It's Raining, Men!

It's been a busy month!  Hot on the heels of 'Jeremy and Amy', I finished Bernard Cornwell's latest Saxon Story, 'Warriors of the Storm', featuring the ever cantankerous warlord Uhtred of Bebbanburg.

'Warriors of the Storm'
by Bernard Cornwell
(HarperCollins, 2015)

Holed up in the fortress at Chester,Uhtred awakes to news of smoke spotted on the horizon.  Driven across the sea from Ireland, the formidable Ragnall Ivarson has begun an invasion, but things are not as they seem.  As Mercia's future hangs in the balance once more, many questions are raised.  Has Uhtred's son-in-law, Ragnall's brother, joined this fight?  Will Uhtred's loyal lieutenant Finan's Irish connection prove a blessing or a curse as his countrymen join the would-be conqueror?  Will the aging Uhtred's luck hold as tries to predict his enemy's next move?  As his oathsworn mistress, Aethelflaed of Mercia, and King Edward of Wessex, her brother, are slow to act, Uhtred finds himself the only man ready to take a stand against this latest Norse threat to the fledgling England.

First of all, I know you shouldn't judge a book by it's cover, but I bloody love the imagery used on this one.  It's almost 3D!  I could practically hear the sound of weapons being struck against shields just by looking at it, so I was understandably desperate to get started on this latest Cornwell novel.

'Warriors of the Storm' is a good adventure story, although I did feel that it wasn't one of the best in the series.  I thought it took a while to get going, but once it did, boy was it on form.  The narrative has reached a maturity so that this no longer feels like Uhtred's story alone,  It's become an ensemble piece of warriors, family and enemies, all familiar characters that are great to spend time with and root for or curse.  As the royals take a back seat, this emerges as a more personal tale, one of alliances and ambitions closer to Uhtred's heart rather than those of his masters.  

There are many references to Uhtred's ageing and our growling hero is in reflective mood.  After a lifetime longing for what is rightfully his - the formidable fortress of Bebbanburg - the author seems to be finally revealing how Uhtred could end up exactly where he's always wanted to be.  In previous books, sections have suggested that he does achieve his aim, and, to be honest, it's only going to be a matter of time before it becomes impossible for readers to ignore how unlikely it is for Uhtred to still be alive.  Let's face it, he should've snuffed it by now, whether in war or through illness.

So, unusually perhaps, this book ended on a note of hope rather than relief.  Normally, we want to cheer as yet another foolish Jarl gets his comeuppance on the battlefield, but in 'Warriors of the Storm' I both wanted to celebrate and read on as for the first time I felt Uhtred was finally going to get his just reward for a lifetime of service.  Hopefully I'm not just being sentimental.  Let's face it, Bernard Cornwell would reach Downton Abbey Christmas Special bastard levels if he blithely led us through nine books then didn't let Uhtred win his prize.  Call me soft, but I think that would even make Uhtred cry.

Anyway, despite a slow start and a relatively small scale, 'Warriors of the Story' is a great historical adventure story, up to Bernard Cornwell's usual high standards.  A fantastic way to escape modern realities between episodes of 'The Last Kingdom' on BBC 2.  Just can't get away from the aersling lately...

Related Posts

'Sword Song' by Bernard Cornwell (Saxon Story Four)

'The Burning Land' by Bernard Cornwell (Saxon Story Five)

'The Death of Kings' by Bernard Cornwell (Saxon Story Six)

'The Pagan Lord' by Bernard Cornwell (Saxon Story Seven)

'The Empty Throne' by Bernard Cornwell (Saxon Story Eight)

One Man and His Ape

One of my favourite days out is to a very special animal sanctuary nestled in the gorgeous Dorset countryside.  Monkey World is an internationally respected haven for unwanted apes and monkeys, a place where the abused, neglected and abandoned can find refuge and receive care from experts in their field.  It was founded by two extraordinary men, Jim Cronin and Jeremy Keeling, and I recently read Mr Keeling's excellent autobiography.

'Jeremy and Amy' is the story of Mr Keeling and his foster 'daughter' Amy.  She's stubborn and

'Jeremy and Amy'
by Jeremy Keeling
(Short Books, 2011)

grumpy and has plenty of attitude.  Oh, and she's also an orang-utan.  Keeling first meets the newborn Amy in 1983 while pursuing a career caring for a variety of exotic animals in both public and private collections, The two pound two ounce baby orang-utan is so frail her survival seems impossible.  But, with Keeling's help, survive she does and Jeremy and Amy develop an incredible bond.  Through amazing highs and heartbreaking lows, she remains a constant companion and an inspiration to Keeling and his work rescuing monkeys and apes from countries around the world.

This book could very easily have slipped into a cutesy, anthropomorphic, semi-biographical story about how caring for a characterful orang-utan helps a human find peace with themselves and the world.  Fortunately, it didn't and I think anyone picking it up and expecting some sort of light read about how funny and almost human animals are would, initially at least, be very disappointed.

In reality, it's the human at the centre of this story and the book includes some very upsetting sections which don't sit at all with the 'aren't animals funny?' sort of narrative.  Delivered in Keeling's characteristic matter-of-fact style, it's impossible not to be affected by some of his terrible experiences, particularly in childhood.  To call his early family life 'dysfunctional' seems the ultimate understatement.  Equally, I ended this book with so much respect for him as someone who could easily have slipped into self-destruction, but instead decided to work hard to make a future for himself and, as a result, found a way to make a real difference.

I found 'Jeremy and Amy' a real page turner, but to say I enjoyed it would be crass and insensitive.  I cried, I laughed and, as with 'We Bought a Zoo', had my respect for the people who care for the planet's animals reinforced.

It must've taken some bravery for Mr Keeling to publish this book, so I would like to thank him for sharing his story.  (Let's hope I never bump into him at Monkey World, I'm bound to make a complete 'nana of myself.)

Overall, 'Jeremy and Amy' is a story of hope and courage and I would thoroughly recommend it.

Now, back to the books!

Riding Along on the Crest of Fourth Wave

Feminism is cool.  After what seems like decades of confinement to university campuses, niche publications and the WI, it's bursting through to mainstream culture in a tidal wave.  Feminism is surfacing on TV, in cinemas, in popular books, in mainstream magazines... it's even on t-shirts!  It feels like its being talked about and owned by young women in a way not seen for 30 years and people from all walks of life are taking an interest.

'A Book for Her
(And Him if He Can Read)'
by Bridget Christie
(Century, 2015)

One of those people is stand up comedian Bridget Christie.  Prince Charming and I have read Ms. Christie's book, 'A Book for Her (and Him if He can Read)', so in this post you're getting two for the price of one.  You lucky people!

'A Book for Her' is part career-memoir and part personal journey.  In it, Ms Christie talks about how an unfortunate bookseller farting in a shop's Women's Studies section set her off on a journey which leads to her becoming the go-to 'feminist comedian'.  The whole journey seems to have surprised her as much as anything else.  She begins with a feeling that she needs to know more, but the event puts a wind in her sails that leads her to use her comedic writing and performing talents to bring some of the very harrowing key issues in modern feminism to the fore.

Prince Charming was a bit worried about reading 'A Book for Her (And Him if He Can Read)'.  "'Thank goodness for this book's subtitle.  Before I read it, I made sure I went away and dug out my old Peter and Jane books to learn to read.  I worked really hard and made sure I could read before tackling Ms Christie's book, although some of the long words still eluded me and I had to ask Eileen what they meant."

Well, that's what dictionaries are for, isn't it? Fortunately, I'd already learned to read, although I was finding it hard to work out which book I was supposed to read, being a woman and all that.  That's probably why I ended up with so many, I was looking for one which told me it was the one for me, you know, made it REALLY obvious.  If only more of them were pink with pictures of women on, it would make the whole process an awful lot easier and I wouldn't get so swept up in Waterstones.

Once he'd got to grips with all the words and reading malarkey, I found I had to put up with Prince Charming laughing quite a lot at this book.  As he puts it "Overall, I enjoyed the book. It was funny and thought provoking."  Goodness, he's right!  It is both funny and thought provoking, getting steadily more powerful as Christie finds her feet and begins talking about the issues she feels strongest about, in particular Female Genital Mutilation (FGM).  As she learned more, so did I, which made this a worthwhile, if disjointed, read.

I've read a number of books about feminist issues.  They've varied from factual essay-style texts or to passionate and well-informed, well, rants.  'A Book for Her' is different because it's about a relatively ordinary woman working out what feminism means to her and deciding for herself why it's important.  She says that she's not well informed about it at the start, but she has curiosity and a thirst for knowledge, which lead her to a cause and a desire to use the skills she has to change the world.

The book does feel dubiously structured, however, much like a sandcastle as the tide comes in.  It's almost as if Christie just started writing, without any sort of plan, and it's not until about half way through, as she starts talking about her career to date and transformation into a 'feminist comedian', that she seems to find her feet.  From then on, it's very readable and interesting.  Before that, it's funny, but rather meandering and doesn't really push you to keep reading.

Prince Charming agreed. "I would though have preferred two books, one about Ms Christie's stand up shows as they all sounded interesting and one about the serious issues the book covers.  The two themes could have done with a book each as I felt the direction of the book got lost trying to do both."  That's a man speaking.  And I agree with him, so it must be right!

For me, this book had the strange effect of making me want to watch Christie's previous shows on DVD.  But, oddly, they're not available, as far as I can tell anyway.  I blame the patriarchy.

Overall, I felt that this was a good book for the cautious in that it's about a personal relationship with feminism, a thoughtful consideration of why the subject is important rather than an impassioned scream telling us it has to be.  I will always be grateful to it for the information it provides on FGM.  I'd heard the term before, but was shocked by what I read here.  And I bet this is just the tip of the iceberg.

Now that's feminism covered, we're off to read about monster trucks...