to Harry and Megan).

We had mixed feelings about this book, most people didn’t finish it as they found it peculiar and in parts disturbing. But a few of us enjoyed the book especially noticing the connections between stories and recurring characters or themes throughout. We all agreed it was very cleverly written and that Atkinson has an amazing imagination.

Kate Atkinson MBE is an English writer of novels, plays and short stories. She was born in York and now lives in Edinburgh. She has won several prizes for her short stories. Her first novel, Behind the Scenes at the Museum, won the Whitbread First Novel Award and was then chosen as the overall 1995 Whitbread Book of the Year.

Jill Gooding

March 2025

This month we read At My Mother’s Knee… and other low joints The Autobiography by Paul O’Grady.

This is the first of four parts of his life story and covers his childhood and early working life. It’s full of stories about growing up in a working class Irish Catholic family in Liverpool, with descriptions of his extended family members including Aunt Chrissie who was clearly inspiration for the Lily Savage character. The book covers his school days and early employment in a variety of jobs including the civil service, social work, bar staff, hotel work and even rent boy.

The Booklovers group were split on this book, some enjoyed it and found it amusing but others didn’t finish it at all. The book opens with a comment to the effect that he didn’t really want to write about his childhood at all and this put one member of the group off completely. We all agreed that you could hear his voice throughout and that he was very open and honest about his struggles with feeling ‘different’. Not a book to read if you didn’t like Paul O’Grady/Lily Savage, which sounds an odd thing to say but the joy of book groups is that you get to read books you wouldn’t normally pick up.

Paul O’Grady was a comedian, tv and radio presenter, actor and writer. He had daytime chat shows as himself and as his alter ego drag queen Lily Savage. He also presented dog and other animal documentaries and shows, and was an Ambassador for Battersea Dogs and Cats Home. He received an MBE in 2008 for services to entertainment.

Our next book is Unruly by David Mitchell.

Jill Gooding