The First Woman

The First Woman, published as A Girl is a Body of Water in the USA, by Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi is another short listed book for the 2020 James Tait Black Award to be announced in August 2021. It will also be featured in the 2021 How to Read a Novel course on Future Learn where participants will use part of the book to look at characterisation in novels.

Twelve year old Kirabo lives in a village in Uganda with her grandparents and extended village family. She has never known her mother but her father visits from Kampala when he can. Life in the village is very much structured around tradition and the law of the clans. Women know their place and girls who want to pursue an education are informed that their prospects of getting a husband will be limited.  In this patriarchal world, however, there are members of her family who encourage Kirabo to continue her education. 

A theme of the book is mwenkanonkano or feminism in a patriarchal society and the book describes Kirabo's quest to establish her role as an individual, able to make her own decisions on her own terms. Part of understanding Ugandian society is via learning and understanding many of the stories that form the culture. Nsuuta tells her the story of early times when the first man came from the land and the first woman from the sea. Women therefore cannot inherit land or make decisions regarding land. Only men can do this. 

Kirabo also wants to know who her mother is and this quest reveals a number of family secrets as well as providing her with a better understanding of the relationship between her grandfather, grandmother and Nsuuta, a longtime friend of her grandmother and a confidante to Kirabo. Most of the novel is set in the 1970s however there is one section where the story of the relationship between Kirabo's grandmother and Nsuuta is explained.

There is also political danger to be faced by the villagers during an insurrection against the regime of Idi Amin (president of Uganda in the 1970s).

This is a beautifully written book about a young girl looking to establish a role for herself in a confusing and structured world.

Fragile Cord

Police are horrified and saddened when they arrive at a crime scene to discover a six year old boy drowned in his bath and his mother dead by her bed. Was this a murder suicide and, if so, why would a young mother kill her son, her unborn baby and herself? 

Detective Sergeant Kevin Coupland and Detective Constable Alex Moreton from Salford Police lead the investigation. With such a case it is difficult for the discovery of evidence not to affect the private lives of the detectives, especially as Alex has a son the same age as Kyle, the dead boy. The police are also investigating another case where a street robbery led to the stabbing of a man who had been having dinner with his family.

 As the investigation continues it becomes obvious that the young mother had a tragic secret that was about to be revealed causing her to take such drastic action. The detectives also discover that the two cases have a link.

As well as describing the investigation of the two cases, Fragile Cord by Emma Salisbury is about relationships - the marriage of Kevin Coupland and his wife which appears to be on shakey ground and Alex Moreton's concerns about balancing family life and police work.

Although an absorbing, often troubling story of crime and its effects, often over generations, this novel is defintely more than a crime story. It is also a book about people. This is the first book in the DS Coupland series and I will certainly be reading other books in this series.

The Moth Catcher

Travelling back from the pub Percy Douglas needed a brief stop on the way home. He did not expect to find a body in a ditch. Shortly afterwards when Detective Inspector Vera Stanhope arrived to investigate she discovered a second dead body in a nearby house. Who are these men and what did they have in common?

Vera and her team discover that there are many suspects including three retired couples who live in buildings near the big house. As the investigation into the deaths of Patrick Randle and Martin Benton gets underway the initial discovery of what they had in common was their love of moths. Then another body was found revealing that there must be another connection between the victims.

As the plot is revealed the reader learns more of the lives and secrets of those living in the valley and of the past lives of the three people killed. Some members of Vera's team also have concerns regarding policing, particularly Holly.

The Moth Catcher by Ann Cleeves is another good book in the Vera Stonehope series - no. 7. The plot was also used for the Vera television series - no. 3 in series 6.

Nancy Business

Tippy's Uncle Pike with his partner, Devon, has returned to New Zealand from Sydney to be with Tippy and her mother for the twelve month anniversary of the death of Tippy's father. Tippy has still not been told the full story about her father's accident and is grieving his death while her mother has difficulty containing her anger about events that occurred before he died. Pike and Devon are determined to entertain and spoil Tippy during their visit. They have purchased a holiday house in Riverstone and plan to supervise the refurbishments during the visit. During their stay Tippy stays with them in an Airbnb as her mother is currently working long hours.

One morning Pike, Devon and Tippy are awoken by an explosion that rocks the small town when a car bomb explodes near the town hall destroying a number of buildings and the Founding Tree. Three people are dead with others injured. Tippy's mother and Devon provide first aid to the injured. According to media reports the bomber has been identified but Tippy, Pike and Devon are not convinced about the facts as presented and the Nancy Drew fans tackle a new investigation.

There is much zany and often outrageous humour in this book but the novel also a dark side, particularly when  dealing with the question as to when people should be told something that will only cause them grief. The relationship between Pike and Devon is also tested. In the end it is the investigation that reunites them.

The Nancy Business by R W R McDonald, a New Zealander now living in Australia, is the second book in the series. The Nancy's was published last year. Indications at the end of the book is that there is still more of this story to tell.

The Nowhere Child

When Kim Leamy was relaxing and enjoying a coffee before teaching a photography class at a TAFE college in Melbourne, Australia, she little realised that her life, as she knew it, was about to change. A man approached her and showed her a photograph of two year old Sammy Went who disappeared from her home in Manson, Kentucky, USA, twenty-eight years previously. He suggested that Kim and Sammy were the same person. It was later revealed that DNA tests showed that Kim and this man were siblings. Kim's mother had died some years before which left her step father, Dean, as the only person who might provide answers, however he was reluctant to provide information. Kim therefore decided to go to Manson, Kentucky, to try and discover the truth about her family.

The Nowhere Child by Christain White tells the story of Kim's quest to find out who she really is via alternating chapters, written in the present and in the past, until the true events are finally revealed. In Manson Kim discovered a disfunctional family - a brother, Stuart, who spent much of his life looking for Sammy; a sister, Emily, who believed that Sammy had died; a mother whose life revolved around the activities of a religious sect; and a father who had established a new life with a new partner. As Kim gradually discovered the truth about her previous life and her family, her life was threatened and past crimes revealed.

The End of Men

It is November 2025 and Dr Amanda MacLean is working a shift in A&E at a Glasgow hospital when she observes a number of male patients with high temperatures attending. Shortly afterwards the men are dead. This new virus only affects men but women are carriers. A small percentage of the male population is immune but 90 percent will die unless a vaccine is found - quickly.

Each chapter of the novel shows an aspect of the story through the eyes of one person including Amanda, Elizabeth (an American scientist who relocates to the UK to work on a vaccine solution), Catherine (an anthropologist who is documenting stories about the Plague), Lisa (a Canadian looking for a vaccine) and Dawn (British Intelligence Service). The titles of each section of the novel summarise the effect of the Plague on the world - Before, Outbreak, Panic, Despair, Survival, Recovery, Strength, Adaption and Remembrance.

The End of Men by Christina Sweeney-Baird is largely about relationships as women come to terms with the reality that they may lose their menfolk - husbands, sons, fathers. It is about coping with grief (with different people coping in different ways); adapting to an entirely different environment including the need for women to take over roles previously held by men; gender inequality as well as attempts to find a cure. A note from the author at the front of the book states that much of this work was written before the current pandemic finishing the first draft in mid 2019. An interesting novel to read in these challenging times.

The secret code-breakers of Central Bureau

I recently came across the Central Bureau and the codebreakers who worked there when reading The Codebreakers by Alli Sinclair. The Central Bureau was a secret organisation established to monitor and decode Japanese messages during World War II. Established in Melbourne sections were later set up in Brisbane, then in northern Australia and islands further north as the Allies moved closer to defeating the Japanese invasion.

David Dufty has written a detailed account of what is known of the chronological history of the Central Bureau. Although this was a secret organisation and much of the documentation was destroyed at the end of the war, the author has still managed to compile an informative and comprhensive account not only of the the work of the codebreakers and other signals-intelligence workers at the Central Bureau but also a history of the War in the Pacific. The book also discusses the reluctance of governments and military services in the deployment of women, regardless of their competence and expertise.There is also discussion about tensions at times between Australian and American oersonnel.

One of the chapters in The Secret Code-breakers of Central Bureau refers  to the work of Florence McKenzie who trained many women and men in the use of morse code, an important tool for intelligence workers. David Dufty has written another book, Radio Girl, on this topic. 

At the end of the book there is a detailed notes section, a comprehensive bibliography and a dictionary of names of people mentioned in the book. The Secret Code-breakers of Central Bureau is essential reading for anyone interested in Australia's involvement in the Pacific War.

A Children's Bible: a novel

American author, Lydia Millet in her book, A Children's Bible, has written a novel describing the potential fate of the environment by incorporating metaphors from biblical stories.

A group of adults who attended college together many years ago have hired a large holiday house for several weeks. Between them they have a number of children, most in their late teens though there are several youngsters in the group. The younger generation decide that they would prefer to stay away from the parents as much as possible so end up camping away from the house. The parents seem not to mind and intend to enjoy themselves, drinking, smoking, dancing plus occasional drug taking. There is a definite divide between the parents and the older children with most of the teenagers preferring to ignore their parents altogether.

Evie's eleven year old brother, Jack, is very concerned about nature and the environment and he and his friend, Shel, spend spent much of their time exploring the area around the house. He also likes reading and one of the adults gives him a copy of a Children's Bible which he investigates when not reading his other books. When Evie is concerned with Jack's possible reaction to the bible stories Jack tells her that God is nature, Jesus is the environment while the Holy Spirit is concerned with making things and art.

As the story progresses analogies can be made by the reader to biblical stories and characters. When a storm hits the area where the families are holidaying, Jack and Shel collect animals to keep them safe as in the story of the flood in Noah's Ark. The storm severely damages the house and the surrounding area is flooded so the teenagers decide to transfer to a house owned by one set of parents. With roads blocked this is not possible so they end up camping on a farm where they meet Burl who was floating on the water. Burl later goes to the top of a nearby hill where there is better phone reception to talk to the owner of the farm. On return he announces that it is OK for them to stay provided that they do not break any of the directives made by the owner.

There is also the birth of a baby and three people known as angels (as they restock nearby hiking stations) arrive at the farm. The next section becomes a metaphor for events in the book of Revelation.  The teenagers have access to food supplies and appear to be coping when a gang of men arrive with guns and threaten the occupants of the farm plus the parents who eventually looked for their children. As events look dire a helicopter descends carrying the owner and a group of armed men. Much violence occurs but the teenagers and their parents are rescued and decide that the roads should now be clear enough for them to travel to the house as previously planned and attempt to start a new life there. The teenagers make plans for a sustainable future, however convincing their parents of necessary changes proves impossible. 

In this novel there are references to many bibical characters and events, Noah, Moses, God, Jesus  plus the Apocalypse to name a few. However the main emphasis is on nature and the environment including the effects of climate change and what needs to be done to save the environment. At times the book can be very dark, at times there is humour. Being a book set in America guns feature more than they probably would in another setting.

 A Children's Bible: a novel is on the shortlist for the James Tait Black Award and consequently is one of the books studied in the Future Learn How to Read a Novel course for 2021. I suspect that the plot will create much general discussion.

Some interviews with author and reviews

 The Climate Gospel According to Novelist Lydia Millet LA Times 5 May 2020

The Author of A Children's Bible talks to Kristen Iversen Literary Hub 11 May 2020

A Children's Bible - Publishers Weekly May 2020

There will be flood - Book Forum Summer 2020

The Wife and the Widow

Christain White is another Australian author of great crime fiction. The Wife and the Widow is his second book and I will will definitely be adding his first book, Nowhere Child, to my my list of books that must be read.

The story is told via alternating chapters involving Kate and Abby and is set on a small island, Belport, off the Victorian coast during winter. It soon becomes apparent that both women do not know the full story about their husbands. Do they really know their husbands at all? 

When Kate's husband John disappears she gradually learns secrets of his life that had been hidden from her. During the novel Abby also discovers that her husband has secrets. At first the plot appears to be  progressing in one direction and then comes the Twist.

Fortunately I started reading this book on a cold, wet winter's afternoon and was able to finish it before going to bed. I didn't see the Twist coming and even had to check previous pages to ensure that the direction of the story had really changed. All in all a clever, gripping crime story that keeps the reader guessing what the outcome will be.

Last Survivor

Initially I was not sure what to think about this novel. In the first chapter the reader is introduced to the Pretoria Cycad and Firearms Appreciation Society, a group of older people brought together by their love of cycads. Due to previous involvement with firearms they thought it would be amusing to include this in the name of their group.  Chapter two introduces us to Joanne Flack, a member of the Pretoria Cycad and Firearms Appreciation Society. While in London she is attacked by a man with two knives.Chapter three takes us to Mali in West Africa where Sonja Kurtz is risking her life on a CIA mission. Eventually all these disparate storylines begin to merge into a dangerous quest to discover the whereabouts of the last surviving femal Encephalartos woodii, a rare cycad, and the attempt to stop the smuggling of rare plants.

At times the reader may need to suspend belief and just go along for the ride in this action packed novel as valiant attempts are made to defeat evil. No doubt the author enjoyed creating this book.  The author also provides the reader with vivid descriptions of wildlife in the bushveld in Southern Africa, the threat of poaching not only to wildlife but also to plants plus descriptions of past and present conflicts in the region.

Tony Park is an Australian author who spends time each year in southern  Africa. Last Survivor is his seventeenth novel set in Africa and the fourth featuring Sonja Kurtz. In the acknowledgements at the end of the novel he mentions that in 2001 there really was an undercover operation to track the illegal smuggling of cycads.

Cycads - Britannica