'The Wych Elm' by Tana French
24 April 2020
Regular readers may remember my enthusiasm for the Dublin Murder Squad novels by Tana French (all 6 books reviewed here between May 2016 and April 2018). These are crime novels which prove that genre fiction can be beautifully written. And, although characters recur and there are references to previous cases, each of the Murder Squad novels works as a stand-alone story. So I was looking forward to Tana French’s first completely self-contained novel ‘The Wych Elm’ (which I have just finished reading as an unabridged audio book, narrated by Paul Nugent). ‘The Wych Elm’ also deals with a murder mystery but is narrated by one of the people caught up in the dramatic events, rather than by one of the police officers investigating it. This made the story more intriguing as it was hard to see where it was going without the normal narrative arc of crime, investigation, revelation. The first sections of the book present two seemingly separate violent crimes involving the same family – which feels unlikely to be a coincidence but it is very difficult to see how they might be connected. I enjoyed the ambiguity of this puzzle. And, as with her other novels, the writing is impressive and there is as much emphasis on the feelings and relationships of the main characters as there is on the plot. But explanations were very slow to reveal themselves and it felt like an extremely long book. Hardly any of the many characters (including the first person narrator) appeared sympathetic and it was ultimately quite hard to care what happened to them. And I felt the plot relied far too much on someone developing partial memory loss after being attacked, which always seems too convenient a way to hold back revelations. Maybe my expectations were too high – ‘The Wych Elm’ has much to commend it – but if you haven’t read any Tana French I would encourage you to start with the Dublin Murder Squad novels (which you can read in any order), the best of which is 'The Secret Place’ (reviewed here in December 2016).
Labels: Books
‘Wonderland’ by Beth Steel
17 April 2020
I’m really enjoying the free Hampstead Theatre At Home plays being streamed on demand each week by The Guardian – a really interesting selection of (mostly new) plays. Last week’s offering was ‘Wonderland’ by Beth Steel, directed by Edward Hall (originally performed and live-streamed in 2014) which tells the story of the 1984 miners’ strike. Ashley Martin-Davis's incredible design reshapes the theatre auditorium to create overhead gantries and a descending pit cage with the audience on all four sides: it’s a stunning set. The play shows the events of the strike through the eyes of a group of miners in a Nottinghamshire colliery, while also addressing the political context through scenes in Whitehall featuring the National Coal Board Chair Ian Macgregor, Energy Secretary Peter Walker and the flamboyant journalist David Hart who was deployed by the Government to subvert the miners’ unity. Margaret Thatcher and Arthur Scargill don’t appear as characters in the play but are ever-present in the story. Beth Steel has constructed a Shakespearean drama: the Battle of Orgreave scene felt remarkably like something from ‘Henry V’. It’s a tragic tale but a gripping and moving production, excellently acted by a large (all male) cast. This week’s free Hampstead Theatre play is ‘Drawing The Line’ – Howard Brenton’s epic take on the partition of India – which is available until Sunday 19 April at:
https://www.theguardian.com/stage/video/2020/apr/13/watch-drawing-the-line-a-drama-about-indias-partition-video Labels: Drama, Theatre, Website
Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra concert - Beethoven Symphony No 9 'Choral'
8 April 2020
Like many other people we have been exploring online streaming culture during this period of lockdown. On Saturday we made a first ‘visit’ to the The Berliner Philharmoniker's Digital Concert Hall – which is now free for everyone. There is a massive archive of classical concerts, mostly performed by the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra and recorded in the Berlin Philharmonie. On Saturday we watched a 2015 performance of the Beethoven Choral Symphony, conducted by Simon Rattle. It was wonderful – a typically dramatic Berlin Philharmonic performance with soloists Annette Dasch, Eva Vogel, Christian Elsner and Dimitry Ivashchenko and the Rundfunkchor Berlin, directed by Simon Halsey. The sound quality was great and the multi-camera filming was very slick. After my emotional experience of playing Beethoven’s 5th Symphony in Milton Keynes on 14 March (reviewed here in March 2020), in the knowledge that it might be one of the last live concerts any of us experiences for quite a while, Beethoven symphonies are beginning to feel to me like an inspirational soundtrack to carry us through this difficult period. Best of all was the Digital Concert Hall interview with Sir Simon Rattle that accompanies the concert. In this 54 minute interview Rattle speaks about all nine Beethoven symphonies and gives a fascinating insight into the composer’s life. The interview is well worth watching on its own but is a lovely accompaniment to the concert. Stream for free at:
https://www.digitalconcerthall.com/en/concert/22390 Labels: Concerts, Music, Website
‘Now We Shall Be Entirely Free’ by Andrew Miller
3 April 2020
I can highly recommend Andrew Miller’s 2018 novel ‘Now We Shall Be Entirely Free’ (which I read as an unabridged audio book, narrated by Joe Jameson). It’s a historical novel, set during the Napoleonic Wars, and written in the style of authors such as Robert Louis Stevenson. It’s a gripping chase thriller but it’s also incredibly funny. It reminded a lot of Matthew Kneale’s marvellous comic historical novel ‘English Passengers’ (also highly recommended) and also has much in common with ‘Captain Corelli's Mandolin’ by Louis de Bernières. ‘Now We Shall Be Entirely Free’ is beautifully written with countless lovely lines you could quote. But it triumphs primarily because Andrew Miller really makes you care about his characters, who become increasingly sympathetic as the novel progresses.
Labels: Books
