Moab is my Washpot - autobiography by Stephen Fry - review

 

Sue's Reviews > Moab Is My Washpot

bookshelves: might-read-again, non-fiction, funny, biog-memoir

Four Stars - I don't know why only three of them appear below.

Stephen Fry is funny and rude, clever and incredibly knowledgeable. I know who he is, of course I do. He’s entertained me on the telly for three decades, but did I want to read his autobiography? Not especially, I don’t read that many biographies except of the artists I’m researching.

Stephen Fry is funny and rude, clever and incredibly knowledgeable. I know who he is, of course I do. He’s entertained me on the telly for three decades, but did I want to read his autobiography? Not especially, I don’t really read biographies except of the artists I’m researching.

However when I saw this salmon pink paperback on a bookseller’s shelf, I bought it for the cover. I might well have bought it even if I was quite unfamiliar with Stephen Fry and despite the obscure title. Who is Moab, why does he/she/they matter? And what in heaven or hell is a Washpot? Yes I guessed the reference was from the Old Testament, but I had no intention of re-reading that tome to find out.

My main reason for the purchase was because the cover was largely filled with the monstrous, wise, preposterously ugly but somehow charming visage of a bull elephant seal, with a proportionately tiny blackbird staring up his bulbous nose. An elephant seal, Lain name Mirounga angustirostris - there's my one bit of erudition. As a child I had seen one in Berlin Zoo, as far as I know Stephen never visited Berlin in his childhood. So why an elephant seal? Just why?

The autobiography encompasses the first 20 years of Fry’s life and no elephant seals are involved. It’s an intense, highly personal, self-deprecating book. He writes an eruditely meandering – or maybe I mean meanderingly erudite – and excruciatingly honest story.

He presents us with his family, who he basically loves but, especially as a teenager, refuses to get on with and who love him but find him often hard to comprehend. We see him in middle-class boarding schools, and how he coped with school life, not always well or honestly but mostly he coped, by using his wits to dodge the system and outwit authority. And we see his love life as his sexuality begins to emerge.

I did enjoy Stephen's book, it’s poignant, scathing, funny and engrossing, occasionally self indulgent bit I forgive him. I skimmed here and there, mostly through the meanderingly erudite sections. I don’t have the advantage of his classical education, if it is an advantage. The Washpot is mentioned in the afterword, as a metaphorical container for the author’s dirty linen, and I believe Moab was a sinner. But the vast elephant seal, I still have no idea because it looks nothing like him!

Will I read it again? I might , but probably only after I’ve read what comes in the next volume.

King Crow by Michael Stewart - book review

I started reading this in 2012, I had a signed copy because I've met the author, but I never wrote a review because I never finished reading it. Annoyingly, I left it on a train...

Eventually I bought another copy. This time I read most of it on another train.... the journey went very fast, as did 16 year-old Paul Cooper's journey in the story. It mostly takes place over a few short days and is gripping.

Paul is naively obsessed with birds, his favourite bird changes but is currently the raven, he's a bit of a twitcher and has his lists, but he's much more imaginative than most.  He has just started at a new school, because his mum has decided they need to move house, again.  There are always problems starting at a new school, exacerbated when you are sixteen.  But soon there's a school trip, to the Tower of London, where there are ravens. I won't tell more of the story than this, no spoilers, read the book.

The narrative is in Paul's point of view and very much inside his head. It's an interesting kind of coming of age story, with action, birds, murder, birds, car chases, birds, drugs and girls, well a girl and more birds. 

Ok, I will say a bit more about the birds.  I like birds.  I'm a bit of a birder myself, but I just think that in this particular story there are too many throw-away birds.  Concentrating on fewer species maybe would have been more engrossing for me, each new species mentioned was a distraction.  And fewer species of bird would certainly be less confusing for any reader who doesn't know her jackdaw from her jackass. 

But confusion is part of the plot, so hey-ho!

King Crow is a damn good read, read it!

King Solomon's Carpet by Barbara Vine - Book review

A great story, very well written and increasingly tense and unpredictable, one of Barbara Vine's darkest creations. A feeling of impending catastrophe grows as the story's convolutions wind and wander.

There are a dozen or so characters, all misfits in their own way, but who is the protagonist, the main character? Is it Jarvis, the obsessive railway enthusiast who is writing a history of the London Underground? Is it the poor little rich girl who goes on the tube for the first time in her life and loses her wedding dress? Is it Alice, a talented violinist, fleeing her loveless marriage to Mike? Or maybe it's young Jasper who's careless mother Tina lets him skive off school and ride the underground with his friends? Or Jed, who owns a demented hawk, or Tom the busker with delusions of grandeur, or Axel the dangerous stranger who has a dancing bear. Maybe it's Jasper's grandmother Cecelia, who is in love with her best friend.

Some of these people are more unhinged than others. They and others live in or visit a ramshackle former school where a former headmaster had hanged himself with the bell-rope. By the end of the story his is not the only death.

The main character is actually the London Underground, a surface section of which the garden of the old school backs onto. The presence of the tube permeates the entire novel, the people are all bit players by comparison, their stories depend on it.

Set in around 1980, the book seems somehow old fashioned for that era, the writing style and characters don't feel quite modern enough. But then it was published in 1990 and the author was born in 1930, so it's not so surprising. The faint scent of quaintness doesn't detract from the obsessive grip the story has on its characters, or the reader.

London Suite by Neil Simon

I saw Neil Simon's play London Suite at the Stables Theatre in Hastings. A quartet of short plays all set in one suite in a London hotel. Well worth seeing, there's sufficient variety, from slapstick and verbal comedy to pathos and tragedy, for a wide appeal. The third of the plays, 'Diana and Sidney' came out the best of the four, with excellent casting - Jenny Lloyd-Jones and David Morley as a divorced couple who meet again in desperate circumstances.

Well worth seeing if you're in Hastings, it's on till the 29th.

http://stablestheatre.co.uk/

'Wild Abandon' by Joe Dunthorne - book review

The main characters in Joe Dunthorne's second novel are teenager Kate and her 11 year old brother Albert. Their father, Don is the patriarch of the commune at Blaen-y-Llyn and thinks it's all about him. He's wrong of course, but patriarchs generally are.

Kate drops out of the commune to go to school, her sights set on Cambridge, via a sojourn in the suburbs with a boyfriend who ultimately proves boring. Albert is furious at his sister's desertion and prepares for the coming apocalypse, which nobody else believes in, not even his faithful little acolyte Isaac. Freya, their mother, decides to leave Don and goes to live alone in the woods, in a geodesic dome abandoned by Patrick. 

Patrick and Janet are the only other founder members of the commune still there... they are not a couple... The newer arrivals, known as the wwoofers, are few in number; they come and go and are generally lacking commitment, never mind finance. Patrick is the oldest communard, but he drops out too after an excess of hand-crafted substances. This probably seals the commune's fate as, unbeknown to everyone except Don, Patrick has been funding Blaen-y-Llyn for years.

I've tried writing about people living in a commune and they always turn out more dysfunctional than I expected. I can't say that Joe Dunthorne had the same problem with this book, because his cast in Wild Abandon are obviously intended to be dysfunctional from the start. I just wonder if anyone has ever written a novel about a functional commune.
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Anyway, Wild Abandon is full of funny set pieces and apt descriptions. It's engagingly written and a very entertaining read. I absolutely loved the (maybe) apocalyptic and certainly orgiastic ending. This would make a great film, provided no Americans get their hands on it - they don't know where Wales is.

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http://joedunthorne.com/index.php?/project/wild-abandon/

'The Book of Illusions' by Paul Auster - review

I've just finished reading this beautiful, sorrowful book, for the second time.

The Book of Illusions is the story of academic David Zimmer and his desperate interest in the work of Hugo Mann, an obscure silent movie actor. Zimmer's interest is desperate because researching and writing a book about Mann is a distraction from the tragedy which has overtaken his own life.

The story of Hector Mann, his last iconic movies and his mysterious disappearance is told with a wonderfully engaging attention to detail and feels for much of the 321 pages to be the main thrust of the book, with David Zimmer's own story relegated to a thin thread. This is delicately done and must be deliberate, from a writer of Auster's ability. It works beautifully, depicting Zimmer's need to escape from his depression into the mystery of another.

Although the book ends with more tragedy, we are left with the feeling that Zimmer has gained a little hope, which will enable him to go on.

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http://paulauster.co.uk/books

I won't go into more detail, I wouldn't do the book justice. I'll just say it's not heavy going either despite the plunge into fictional research. Although the story is sorrowful it has also given me hope, because I can see that my creativity works in something of the same way as Auster's.

I too use this technique, as described by one of my tutors at the University of Leeds. To create drama and empathy in your writing, take your main character and chase them up a proverbial tree, then throw stones at them. I then go one step further and chop the tree down.

It certainly works for Paul Auster in The Book of Illusions.  I just urge people to read this compulsive book.

Stretching it by Mandy Sutter

When a novel which begins with two strangers meeting on Huddersfield railway station does not immediately descend into another grim, Northern cliché, it’s quite a relief. When it goes on to demonstrate that people living in Yorkshire have actual careers and mobile phones, not just troubled lives on’t moor or down’t mill, it’s a positive joy.

Stretching It does just that and more. It’s a witty, well written tale of thirty-something Jenny, whose problems are not all of her own making, but not taking charge of them is all her fault. Jenny’s relationship with her impossible mother is tender but exasperating. Her love life has become permanently on hold and her career is under the scrutiny of a new boss who has anger management issues.

Jenny decides to take charge, but then  her life becomes somehow even more complicated, when she tries lonely-hearts dating, her boss gives her a big chance and her mother takes a lover. Jenny is a great character, her tribulations make you laugh and wince at the same time. I read the book in one sitting, finishing at two in the morning. It was worth the loss of sleep.
                                                        
http://www.mandysutter.com/novel/                                                    *
   

“Lady Macbeth” a novel by Susan Fraser King - Reading Habits

I’ve been asked to write a treatment for a play about Lady Macbeth and read this novel in the hope of understanding more about this misrepresented Scottish Queen.

The novel begins with action, as a nine year old girl is nearly kidnapped on a trail near the Castle of Elgin, by her father’s enemies. The girl is Lady Gruadh ingean Bodhe, mac Cineadh, mac Dubh (daughter of Bodhe, son of Kenneth, son of Duff) and these names of her ancestry are crucial to the plot because they detail her royal bloodline.

The girl is dragged from her pony and though she is saved by the bravery of others she puts up a fight and stabs her assailant with a brooch torn from his cloak. Her brother is killed in the skirmish so she is the last bearer of the lineage.  Gruadh keeps the brooch as a talisman and this day’s events indelibly mark her character and her future.

Six years later she is married to the middle-aged Mormaeur (Earl) of Moray, before he is killed in a skirmish with Macbeth, who has been sent to do the job by his uncle King Malcolm. Macbeth forces marriage with Gruadh, as is his right under Celtic law, but afterwards treats her with respect and treats her baby son Lulach as his own. King Malcolm is succeeded by his son, the warlike Duncan, who stirs up trouble with the Scots’ enemies, until Macbeth kills him in battle.  Macbeth then becomes King of the Scots and Gruadh his Queen.

Throughout, Gruadh is depicted as a kind-hearted woman who has many friends; she is also intelligent, ambitious and strong-willed.  She lives in ruthless times and has to stand on her own feet; learning to fight and accompanying her husband into battle. She has second sight, though this gift is not strong enough to enable her to always shape her destiny.  A misinterpreted dream, combined with her grief at losing a baby makes her plead for the life of Duncan’s young son, Malcolm Canmore, an act of mercy which eventually proves her undoing.

Whilst I struggled in places, the novel is compellingly written and certainly exceeded my expectations.  It’s convincingly researched, with details of Celtic life and genealogy on every page and this may be why I struggled, it sometimes slows the storytelling down.  Detailing historical research to this extent might be more in keeping if this was a biography, though as the author points out, there are so few records of the real Lady Macbeth that a biography would necessarily be thinner than the 340 pages of this provocative novel.

Lady Macbeth the novel certainly dilutes the stain of villainy and evil which cloaks Lady Macbeth and her husband in Shakespeare’s play; whether it will guide me in my search for a hook on which to hang my own play remains to be seen.

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Writing Habits: 'Becoming a Writer' by Dorothea Brande

Although I love to watch films and TV, listen to music, go the the theatre and read widely, I do find it hard to write with other people's words still in my head. A bit of space is necessary between the activities for my own words to arrive.

Picking up Dorothea Brande's book, 'Becoming a Writer' which I haven't looked at for years, I opened it randomly at page 133 and under the heading Wordless Recreation, her words were;

If you want to stimulate yourself into writing, amuse yourself in a wordless way. Instead of going to a theater, hear a symphony orchestra, or go by yourself to a museum; go alone for long walks, or ride by yourself on a bus top.

I realised that she's absolutely right. When I do any of these things they do very often stimulate my writing, even although this is not the reason I'm doing them. Ok I don't go to listen to symphony orchestras. My tastes in classical music are limited and there's always one thing on a concert programme I know and like and a whole lot of things I'd find boring. My musical tastes are more in folk, rock and blues music and I acknowledge that their lyrics can interfere with my own creativity.

On the other hand I find visiting museums and galleries by myself hugely exciting. I can look at exactly what I like and spend an hour on the minutiae of one exhibit if I want to, without boring my husband to death or having to follow kids to the toilet/cafe/shop every five minutes.  And going on journeys alone, on foot, train, bus, car or plane takes me into other worlds, where my imagination is freed.

Dorothea Brande's book is full of great insights like this. When it was first recommended to me I nearly didn't bother to read it, as it was written so long ago. I felt she couldn't possibly tell me anything relevant to my generation and my writing. She'd never even seen a computer, for heavens' sake! But I did read it and from her wise and totally unpretentious words I realised that I had already become a writer and she also showed me how to carry on being a writer.

So, have you given up on all those starry-eyed, pseudo-spiritual books on writing which appear everywhere? Are you even more fed up with the 'How to Write a Best-Seller in Six Days/Six Chapters/Six Websites' genre, then I can recommend going back to basics with Dorothea Brande. It doesn't matter what you are trying to write: fiction, poetry, journalism, scripts, memoir or even academic theses. She can help remind you of how the process of writing works in your own mind. She really can!

Reading Habits: Passenger by Billy Cowie

I'm reading a lot at the moment. I used to be able to read up two novels a day - when I had not much else to do, obviously. Don't want to try that much right now, but a novel every two or three days is feasible. Having started yesterday with one review I may as well review some more, although I don't suppose I'll bother if they aren't worth the effort. This one is:

Passenger by Billie Cowie, published in 2008

Milan is a musician, a violinist in a orchestra. His new relationship with flautist Karen becomes diverted by a passenger, who lives inside him. The extraordinary existence of his conjoined twin is entirely new to Milan. He names her Roma, begins to communicate with her through music and realises she is a sentient and intelligent human being, not just a medical curiosity. The press and the medical professions are fascinated and Milan is tempted to bow to their fascination and to disregard his and Roma's real needs.

The story wastes no words, the writer's musical knowledge enhances without becoming intrusive. Passenger is well written and sympathetic whilst managing to steer well clear of the maudlin. The tragic end is unexpectedly abrupt and moving.

Billie Cowie is an installation artist, choreographer and theatre writer. This accomplished foray into fiction writing is his only published novel so far.

Another Tour de France Doping Scandal! 'Bad to the Bone,' a novel by James Waddington

Reading Habits.

I just wrote a short review for Amazon:

"Bad to the Bone, a novel by James Waddington:

The news about the controversy over several times Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong makes this seem a good time to review James Waddington's rather extraordinary novel about professional cycling. The story races tumultuously through an imagined Tour de France race with its own peculiar doping scandal. The author is a cyclist and one feels he understands somewhat of what he speaks. The twists and turns of race and story are comic, dark and bizarre.  Well worth a read even for non-cyclists! "

Lets see if Amazon publish it. I can definitely recommend the book, anyway.