May Book Club

The People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks

We're well into our second year of Book Club now at Spark and as I write this I'm reminising on all the different books we've read and they've been so varied - some loved, some not so much - but every month brings us a a chance to get together and talk all things books, feminism, new crisp flavours and whatever else may arise! We may be useless at sticking to the topic of the book, but we always make sure we dedicate at least half of the session to book-chat and avoid spoilers where required because it is very definitely not a requirement of book club to have completed reading the book - either before you come or at all!

May's book club was certainly a warm one which may have affected the number of hot brews we drank, but it didn't make any difference to the lively chat!

As always, our chosen pick was one suggested by a member. She had previously read and enjoyed it so we had high hopes. The poll was so close, we had to take it to a second vote, placing the runner up - The Pagans, by James Alistair Henry - into one of our future second chance rounds.

World of Books describes People of the Book as a 'meticulously researched historical fiction novel [which] explores themes of war, art, love, and survival through the journey of a precious manuscript...'.

Generally, it was enjoyed... though perhaps a bit more by those who read it than those who listened - very different to the exeperience of reading Giséle Pelicot's A Hymn to Life, which is supremely read by Emma Thompson on audiobook.

The ending was summarised, for those who hadn't read it, as though we were gossiping in the kitchen at work, which we won't do here 'cos spoilers and all that, and it's inevitably much harder to do the kitchen gossip style in writing!

It felt very much like a collection of short stories with a thread that linked all of them and the one modern day story in between with the same characters. It was agreed that it was tough to get involved with the protagonist Hanna, until closer to the end when her mother revealed just how awful she is! 😳

It's an interesting way to tell a story and the subject matter is also really interesting. It comes with trigger warnings and there's definitely difficult parts to read, but it's overall a really unique way to tell the story of the displacement of Jewish people through the centuries. It will also likely send you on a deep dive into the history of the Haggadah!

Sparks ⚡️: 3/5

Coming Up

On a bi-monthly basis, our book club read will be picked from our A-Z travel around the world. Kicking us off with A from Argentina is Elena Knows by Claudia Piñero.

We'll be meeting to chat about the book at the end of June, at the Spark studio, and would love for you to join us. Get in touch, book online, or just turn up on the evening, whichever works for you. And remember, the first rule of book club is you're welcome whether you've read the book or not!