Your Place or Mine?

Last week, I finished 'Warleggan' by Winston Graham, the fourth in the highly popular series of novels about the fortunes and misfortunes of the Poldark family.  Many people will know the name from the successful 1970s TV series, but with a new one due for broadcast later in the year, I decided now was a good time to get back into the books.

'Warleggan' by Winston Graham
(Pan, 2008)

Breaking hearts and looming bankruptcy mean it's not looking good for Ross and Demelza Poldark.  Unexpected moves by Ross's first love and cousin-by-marriage Elizabeth and the arrival of a dashing Scots soldier have left them emotionally confused and distanced, while the failing mine, Wheal Leisure, is draining their money.   Scenting blood in the water, it's not long before the avaricious Warleggans are circling their prey.  Fortunately, they are not the only ones drawn to the Poldarks in their hour of need.  But will the unexpected good will of others be enough to save them?

The great strength of the Poldark novels is their characters. They are not heroes, they are people and this is clearer in 'Warleggan' than in any of the first three novels.  I don't want to give anything away, but I was genuinely shocked by Ross during this book, more so than George Warleggan, who is clearly being built up as the villain of the piece.  The fact that his actions could be both somehow understandable and abhorrent is testament to the complexity of the people that Graham created.

One character that I missed in this novel, though, was Jud Paynter.  The plot of 'Warleggan', with its death, failure and disappointment, is quite miserable and Jud can be relied upon to bring humour to even the most bleak moments.  Life has laughter as well as tears, so I feel that it always makes a story feel more real if it has elements of both.  About three quarters of the way through this book I did find myself wondering whether Graham hated the Poldarks and what on Earth he was going to throw at them next.  It does pick up a bit towards the end, but if I'd cared any less about the characters, I doubt I would have made it to the final pages.

Over all, if you've enjoyed the previous Poldark novels, you'll enjoy this one.  There are times when it will break your heart, but it's impossible to desert these characters when they are in such straits.  I just hope that things start looking up for them in book five, although with a title like 'The Black Moon', maybe I shouldn't hope too much..

Related Posts

'Ross Poldark' (Book One)
'Demelza' (Book Two)
'Jeremy Poldark' (Book Three. For some reason, I didn't write a review of this! Sorry!)

Help Yourself!

Now, you may have noticed that I have rather an eclectic taste in books.  Pretty much every genre is represented on my shelves and I love non-fiction as much as fiction.  There are a couple of weak spots, however.  Self-help is one of them, so I never expected to be reviewing a book like this.

When a notice was sent around my workplace about a compulsory workshop called 'The Art of Being Brilliant' that made it sound patronising in the extreme, however, I decided to go to the horse's mouth and find out what it was really all about.  Of course, the fact that the horse's mouth was book-shaped and had pages had absolutely no influence on me at all.  Ahem.

'The Art of Being Brilliant' by Andy Cope and Andy Whittaker draws together a range of tried and
tested theories and ideas which they hope will help readers lead more positive lives.  They introduce the concepts of Mood Hoovers, people who bring themselves and others down by only ever seeing the negative, and 2%ers, who have a natural tendency to think and act in a way which sees them happier and more likely to feel great about life.  Most people hover between these two extremes.  In this book, Cope and Whittaker identify the key traits of 2%ers and open the door for readers to consciously adopt them.

'The Art of Being Brilliant'
by Andy Cope and Andy Whittaker
(Capstone, 2012)

Since my first encounter with 'The Art of Being Brilliant' left me feeling patronised, I honestly expected to hate this book, especially when I saw it was full of oft repeated quotes and cutesy cartoons.  Not being a regular reader of this sort of thing, I'll admit to feeling sceptical for the first couple of chapters.  My eyebrows remained raised for a while to start with, so anyone watching me must've wondered what on Earth I was reading.  Anyway, I eventually relaxed into it and took the book in the slightly mischievous spirit in which it was written.  It's got the charming style of the classic 2%er and, once I stopped taking it too seriously, it made me laugh out loud on several occasions, so if nothing else it should cheer you up.

In the end, I was sad to be turning over the last page, but took away a number of common sense ideas which  seem obvious but can easily get lost in busy, everyday life.  I was relieved to discover I err towards being a 2%er and already have a HUGG (Huge Unbelievably Great Goal*) in the form of my mission to read all my unread books and keep up this blog.  If that leads to a reviewing job, that would be the icing on the cake, but it's not the reason I'm doing it.

I genuinely feel that everyone should be given a free copy of this book.  I always feel so sorry for mood hoovers - it must be horrible seeing life through a lens which makes it look so awful that the glass is not only half empty, it's dirty and got some unspecified creature living in it that will inevitably bite them.

'The Art of Being Brilliant' is accessible and cheeky, but firm and supportive, reminding readers that it's still up to them whether they decide to use what they've learned to become brilliant, positive, happier people.  As such, it's very much a middle class, midlife crisis sort of a book, but while it won't solve poverty or oppression or war, it can help people who really have nothing to be depressed about put things in perspective and make the bigger problems look possible to tackle together.

So, if you look around you and can't work out why you're not happier, this will probably give you a shove in the right direction.  Read it.  Read it now.

*Accidentally wrote 'Huge Unbelievably Great Goat' 

there then, but fortunately no one will ever know. 

Everyday Heroes

Decided I'd been such a good little reader last month that I could treat myself with a trip to the bookshop.  Couldn't decide what I fancied, so asked the Twittersphere and it certainly came up trumps!

'All My Friends of Superheroes'
by Andrew Kaufman
(Telegram, 2006)

I've just finished 'All My Friends are Superheroes' by Andrew Kaufman. This short novella (just over 100 pages in my edition) is the story of Tom and his superhero wife the Perfectionist.  At their wedding reception, a jealous ex hypnotised the Perfectionist and he's been invisible to her ever since.  It's now several months later and, thinking she's lost him forever, the Perfectionist has decided to move to a different city.  But Tom is still nearby, his heart disintegrating, desperately trying to work out how to break the spell cast over his bride.   As they board  the plane to Vancouver, he realises this is his last chance to make her see him again.  But can he do it before they land and her new life begins?


'All My Friends are Superheroes' isn't everyone's cup of tea.  It thrives on metaphor and allegory, creating an almost reality in the style of Neil Gaiman.  These are not the caped and spandex-swathed superheroes of comic books or movies, these are people whose key character traits define them and, even when negative, give them strength and make them special.  It was interesting to see the way the author had taken mundane and everyday characteristics and turned them on their heads.

Overall, this is a book about identity and relationships.  Charming and interesting though the story is, however, I can understand why some readers would feel a bit peeved by a book this short costing as much as a 300-400 page paperback.  I usually try to think in terms of how much I'd pay for other things, like magazines, but perhaps the novella and short story market would be given a boost if books like this were priced differently.  Otherwise there's a risk they will always miss out because people will only buy them at a discount, by which time it's too late for them to be a bestseller.

I've already decided this is going to be a Christmas present for a few people this year, however, and want to read more by this author.  But if they're all this short, whether I will buy more books or borrow them from the library, only my bank balance can tell.

Missing the Marx

Can't believe it's been nearly two weeks since I finished 'The Essential Groucho' edited by Stefan Kanfer.  Obviously wore myself out reading so many books in June!

'The Essential Groucho'
edited by Stefan Kanfer
(Penguin Modern Classics, 2000)

'The Essential Groucho' is a collection of work spanning the long and varied career of Groucho Marx.  Most people will know Groucho and his siblings from their classic films, several scenes from which are quoted at length in this book, which also includes extracts from stage shows, radio programmes, letters, original articles by and about Groucho and a list of one liners from 'You Bet Your Life'.

One of the great things about the dawn of the DVD age is that my generation has been able to watch and enjoy films like those of the Marx Brothers films despite living around 70 years after their original cinema releases.  It's testament to the cultural impact of their work that these films are available and that people are still interested enough in them for books like this to be in print.

The first few chapters of 'The Essential Groucho' draw from their early stage shows and movies and it quickly becomes clear that something vital is missing.  I think I've got a pretty good imagination, but with the best will in the world, no one can play the Marx Brothers like the Marx Brothers.  It's much like listening to 'Flywheel, Shyster and Flywheel' on BBC Radio Four.  It sounds like Groucho, but something of the personality, ease and spontaneity is missing.  Just reading the scripts doesn't convey the madcap energy that was their trademark, which almost left me wondering why so many were included in this book.  Certainly where the movies were concerned, perhaps it would've been better to just provide a filmography suggesting people watch them if they haven't done so already.  Being quite familiar with them myself, I found these early chapters just made me want to watch them as the written word couldn't do them justice.

It wasn't all bad, however, and there were two chapters in particular that I found very interesting.  Both included Groucho's writing - a selection of his letters and some of his articles.  The latter in particular suggested a different side to the man, showing him to be unexpectedly analytical and thoughtful about life and his relationships.  The distinctive wordplay and clever juxtaposition of apparently disparate ideas was still there, but underneath there are some serious ideas that make you think.  I particularly liked the article about why Harpo wasn't allowed to speak and 'Bad Days are Good Memories'. 

Overall, if you're a student of this Marx, you may find this collection a useful resource, but if you're a fan, you're probably best sticking with the films that made the Brothers famous.  I might be interested in seeing a bigger collection of Groucho's articles, but I think his strength lay on stage and screen and I'd probably end that book the same way I did 'The Essential Groucho', with a sense of loss and a feeling that something was missing.