The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox - Maggie O'Farrell

8 of us met to discuss our feelings about this book.

Surprisingly most of us had read this book before, and not one of us had remembered much of the story told. Perhaps it is a subject that brains choose not to retain. it is, after all, heart-rending.

The mystery of how so many of us had read the book before was cleared when Hilary showed us her book -10 years ago, I shared this book when I was given World Book Day copies to distribute.: 

We really enjoyed reading this book and those who had read it before felt it was a different reading experience the second time read. Why? We couldn’t put into words. Are we more aware of mental health issues? did we focus on different aspects of the situation? does the second read come with more understanding? Whatever it was we felt it was not wasted time (even for those of us who rarely re-read books). 

We spent time discussing whether the action taken at the very end of the book was justified. Given the circumstances with which it came about, we mostly felt it probably was. 

Of the characters: 

Esme was quirky, spirited, traumatised, misunderstood (in a terrible way) and absolutely didn’t deserve what happened to her and how she was subsequently treated. We were left angry and horrified by her story. 

Iris was a wonderful woman put into a very difficult situation and we felt sorry for her for that, but we also felt ‘proud’ of her for the decision she made when faced with a very human dilemma. 

We loved the construct of the story – how it developed the characters, how it went back and forth to the past and how dementia was portrayed. There were surprises at every turn. 

The story showcases the cruelty of the past. We did question whether it really is in the past, or whether what happens today can be equally as cruel to people like Esme. One of our members recalled a Woman’s Hour guest telling the story of her son who, through no fault of hers, was in a similar (more modern) predicament to Esme and, she said, there is seemingly nothing she can do to get him out of the situation.

This led us on to the subject of the closure of institutions and how people have been treated in the past vs. today and the language and the attitudes toward people who just don’t fit with the social norm. Certainly, what happened in the past was often very wrong but, we wondered, is what happens now much better? 

Would we recommend this book? Most definitely we would, and suggest you read it twice!

Our next book was selected from three recommended by a friend. All three are books written by her author friends. It was a difficult choice so we decided to go for what we hope will be a ‘light-hearted’ good read: The Hound in the Left-Hand Corner by Giles Waterfield which we will discuss at 8pm at The Hundred on Thursday 27th October. 

Book Choices to Leave Summer Behind

We will meet on Thursday 18th August 2022 at 8pm in The Hundred of Ashendon to discuss The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox by Maggie O'Farrell. Then choose our next read from the following choices:

Thunderstone by Nancy Campbell

In the wake of a traumatic lockdown, Nancy Campbell buys an old caravan and drives it into a strip of neglected woodland between a canal and railway. It is the first home she has ever owned.

As summer begins, Nancy embraces the challenge of how to live well in a space in which possessions and emotions often threaten to tumble – clearing industrial junk from the soil to help wild beauty flourish. But when illness and uncertainty loom once more, it is this van anchored in the woods, and the unconventional friendships forged off-grid, that will bring her solace and hope.

An intimate journal across the space of a defining summer, Thunderstone is a celebration of the people and places that hold us when the storms gather; an invitation to approach life with imagination and to embrace change bravely.

The Hound in the Left-Hand Corner by Giles Waterfield

In this brilliantly witty satire a prestigious British museum launches an ambitious new exhibit...which quickly becomes a seasonal nightmare. Think that a day in the life of a London museum director is cold, quiet, and austere? Think again. Giles Waterfield brings a combination of intellectual comedy and knockabout farce to the subject in this story of one long day in a museum full of scandals, screw-ups, and more than a few scalawags. At the beginning of The Hound in the Left-hand Corner, Auberon, the brilliant but troubled director of the Museum of British History, is preparing one midsummer's day for the opening of the most spectacular exhibition his museum has ever staged. The centrepiece is a painting of the intriguing Lady St. John strikingly attired as Puck, which hasn't been shown in London in a hundred years. As the day passes, the portrait arouses disquieting questions, jealousies, rivalries -- and more than a few strange affections -- in the minds of the museum staff. As guests and employees pour in, the tension rises -- and Auberon himself has the hilariously ridiculous task of keeping the peace, without losing his own sense of reality as well. For everyone who loves the farce of David Lodge and Michael Frayn, or even the Antiques Roadshow, the fast-paced, hilarious satire of The Hound in the Left-hand Corner is sure to delight and entertain.

Black Mamba Boy by Nadifa Mohamed

WINNER OF THE BETTY TRASK AWARD LONGLISTED FOR THE ORANGE PRIZE GRANTA BEST OF YOUNG BRITISH NOVELISTS 2013 

For fans of Half of a Yellow Sun, a stunning novel set in 1930s Somalia spanning a decade of war and upheaval, all seen through the eyes of a small boy alone in the world. Aden,1935; a city vibrant, alive, and full of hidden dangers. And home to Jama, a ten-year-old boy. But then his mother dies unexpectedly and he finds himself alone in the world. Jama is forced home to his native Somalia, the land of his nomadic ancestors. 

War is on the horizon and the fascist Italian forces who control parts of East Africa are preparing for battle. Yet Jama cannot rest until he discovers whether his father, who has been absent from his life since he was a baby, is alive somewhere. This story of one boy's long walk to freedom is also the story of how the Second World War affected Africa and its people; a story of displacement and family.