Book reviews from the British Council team in London and elsewhere.

We would like to give you an idea about what we’re currently reading, books we’ve enjoyed recently and recommendations for you. We will also try to include a review from someone in one of our international British Council offices.

December 2011: This month, we’ve been reading…

Pigeon English by Stephen Kelman tells the story of Harri, a young immigrant from Ghana growing up on a London council estate of high-rise concrete flat blocks and vandalised community halls and playgrounds. Kelman finds a unique and interesting voice in Harri, explaining the strange world as he sees it through a mix of Ghanaian patois and London slang. The ‘pigeon’ of the title refers not only to the language that the narrator uses and the bird that he thinks is watching over him; but just as much to the confusing world that Kelman describes Harri seeing: the wonder and joy of childhood mixed-up with the fear, respect and some perceived pleasure caused by teenage stabbings, violence and vandalism. The story is said to be loosely based on the story of Damilola Taylor, a 10 year old schoolboy stabbed in London in 2000, and is shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize 2011.

Even The Dogs by Jon McGregor – Jon McGregor’s third novel is bleakly compelling right from its rhythmic first line: “They break down the door at the end of December and carry the body away.” Set in an unnamed British city, it is a story about homelessness told largely in the first person plural, the constant ‘we’ reminiscent of Jeffrey Eugenides’ The Virgin Suicides and Joshua Ferris’ And Then We Came To The End. From within this eerie chorus, individual voices slowly emerge. There is Danny, a heroin addict who finds the dead body before the police do and flees the scene in a panic; his friend Mike, a Scouser relying on drugs to manage his personality disorders; Steve, an alcoholic ex army man; and Heather, an ex-groupie and ‘cutter’. These individuals follow the corpse’s journey from discovery to cremation, and as the text itself begins to disintegrate – unfinished paragraphs, ten pages of unbroken stream of consciousness – so too do the barriers between reader and characters. Reminiscent of Faulkner and James Kelman, Even The Dogs is at times a depressing, difficult read, but the inventiveness of the writing holds a strangely addictive power that suits the story’s subject matter and leaves you, on the final page, wishing you could read just a little bit more.

A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens is the best selling novel of all time, with over 200 million copies sold worldwide. David Copperfield may have been Charles Dickens’ ‘favourite child’ but A Tale of Two Cities was his favourite story. And it’s mine too. With plot twists, larger-than-life characters and a gripping social commentary from both sides of the channel this book includes all the classic ‘Dickensian’ traits. However, it’s also fantastically gory and full of suspense. A sense of mystery hinges in the air like a guillotine waiting to fall as we wait for the dramatic ending and the unravelling of one of the greatest mysteries. As a historical novel, Dickens writes about the perils of the French Revolution in the 18th century and the plight of doomed doppelgangers Sydney Carton and Charles Darnay. Despite being rooted in an earlier time and culture A Tale of Two Cities somehow fuses into our contemporary consciousness. The novel’s opening line ‘it was the best of times; it was the worst of times’ is recognised worldwide and often serves as a way to reflect upon current political instability and social injustice. It’s all part of Dickens’ genius – the way that his writing feels so very current and so applicable to the ways in which we live today and the ways in which we respond to Literature. A great introduction to Dickens and a real treat for those who have yet to experience one of his finest works.

Gods Without Men by Hari Kunzru takes us to the American wilderness where he plays out questions about community, responsibility and what it all means in a modern and fractured world. Looking not only out into the desert but also up into the sky, Kunzru’s different narratives are as diverse and expansive as the space that he questions: a modern American couple struggle to deal with their autistic son and the media maelstrom when he disappears; a repentant convict looks to outer space to make amends; a disintegrating cult finds itself adrift in the social fallout of the sixties; a British pop-star struggles to make sense of his success and a young Iraqi immigrant yearns for nothing more than an American way of life. All of these characters become wry and fragile in Kunzru’s hands. Inner demons are played out in gigantic spaces but, as he reconciles us to his characters, the individuals don’t feel quite so small and individual after all.

April 2011: This month, we have mostly been reading…

Whatever You Love by Louise Doughty tells the story of a woman who loses her nine year old daughter in a traffic accident following the breakdown of her marriage. A gripping and unpredictable story of grief and revenge, the book has been shortlisted for the Costa Best Novel award. A fantastic read. Sinead Russell

Talking about Jane Austen in Baghdad by Bee Rowlatt and May Witwit is a kind of modern fairy story with lots of grim humour and real tragedy as part of the mix. The two authors met when the latter, a BBC World Service journalist, was seeking someone in Baghdad whom she could interview for a story. Gradually the two began corresponding and eventually they built up a tangible rapport over email, with Bee describing her life as a working mother in middle class north London and May dodging bombs, braving assassination attempts and managing food and fuel shortages in war-torn Baghdad. Bit by bit they hatched a plot to get May, an eminent academic teaching English literature and human rights, out of Iraq and into the UK. Susie Nicklin

Bee is taking part in the British Council festival of literature in Erbil, northern Iraq, in May 2011. The event will feature Kurdish, Arabic and English writers and we will be working with many local partners to bring discussion, debate and literature to a wide range of local audiences.

2017 by Olga Slavnikova – Winner of the Russian Booker prize, 2017 has many different elements to it. The old world versus the new is a strong theme with depictions of two people seeking their fortunes. One pursues a traditional route based in the country’s natural resources, the linchpin of the Russian economy, whilst the other has already been made rich through the more modern business of the media. Both are shown to be unreliable in the end. This duel depicts the barely charted Russian wilderness as a place of adventure against the urban city in which we are all apparently now forced to exist. The theme goes hand-in-hand with a mysterious romance based upon a chance meeting which struggles to become a normal relationship, and ultimately ends the tryst but leaves behind a certain feeling that we are all destined to be alone. The book contains many more narrative strands which include a pastiche of the government with Big Brother elements, and a new updated interpretation of the 1917 revolution. There is something different on every page of this book and you are never sure of what you are going to get. Nicholas Chapman

Olga Slavnikova will take part in the British Council’s Cultural Programme as part of Russia Market Focus at the London Book Fair in April.

Our Mutual Friend by Charles Dickens is Dickens’ last completed novel and regarded as one of his most complex. The novel opens with the discovery of a body in the Thames. It is identified as that of John Harmon who was on his return to London to receive his inheritance on the condition that he marries Bella Wilfer, who he has never met. Following his death, the inheritance passes to his father’s foreman, Boffin. Boffin meets John Rokesmith who offers to be his secretary and treasurer. From this position Rokesmith observes the Boffins and Bella and discovers the values they hold. The actions of these characters have far-reaching effects. The novel is filled with rich characters representing the different shades of London society in the 1860s. Through multiple plots, Dickens explores themes of disguise and identity, the ways in which wealth can corrupt individuals, poverty and literacy. In his final completed work, Dickens remains dedicated to addressing the same social problems he discussed in his early works. Karen Brodie

The Magnetic North by Sara Wheeler is a fantastic read about one of the most brutal and unknown parts of the Earth – the Arctic. The reader gets a sense of the magic and myth as well as the international politics that shape the region through a narrative centring around the different people and communities that live there. It gives us a chance to reflect and challenge our own views on the world today. Rachel Stevens

Two Cures for Love, Selected Poems 1979-2006 by Wendy Cope is a collection of poetry from ‘one of Britain’s best loved poets’ that gives witty and at times touching insights into themes of love, heartbreak and the human condition. The new selection of poems written over the last thirty years grew out of Cope meeting her audience and wanting to give them an insight into the context surrounding the poems with a notes section. Personal favourites are The Orange and the two-liner that lends it’s title to the collection “1. Don’t see him. Don’t phone or write a letter./ 2. The easy way: get to know him better.” Julia Ziemer

Mr Chartwell by Rebecca Hunt – One day a huge, shaggy black dog knocks on the door of a young, troubled librarian in 1964. That same day Winston Churchill plays out an acerbic monologue inside his head sparring with his own somewhat public (and oddly embodied) demons. The two strands merge through this unwanted canine stranger and Rebecca Hunt’s debut novel binds you to them both in a confident, comic tone that speaks of fragility, fracture and evocatively brings to mind the shadows of Post-war Britain. Sophie Wardell

March 2011: This month, we feature Kay Vasey, Director of Arts, Singapore.

We Had it so Good by Linda Grant – Linda has done a couple of trips for literature department recently – to the Walberberg seminar in Germany and to Moscow to visit contacts and research a new novel. This one, just published, chronicles the lives of a golden couple who meet at Oxford University in the 60s and go on to raise children – a magician and a photographer – in a huge house in increasingly-fashionable North London. As ever Grant skewers middle-class stereotypes, in this case both in the UK and the USA, and introduces a discordant note in the shape of Grace, the friend who serves as the conscience of those whom she believes has sold out. Very well and widely reviewed in the UK broadsheet press. Susie Nicklin

Best of Young Spanish Novelists by Granta – Following the established ‘Best of Young British Novelist’ lists that caused ripples in the UK and American literary world (begun in 1983), Granta have launched one for writers in Spanish, featuring 22 writers from countries across the Spanish speaking world. It is the first Granta issue to be entirely made up of literature in translation and the result is a thrilling glimpse onto the Latin America of today. Whilst the legacy of magic realism and political engagement are often apparent in the narratives, stories are also imbued with objects of a newer landscape where globalisation, i-phones and blogs are the norm. Overall the collection offers an exciting journey into what the world of Spanish letters has to offer and give a taste of what is to come. Julia Ziemer

The London Train by Tessa Hadley is divided into two parts as she tells the stories of two unconnected individuals whose settled and habitual lives are slipping into turmoil. The second half of the book reveals how their lives intersect and the ways in which their plights resonate and contrast with each other. The characters are flawed and convincing. Through them, the writer explores the complications of family relationships and responsibilities, and creates an affecting observation of dissatisfaction and restlessness in middle age. Karen Brodie

The Girl in the Blue Dress by Gaynor Arnold – A fictional retelling of the life of Charles Dickens and his wife, Arnold’s Man Booker – and Orange – long-listed novel is told from the perspective of Dorothea Gibson, the wife of famous, London-based author Alfred Gibson. The novel opens on the day of Alfred Gibson’s funeral, which is attended by thousands of his adoring public but not his wife, and through her reflections, we hear the story of their life together. She charts their youthful love and the struggles they overcame to marry given Dorothea’s higher social status, the rise of Alfred’s writing career, the birth of their ten children, Gibson’s unconventional relationships with his sister-in-laws and young actresses, the unhappy separation of the couple and Dorothea’s subsequent isolation from society and her children. Dorothea bravely faces the future, her children and her arch-rival Miss Ricketts, while remaining under the spell of the man who cut her off for the final ten years of his life. Arnold is a gifted storyteller and portrays the complexity of human relationships skilfully, while offering us another way of thinking about one of Britain’s best-known writers and those around him. Sinead Russell

David Copperfield by Charles Dickens – One of Dickens’ best loved novels, well known for its champion of earnest ‘umble’ virtues against the shadowy backdrop of the Industrial Revolution. It is largely regarded as Charles Dickens’ most autobiographical novel and it follows David, a young boy abused by his stern Victorian step-father, as he is forced to take to the streets and make his own way in the world. Here he meets the remarkable Micawbers, the essence of working class optimism, and from tough manual labour David eventually reaches the court, writing to support himself on the side. Kind and honest characters are characteristic of Dickens, yet the novel is not pure idealism. His characters are flawed and the social conventions that they navigate are tricky. More than this, the uncomplicated ‘liberal’ values that it champions are actually ‘the air and breath of middle-class respectability’ and the idyll that Dickens finally reaches is an entirely respectable one. Sophie Wardell

I am a Chechen! by German Sadulaev – I am a Chechen! tells the story of the state of Chechnya through the period of it’s modern, non-existence since the end of Soviet Russia. Through the ancient folk stories of the region and the personal stories of the people he knew in his village of Shali, Sadulaev depicts a people bewildered but resigned to their ever-shifting status in the eyes of the governing powers: from allies to enemies in a blink of an eye; attacks that are not justified; genocide without reason. The strongest element of his storytelling however is the Chechen’s determination to remain: to not lose their traditions, their identities, to not be bent to the will of their aggressors, nor to be beaten by them. Such is the skill of Anna Gunin’s translation that the lyricism and emotion that make Sadulaev’s narrative so effective is not lost to an English reader. Nick Chapman

The Fry Chronicles: An Autobiography by Stephen Fry – This book is a continuation from the end of the 1997 publication of Moab is my Washpot, Fry’s first autobiography. It spans across a seven year period in Stephen Fry’s life, picking up the story after his release from prison, his time at the University of Cambridge and the start of his comedic career by the late 1990s. It is a sincere, wonderful and very funny read which I recommend to anyone who is just a little bit in love with this ‘national treasure’. Justyna Kwasniewski

Storyteller: The Life of Roald Dahl by Donald Sturrock – Four hundred and forty-eight pages of delightful, macabre, shocking and intriguing stories from a life less ordinary. Charting Roald’s experiences as an RAF pilot, Air Attaché, his forays and frustrations as an adult fiction writer and his eventual success as a celebrated children’s author, the book is well-researched, compiled in a meaningful way and thoroughly absorbing. Highly recommended to anyone who wonders what their life will hold – Dahl’s life serves as excellent inspiration for not worrying or over-analysing because you will never really know where you might end up or what you might be doing. Kay Vasey

February 2011: This month, we feature Canan Marasligil, Project Manager, Benelux region.

Dickens by Michael Slater – At 668 pages this is a hefty tome. Not one for the bus or tube, but the perfect read for the sofa when you are snowed in during the kind of British winter we associate with Dickensian times. Slater is very good at analysing Dickens’ writing – he shows us clearly how the initial sketch-writing talents displayed by Boz developed into the emotional realism of Our Mutual Friend via David Copperfield, Bleak House, Great Expectations et al. He also helps us to understand Dickens’ enormous energy and drive, showing just how much he fitted into each day. He indicates that Dickens’ prodigious championing of victims arose from his own feelings of victimhood caused by parental rejection in his early years but on the whole Dickens’ emotional hinterland is not the subject of this book which is rooted in the oeuvre and covers this ground with depth and acuity. Susie Nicklin

Great Expectations by Charles Dickens – One of Dickens best known novels, Great Expectations begins dramatically on Christmas Eve, as the young protagonist and narrator Pip encounters a desperate convict in an eerie graveyard.  We follow Pip’s journey to adulthood, bound to his benefactor in ways that shape the course of his life. The book explores social class and what it means to be a gentleman, guilt, crime and the city and the country. Written in the latter half of his career, critics have suggested that Great Expectations may have been autobiographical, with echoes of Dickens’s life in the increased wealth and social stature of Pip and unrequited love for the cold-hearted Estella being ascribed to his complex and mysterious relationship with Ellen Ternan. Pip’s feelings of anguished guilt and shame infuse the narrative voice and has led to comments on Dickens’s more reflective state in later life, looking back on his life’s trajectory with sombre contemplation. Kate Arthurs and Julia Ziemer

Any Human Heart by William Boyd – This is the autobiography of the fictional writer Logan Mountstuart. Logan’s journals span the 20th century and feature major global events and many well-known figures. Boyd interweaves fiction with fact and the ordinary with the extraordinary to create a compelling and moving read. Karen Brodie

Snowdrops by A. D. Miller – An interesting fiction debut from Andrew D Miller who is more famously the ‘Britain Editor’ of the Economist. Clearly drawing on his own experiences of living in Moscow, this is the tale of a young English lawyer who travels to the Russian capital to broker huge deals between banks, oil companies and property developers. This is not a traditional crime novel, but there is a sense of mystery unfolding, as the main protagonist seeks to make sense of the murky world around him and that which he left behind. My only complaint would be that the protagonist peppers the book with annoying asides in the form of a confession back to his UK girlfriend, but all in all it’s a well-written and absorbing story – I’m keen to see what Miller produces next. Rachel Stevens

A Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet by David Mitchell – Another excellent book by David Mitchell, one of the most exciting British authors writing today, in which he tells the gripping story of a young Dutch clerk who arrives in Japan via Batavia (today’s Indonesia) in 1799, a time when Japan is isolated from the rest of the world. Although on the surface the narrative is much more straightforward than books like Cloud Atlas in which David experiments with form, A Thousand Autumns is uses some complex techniques if you look closely enough. A fascinating read. Sinead Russell

Boxer Beetle by Ned Beauman – This is an ambitious debut novel that tackles strong themes; a murder scene, a 1930s boxing circle and a chat-room collector suffering from a disease that smells like rotting fish are all threads in a story about eugenics, obsession and 1930s fascism. The book is absurd but the writing is startlingly original in places and quietly endearing. Shortlisted for the Guardian First Book Award. Sophie Wardell

The City and the City by China Mieville – Mieville has created a very inventive and interesting concept. He presents two cities existing almost on top of each other, overlapping and in sight of one another, but which for the inhabitants of one it is forbidden to acknowledge the other which is enforced by an unknown, unseen, independent police. This update of the Orwellian Big Brother concept makes you examine the segregated way that society exists in today’s world and how people force and condition themselves not to even think about it. Nick Chapman

One Day by David Nicholls – A hilarious, moving and very human account of a changing and challenging relationship between two university students who keep in touch as their lives take different courses. The story unravels year by year on the same day that the couple originally met and provides interesting twists and turns throughout. An easy read, but highly enjoyable. Justyna Kwasniewski

Ethel and Ernest. A True Story by Raymond Briggs – Ethel and Ernest is a wonderfully moving graphic novel by English author and illustrator Raymond Briggs. It tells the story of Briggs’ parents from their first meeting in 1928 to their deaths in 1971, painting a personal picture of British history that many readers will be able to relate to. Through the lives of Ethel and Ernest, we experience the Great Depression, the advent of television and the first washing machines into British homes, the rise of Hitler and the beginning of WWII. Although illustrating London working class life and concerns during some of the most momentous social and political developments of the 20th century, Ethel and Ernest would touch any reader in any part of the world because of the beauty of the love that binds them and the way they deal with sometimes painful moments in history. Being a strong believer in the very specific narrative power of the comic book medium, I felt the graphic narrative made the emotional attachment of the reader to the characters even stronger and I would urge you, even if you’re not into comic books (but maybe you will be after this one!), to read this story. Canan Marasligil

December 2010: This month we feature Tanya Ilyina from our Moscow office who is leading on planning for Russia 2011 over there.

The Pleasure Seekers by Tishani Doshi – A beautiful first novel from this Indian-based novelist reflecting her Indian and Welsh heritage. The storyline of this gripping family saga bounces between London, Wales and Madras while Doshi uses employs rhythm and repetition to give the language a musical quality. Sinead Russell

Grace Williams Says It Loud by Emma Henderson – A compelling debut about a girl with disabilities sent to live in a psychiatric hospital in the 1950′s. The novel contrasts Graces’s intelligent and vibrant thoughts with her limited ability to communicate them. This is a memorable book, beautifully written. Karen Brodie

Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro – Although this novel is now quite old, I am re-reading it as a film version has just been released. The book tackles the issues surrounding a future of human cloning and delves into the problems of science versus humanity in a refreshing and engaging way. Justyna Kwasniewski

The Stars in the Bright Sky by Alan Warner – Edinburgh Bookcase author reviists the young Scottish female cast of earlier novel ‘The Sopranos’ as they set off on a holiday adventure that never makes it out of the airport. Instead we are taken on a journey into the dynamics of the twenty-something girls as they’re reunited with their childhood gang plus a newcomer along for the ride. At times the voices are bracingly realistic and at others less convincing. Throughout however, Warner keeps up a lively momentum of plot and dialogue that both engages and entertains. Julia Ziemer

Small Island by Andrea Levy – Wartime and post-war Britain is brought to life by Andrea Levy’s warm and witty characterisation of human relationships, seen through the various prisms of race, class and love. Kate Arthurs

God’s Own Country by Ross Raisin – A snapshot of rural England and the problems of the decline of UK farming provide the backdrop for this disturbing tale of a young mans inability to interact on a social level, which produces an extremely tense narrative with a palpable sense of horror as his friendship with a young neighbour spirals out of control. Nicolas Chapman

A Week in December by Sebastian Faulks – Faulks follows the lives of disparate Londoners through a normal week mid-Deecmber. As their lives are revealed as being all too relevant to the state of our times, their actions build to a tense dinner party climax that keeps the pages turning. Sophie Wardell

Leo Tolstoy; Escape from Paradise by Russian writer and journalist Pavel Bassinsky – The book explores the reasons behind the famous writer and philosopher’s escape from Yasnaya Polyana in November 1910, a few days before his death, to a small railway station called Astapovo.

Pavel Bassinsky analyses the development of LeoTolstoy’s philosophy throughout his life, as well as the complex relationship he had with his wife Sofia Andreevna Tolstaya and how it influenced the whole family. The book suggests reasons for Leo Tolstoy’s escape, which shocked the whole world then and to this day continues to provoke a lot of debate.

The book has just received one of the most prestigious literature awards in Russia, ‘Big Book’. We are very proud that Pavel Bassinsky will be taking part in the Russia Market Focus cultural programme at the London Book Fair in April 2011, where we hope he will talk about his research in preparation for writing this fascinating book. Tanya Illyina

November 2010: This month, we feature Meijing He from our China office.

The Slap by Christos Tsiolkas -Tsolkias makes a brave attempt to get inside the heads of a fifteen year old schoolgirl and a married woman in her mid-forties although there have been reviewers (not this one) who disliked being inside the head of the main protagonist, who seduces the former whilst being married to the latter. Susie Nicklin

Human Chain by Seamus Heaney – Another beautifully-crafted collection of poetry by the Nobel Laureate, exploring memory, loss, life and our connections to those around us, past, present and future. The collection won the Forward Prize. Sinead Russell

The Finkler Question by Howard Jacobson – Winner of the Man Booker Prize 2010, this humorous, intelligent novel subtly explores society and relationships. Karen Brodie

The Swimmer by Roma Tearne – A beautifully written book, divided into sections by the voices of three very different women, about love and loss in the stunningly described Suffolk countryside. Justyna Kwasniewski

The Loudest Sound and Nothing by Claire Wigfall – This is a debut collection of short stories by Claire Wigfall, an award-winning creative writing graduate of UEA. It’s a well-written and diverse compilation. Many of the stories centre around characters we observe in our everyday lives, linked by themes of absence and exploration. Rachel Stevens

The White Woman on the Green Bicycle by Monique Roffey – Shortlisted for the Orange Prize, this book paints an evocative picture of Trinidad and its tumultuous past through the story of a white settler family. Beautiful and dark in equal measure, times of turmoil in the nation’s history are mirrored in the family’s trials. Julia Ziemer

The Hangman’s Game by Karen King-Aribisala – A compelling tale of injustice and moral weakness in contemporary and historical Nigeria. Kate Arthurs

Collected Stories by Janice Galloway – An excellent collection: each story gives you a totally different but equally realistic snapshot of everyday lives, thoughts and emotions. Whether telling the story of a man or woman, child or pensioner, Janice Galloway speaks to the reader with an utterly convincing voice. Nicolas Chapman

The Room by Emma Donoghue – A carefully constructed account of how, in the most difficult of circumstances, people take scenarios at face value and deconstruct reality to survive it. Sophie Wardell

Brooklyn by Colm Toíbín – A poignant story, deceptively simply told, of a young girl’s emigration from 1950s rural Ireland to America. Alice Mackay

Odyssey: Architecture and Literature – This publication is a result of a project by Ou Ning for the 2009 Shenzhen & Hong Kong Bi-City Biennale of Urbanism/Architecture. Nine writers from Mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan were invited to go on three journeys to visit nine outstanding architectural sites in South, East and West China. The collected images and stories inspired by the architecture were published as Odyssey. I particularly liked the beautiful and soulful story Zhu Wen wrote in response to The Whare by Ke Zhang and Standard Architecture, which inspired in me a desire to visit the building in question myself. Meijing He